Lehmann ready to step down
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ByEurosport
Published 06/07/2006 at 15:34 GMT
Germany number one Jens Lehmann is prepared to step down and offer his place in Saturday's World Cup third place playoff to rival Oliver Kahn. "If the coach says it would be a nice gesture for Oliver to play then that would be fine by me," Lehmann said on Thursday.
FOOTBALL 2006 World Cup Germany Germany-Argentina Lehmann
Image credit: Imago
Before the tournament there was no love lost between the pair as they fought tooth and nail to be selected by Juergen Klinsmann as the host nation's premier goalkeeper.
But over the last month, their relationship seems to have mellowed - Kahn was the first to praise Lehmann after the penalty shootout win over Brazil - and this final gesture from Lehmann is sure to go a long way to healing the bad blood between the two.
Lehmann has played superbly in Germany, conceding just two goals in the run-up to their semi-final defeat to Italy, whilst Kahn is yet to appear in the World Cup finals since a blunder cost his side the title four years ago.
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