Beckenbauer in fresh dig at England

| Friday June 25, 2010 00:00

The two sides will meet in Bloemfontein on Sunday after England failed to win Group C despite beating Slovenia 1-0.

'Stupidly, the English have slipped up a little by finishing second in their group,' said German great Beckenbauer.

'The English look a little tired... they are burnt out. We respect them but we certainly don't fear them.'

England's win over Slovenia made certain of their place in the knockout stages of the competiion, but they were denied a meeting with Ghana on Saturday when a late winner by the United States against Algeria put them on top of the group table.

Beckenbauer attacked England's style of play earlier in the tournament, saying they had 'gone backwards into the bad old days of kick and rush', but admitted they looked better in their final group match.

'England's first two appearances at the World Cup were paltry, but they improved against Slovenia,' Beckenbauer, who won the tournament as a player and a coach, told German newspaper, Bild.

'What makes them dangerous is that their key players Frank Lampard, Steven Gerrard and John Terry sense that this could be the last chance in their career to win a World Cup. And after all, England have been waiting since 1966 for a title.

'After they failed to qualify for Euro 2008, England hit rock bottom. Fabio Capello appears to have brought discipline to the troops, [he] has brought in a new structure.'

Beckenbauer said 'a game like this [England v Germany] should be a semi-final, not a last-16 game'.

However, he believes the German players are fresher than England's, a situation he put down to the rigours of Premier League football.

'The Premier League players have got to play far more games than their Bundesliga colleagues, including two national cup competitions,' Beckenbauer added. 'Therefore, when it comes to a World Cup or a European Championships, they are burnt out. Our players, on the other hand, seem to be in a physically better condition.' (BBC)