Germany coach Joachim Loew on Friday cooled down an escalating war of words with Argentina, saying his team respected their World Cup quarterfinal opponents.
Germany’s Bastian Schweinsteiger launched a tirade against the South Americans as he recalled the 2006 quarterfinal between the two teams, which ended in an u
nseemly brawl after the Europeans won on penalties. He said that a lack of respect and a desire to provoke opponents was ingrained in the Argentine mentality, and even had a go at their fans.
Loew was more circumspect. “I never thought it (the match) was unfair or violent ... I don’t think there was unfair play,” he said.
“The Argentines are passionate, they fight hard, they are very committed — that is just the Argentines’ mentality.”
While Loew indicated that the Germans had “great respect” for Argentina, he did say they were a physical side who always pushed it to the limit on the pitch.
Defender Jerome Boateng was also diplomatic, saying that he had not seen any unsporting play from Argentina in South Africa.
“As Joachim already said, they fight hard on the one-to-ones, but they’re not unfair,” he said. — DPA