Miroslav Klose

[chris79]

Deserves his record. His longevity and choosing a country has paid off with a place in the history books.

Fixed now.

[Pukey]

Not even in top 100 world cup players imo

(I'm gonna have to include 7 million safety winks here, aren't I?)

[headshotbg]

I thought he did it against USA?

Nah - 5 last time and 5 now with today's goal

[av3ry]

Top class poacher Great achievement.

Still no Inzaghi though

[Rio_V]

Reuters - July 08, 2014

(Reuters) - Following is a list of Germany striker Miroslav Klose's record-breaking 16 goals scored at World Cups:

World Cup 2002 Japan-South Korea

Group stage: Germany 8 Saudi Arabia 0, Klose 20, 25, 69

Group stage: Germany 1 Ireland 1, Klose 19

Group stage: Cameroon 0 Germany 2, Klose 79

World Cup 2006 Germany

Group stage: Germany 4 Costa Rica 2, Klose 17, 61

Group stage: Ecuador 0 Germany 3, Klose 4, 44

Quarter-final: Germany 1 Argentina 1, Klose 80 (Germany won on penalties)

Germany 2010 South Africa

Group stage: Germany 4 Australia 0, Klose 26

Round of 16: Germany 4 England 1, Klose 20

Quarter-final: Argentina 0 Germany 4, Klose 68, 89

World Cup 2014 Brazil

Group stage: Germany 2 Ghana 2, Klose 71

Semi-final: Brazil 1 Germany 7, Klose 23

(Reporting by Karolos Grohmann, Editing by Nigel Hunt)

[georginho_juventusygr]

The great thing about Klose that Müller can never do and which no number of goals Müller will score can make up for is that Klose never dives and play-acts in reaching this record.

[PMLF]

All Klose goals in the World Cup:

[video=youtube_share;0Vkd1iU2dEY]http://youtu.be/0Vkd1iU2dEY

[scott MUFC]

BBC showed all the goals last Germany game, the furthest back he scored from was a Penalty O.o

[Razzler]

Klose not scored in a semi or final before in that run of goals until today

To do it against Brazil too

Amazing really. Saudi helped

[PMLF]

Klose not scored in a semi or final before in that run of goals until today

To do it against Brazil too

Amazing really. Saudi helped

No different from any of the World Cup's top scorers ever though.

You can't score 10+ goals in the WC by scoring only against top teams.

[soccer.joel]

The great thing about Klose that Müller can never do and which no number of goals Müller will score can make up for is that Klose never dives and play-acts in reaching this record.

Müller never dives. Their is always contact when he is fouled. He is very passionate about Bayern and Germany, and you can't fault him of that

[Razzler]

Weird that Klose will never probably be remembered alongside the likes of fat Ronaldo in terms of player or scorer

I expect Mueller to break this anyway

[Boltman]

Top class poacher Great achievement.

Still no Inzaghi though

He'd need to spend the first 20 years of his retirement offside to match Pippo

[JD nawrat]

The great thing about Klose that Müller can never do and which no number of goals Müller will score can make up for is that Klose never dives and play-acts in reaching this record.

Klose one of the most noble, honest gentlemen of the game.

His admission of handball for Lazio to take off one of his own goals was superb.

[TM]

Weird that Klose will never probably be remembered alongside the likes of fat Ronaldo in terms of player or scorer

I expect Mueller to break this anyway

in terms of player, I'd probably agree considering Ronaldo was a scorer of much more spectacular goals, dribbling past players and so on. Klose will go down as somebody who was lethal in the box which is what you want from a goalscorer

[football_master_94]

Will have no bad mouthing of Super Miro in here

Klose :applause:

[martinji]

The great thing about Klose that Müller can never do and which no number of goals Müller will score can make up for is that Klose never dives and play-acts in reaching this record.

Klose got two elbows from Luiz last night and barely flinched, he has an iron chin.

[Pukey]

BBC showed all the goals last Germany game, the furthest back he scored from was a Penalty O.o

From the penalty spot, not an actual penalty.

Not a bad thing to have all your goals from so close. See: Ruud van Nistelrooy. Think he only scored one from outside the area in his Manchester United career

[RubenJ]

I thought Ruud had a pretty great shot from further out?

[Svenc]

Seeing Inzaghi mentioned, one thing I don't get, though it might look like it from some Germany games and the scoring record, it that Klose is seen a classic poacher. The reason he has been almost universally favoured by Löw over Gomez is that precisely because he isn't a classic poacher and limited to what he does inside the box (scoring goals, namely). In his first season at Kaiserslautern he was even playing in midfield, and later at Bremen he delivered tons of assists and always dropped deep to be involved in play as well.

