Lehmann keeping the faith

For the German media, the No 1 story in football will be played out tonight. Steve Aldridge reports from Munich.

OLIVER KAHN and Jens Lehmann, Germany's two goalkeeping rivals, have more than a place in the Champions League quarter-finals to lose.

Great saves, impeccable handling and all-round goal-line heroics will only go so far in persuading German coach Juergen Klinsmann that either man should be handed the number one jersey for the hosts at next year's World Cup.

But one blunder, a shot that slips under the body, a cross dropped to a forward's feet or an ill-advised rush from goal, could very well spell the end of one of the two men's hopes.

Bayern's Kahn and Arsenal's Lehmann, both 35, are acknowledged as being among the finest goalkeepers in the world and Klinsmann knows either man would be worthy of his place on talent alone.

Any suggestion of being unable to deal with the sort of pressure that a high-profile Champions League match provides would be another matter entirely, although Lehmann has been doing his best to play down the significance of tonight's showdown.

"I honestly don't believe Klinsmann will be sitting in the stands and thinking to himself, that's the player for me," said Lehmann.

The Arsenal keeper offered a revealing insight into his make-up yesterday as he explained how he reverted to his Germanic roots to find the strength to cope with the disappointment of an 11-match exile from Arsene Wenger's first team. Lehmann hails from Essen, once the heart of the country's coal-mining industry, and where, though many of the pits have now been closed, the people retain the traits of past generations.

"What I did was work even harder," he said. "That is what the people do in the area where I grew up. You don't feel sorry for yourself, you get on with life.

"Of course I was disappointed to be left out of the team. I have never been dropped for so long in my career. But where I come from, the people have a tradition of working hard and that is what I did.

"I know where that characteristic comes from. Most of the coal mines are closed now but they keep some open for people to look round, to see the conditions in which the miners had to work.

"I have been down there, I have seen the long, narrow tunnels in which they were working day after day.

"The work was dangerous and it was hard. That meant the people had a certain attitude to life and to work and they have kept that, even now.

"I was brought up with those standards, with that approach to life. That has helped me through this difficult period. I looked on it as a challenge. I just worked harder to get back."

That approach paid dividends for the 35-year-old after Spaniard Manuel Almunia, who had claimed his jersey, made one mistake too many in Arsenal's 4-2 defeat by Manchester United at Highbury.

"Naturally, I was happy to be back," said Lehmann. "Everybody wants to play and, because of the result, it was a successful comeback. But while I was out, no, my self-confidence was not affected. I have always been self-confident.

"Maybe it is my mentality because all the time I strive to be the best. That goes back to my upbringing if you want to be successful you have to work hard."

Lehmann then recalls the day that he was dropped by Wenger. "I was surprised when he took me out of the team," said the goalkeeper. "But I am a professional and I cannot afford to take it personally. He is the boss and every player has to respect his decision.

"But I want my future to be at Arsenal and when he asked me if I planned to leave during the transfer window in January, I told him no, that I intended to stay. I brought my family over here for three years, not 18 months. They like London, as I do, and I love the club. I intend to stay."

The match-up tonight has generated huge newspaper interest in Germany, and is seen as a match within a match. "The media are certainly happy I am back," said Lehmann. "There is a lot of stuff for the papers to write now. They call it 'The War of the Goalkeepers' but I can honestly say the relationship between myself and Oliver is miles away from this. We work together in training and sometimes we laugh about what is written.

"The truth is we are both members of the national squad and in that squad there has to be a spirit, everyone has to be responsible. You cannot afford private arguments. We have the World Cup in Germany next year so this is very important preparation time. The team is all that is important, not individuals."

Lehmann said: "It's a rivalry, a competitive relationship, but it's not poisonous or anything. It's a rivalry that's all. Somebody will play in the 2006 World Cup, but nobody knows who yet. I just think it keeps people in the media lively."

Lehmann added: "I don't expect a very good reception. Whenever I went to Bayern with Schalke or Dortmund, the welcome was never warm. But this does not bother me.

"We will have to be cautious on set-pieces and we will have to concentrate for the full 90 minutes. When you least expect it they can score. They are always dangerous.

"They might look like they are out of the game, playing badly, and then suddenly they will score with a fantastic strike."