Statisticians put Klinsmann on course for glory

GERMANY’S under-fire national soccer coach Juergen Klinsmann and his team have every chance of clinching World Cup glory on home turf later this year - at least if you believe the statisticians.

Germany’s preparations for the tournament suffered a blow on Wednesday when they were crushed 4-1 by Italy in a friendly in Florence and the media has all but written off their chances of lifting their first World Cup since 1990.

However, a study into the benefits of home advantage published by the Cologne-based IW Institute suggests otherwise. Germany has on average reached the quarter or semi-finals of the World Cups it has taken part in.