As for the record, I think Ronaldo has himself to blame. You look at Klose and think that's a pretty good shape for a 36 years old. Ronaldo was jeered in 2006 for being overweight aged 30. Shame that Ronaldo like Platini, like Beckenbauer and many more has also entered the club of ex fantastic football players who have outed themselves as unbearable off the pitch after their career was over, and he likewise has no problems going along to any kind of crook in (football) politics, and is being backed by the man himself for likely a reason. For all his polemics, I'd take Romario any bloody day.

[PMLF]

Seeing Inzaghi mentioned, one thing I don't get, though it might look like it from some Germany games and the scoring record, it that Klose is seen a classic poacher. The reason he has been almost universally favoured by Löw over Gomez is that precisely because he isn't a classic poacher and limited to what he does inside the box (scoring goals, namely). In his first season at Kaiserslautern he was even playing in midfield, and later at Bremen he delivered tons of assists and always dropped deep to be involved in play as well.

As for the record, I think Ronaldo has himself to blame. You look at Klose and think that's a pretty good shape for a 36 years old. Ronaldo was jeered in 2006 for being overweight aged 30. Shame that Ronaldo like Platini, like Beckenbauer and many more has also entered the club of ex fantastic football players who have outed themselves as dumbwits off the pitch and after their career was over, and has no problems going along to any kind of crook in (football) politics, and is being backed by the man himself for likely a reason. For all it's polemics, I'd take Romario any bloody day.

Most Brazilians would, many here were hoping Klose would surpass Ronaldo, as it happened in the end.

[Marc Albrighton]

Weird that Klose will never probably be remembered alongside the likes of fat Ronaldo in terms of player or scorer

I expect Mueller to break this anyway

As a scorer he'll rightly be remembered, as a great player definitely not.

[jmr]

As for the record, I think Ronaldo has himself to blame. You look at Klose and think that's a pretty good shape for a 36 years old. Ronaldo was jeered in 2006 for being overweight aged 30.

Do you think having two career ending (for most people) injuries didn't play a massive part in that? Klose has been extremely lucky with injuries.

[Pukey]

I thought Ruud had a pretty great shot from further out?

I don't know tbh, but he certainly never scored many for Man United from outside the area (because he didn't need to due to being so good in the box)

[JD nawrat]

Do you think having two career ending (for most people) injuries didn't play a massive part in that? Klose has been extremely lucky with injuries.

Not sure the severity of the injury should matter - if you eat properly and exercise the rest of your body well during injury you stay at a stable/decent weight. Ronaldo would come back from minor injuries noticeably heavier. It was almost as if he did no training at all when injured and you could see the weight pack on from pre- and post-injury...

[PMLF]

I think part of Ronaldo's injuries were also because at PSV they bulked him up too much, leading to his knee injuries later on.

Maybe if he had not bulked up that much, he would have been less successful in short term, but would possibly be more successful in long term, keep playing for a few more years, etc..

[jmr]

What minor injuries? He was out for a year at a time, twice, one of those being 6 minutes after he came back from a year out. Mentally I doubt Ronaldo was in a good place for a very long time when those types of things are happening.

[JD nawrat]

Sorry I meant major injuries. My bad.

[Svenc]

Injuries are a fair point. It's can definitely get a mental thing, and I can imagine them very well to get one for such long spells of injuries. But Ronaldo had more than a few extra pounds in his later years, and whilst that may be a very human thing to have happened, in this sports it wasn't very professional either. Again, professional footballers should be allowed to be mere humans too, after all. However not every player gains weight like that because he is prone to injuries (even long term ones). Not going to speculate about whether the weight gain in later years cast clouds over the level of Ronaldo's professionalism in general, which might have also rubbed off on his injury history in general, that would be unfair to judge from the viewpoint of a spectator.

Klose either way judging by quotes has always known where he came from (he was never considered a Wunderkind and didn't turn professional until his early 20s, at which age Ronaldo was already a Barcelona and Inter starlet), so he likely always put that extra commitment into it all to enjoy that ride as long as it lasted. He was also never one for the tabloids, getting caught drinking and partying with missus and friends. With somebody of Ronaldo's level of pure skill and reputation alone, that is perhaps a less likely thing to happen to the same extent, but now we are speculating and it's a bit primature and clichè either way. What we can definitely conclude is that Ronaldo despite still scoring three, didn't show up particularly well prepared for 2006, whilst Klose did so for this Cup, and in 2010 already too, despite barely really featuring at Bayern the season prior. The career paths of both players have been massively different from the very start too.

