Germany Satisfied After Beating Iran

There are no style points awarded in the World Cup, no bonuses given for a scintillating performance. The reward often lies in simply surviving to play again--and Germany accomplished that much Thursday.

After enduring some uncertain moments during a scoreless first half, Germany pulled away from a willing but overmatched Iranian team on goals eight minutes apart by Oliver Bierhoff and Jurgen Klinsmann in the second half, recording a 2-0 victory at Stade de la Mosson in Montpellier and finishing first in preliminary Group F.

Germany and Yugoslavia each recorded two victories and a tie in the first round, but Germany edged Yugoslavia on goal differential, plus-four to plus-two, to take first place and earn a higher seeding in the round of 16.

Germany will face Mexico in the round of 16 Monday at Montpellier. After maintaining their patience and poise Thursday and finding a way to win, German players say they feel more prepared for the road ahead.

“We wanted to show that we were better than the team that played against Yugoslavia,” Bierhoff said, referring to Germany’s dispirited 2-2 draw in its previous game.

“We saw in the other games that as long as it was 0-0, there was always a danger that the Iranians might score. Particularly in the first half, they quite often looked a threat, and so we were relieved to get the two goals. . . .

“It would have been nice to score one or two goals more, but we’re happy with the result.”

Germany was superior in the first half in terms of possession, especially in the attacking zone, but its finishing skills were off and it never managed to sustain any pressure. It took a halftime speech from Coach Berti Vogts, who said he felt compelled to speak to his players “and calm them down,” to restore Germany’s confidence and enable it to make the most of strikers Bierhoff and Klinsmann.

The rest seemed to refresh the Germans, and they soon began to take control of the game. Their goals showed excellent technique. Bierhoff rose above two Iranian defenders to head home a fine cross from Thomas Hassler in the 50th minute, and as Germany began to press, Klinsmann headed home the rebound of a shot by Bierhoff that hit the post in the 58th minute.