Germany Gets a Break, Then Two More

After giving up three goals to Australia in the opening match, coach Jürgen Klinsmann ordered his midfield to drop back and give his young defenders some support. For most of the match against Tunisia, they obeyed his orders to a fault.

Then, Tunisian defender Wissem Abdi cut down captain Michael Ballack in the penalty box in the 74th minute. Ballack converted the penalty, opening the scoring flood gates to make the 3-0 final stand seem much more than it really was.

"It was good that the team stayed together and fought together," said Klinsmann. "Something like that gives every trainer a good feeling."

Skilled on the ball

Before a sold out crowd of more than 44,000 at Cologne's RheinEnergie Stadium, the home team was doing little to augment the good vibes the sun and warm temperatures was giving the fans. After letting Germany have a good start to the game, with a few chances, Tunisia took the upper hand.

The African Cup champions out-ed themselves as fine technicians with some fine passes. When they weren't pressing the German midfield to drop back, they were disrupting their advances towards goal.

"We lost our rhythm because the Tunisians are very skilled," said Klinsmann.

In the 27th minute, Lehmann fell into the net blocking off a corner kick by Brazilian born midfielder Clayton. The bizarre kick could have put Germany under some serious pressure early in the game had it gone in.

Klinsmann's team responded gamely, but couldn't find the holes as Tunisian defenders Radhi Jaidi and Hatem Trabelsi made things difficult for Ballack, Bastian Schweinsteiger and company.

Tunisia missing final touch

The second half was all Tunisia, as Lemerre's "mosquitos" made good on their coach's threat and stormed the German goal. But it was the final touch that eluded the north Africans, and ultimately doomed them.

Lehmann, taking Kahn's place in goal for the game, made a nice stop of a slow rolling but dangerous tap in from Adel Chadli in the 56th minute. Tunisia continued to press until Ballack fell in the box.

The youth investment pays off

Freed of the burden of a tie game, Germany became more aggressive following Ballack's score. In the 80th, 20-year-old Lukas Podolski, who has had a strong game, led Schweinsteiger perfectly. The Bayern Munich creative midfielder dribbled around Ali Boumnijel and popped the ball in from a tough angle.

Eight minutes later, the newly substituted Mike Hanke, another youngster, took a gorgeous cross from Deisler in the center of the box. After his initial header was turned away, he volleyed the rebound in, giving Germany its final stand - and most likely sending them into the semifinal round.