That said though, injuries are a fair point, in particular long-term ones always have a huge effects on any sports career. Without those injuries, Ronaldo would arguably have been a better player at the Cups he had competed in and might have scored some goals more too, but, that is a big but -- as in a football match there is no re-run of careers likewise, and we'll never know if he had scored more or no.

[RubenJ]

Regardless of injuries, Ronaldo still played 3 world cups.

Can hardly blame Ronaldo, when it is Klose who is the exception in that regard. How many 36 year olds are still playing striker for their country at a world cup? Ronaldo isn't the only one who was finished by then.

[RubenJ]

as if 1 goal difference is even reason to put Klose over Ronaldo. Ronaldo still scored 15 goals, 8 of which in 2002. His goals won a world cup, Klose's goals didn't.

[Svenc]

That's the thing, given his immense ability over which there is no doubt, he could have probably scored a bit more than the three in the 2006 WC. That is, if he was fit. You aren't finished aged 30. Two of those goals came against Japan in the group stages, a side that conceded three against Australia prior. Still was one of the top scorers at the 2006 WC, though, so it was probably a bit harsh putting it like that. Had he been fit in the final of 1998, you'll never know what would have happened then either, but that really wasn't him to blame if all the many legends surrounding that day are to be believed.

as if 1 goal difference is even reason to put Klose over Ronaldo.

It is in the one statistics everyone is talking about (and nothing more). As seen, the number of WC games in which both featured are on par too, which reflects Klose's slow start of his career, turning a professional at an age at which Ronaldo was already a regular at sides such as Barca and Inter, and first featuring at an international tournament aged 24.

Unless he picks up an injury between now and Sunday, I wouldn't completely 100% rule out a Klose goal winning a World Cup quite yet though.

[RubenJ]

I imagine Klose will start the match, definitely has a shot.

Argentina don't exactly have the fondest memory of him either.

[Eleanor_Rigby]

That's the thing, given his immense ability over which there is no doubt, he could have probably scored a bit more than the three in the 2006 WC. That is, if he was fit. You aren't finished aged 30. Two of those goals came against Japan in the group stages, a side that conceded three against Australia prior. Still was one of the top scorers at the 2006 WC, though, so it was probably a bit harsh putting it like that. Had he been fit in the final of 1998, you'll never know what would have happened then either, but that really wasn't him to blame if all the many legends surrounding that day are to be believed.

I've always wondered why most (not all) of the recent great Brazilian players decline rapidly in their late 20's. It's like they reach a certain level and think to themselves that they have nothing more to prove and as a result their performances drop faster than a whore's knickers.

[PMLF]

I've always wondered why most (not all) of the recent great Brazilian players decline rapidly in their late 20's. It's like they reach a certain level and think to themselves that they have nothing more to prove and as a result their performances drop faster than a whore's knickers.

I think it's because most start playing at a very high level when they are 17-18-19 or so, and since many of them lack professionalism too, by the time they are 28 or so they are physically and mentally tired.

Considering how early Neymar started, I won't be surprised if the same happens to him too.

[adhikapp]

I think it's because most start playing at a very high level when they are 17-18-19 or so, and since many of them lack professionalism too, by the time they are 28 or so they are physically and mentally tired.

Considering how early Neymar started, I won't be surprised if the same happens to him too.

I don't think Neymar's career would peak early and drop drastically. He seems to be more professional than Ronaldinho or Adriano, but I get the feeling he might still be playing in a big club in Europe by the age of 33 (doubt he'll still be in Barca though). If he recovers well after this injury though, he'll be fine.

[martinji]

As a scorer he'll rightly be remembered, as a great player definitely not.

I'll remember him as a great player as I expect many will. I'm not going to argue he's right at the top with Ronaldo, Pele, Maradona, Zidane etc but has definitely earnt the status of all time great player IMO, at least as far as international football goes.

[PMLF]

I don't think Neymar's career would peak early and drop drastically. He seems to be more professional than Ronaldinho or Adriano, but I get the feeling he might still be playing in a big club in Europe by the age of 33 (doubt he'll still be in Barca though). If he recovers well after this injury though, he'll be fine.

He is more professional and he hasn't had major injuries but mentally it will be hard to keep the focus with all these marketing campaigns and pressure 24/7 to succeed. He showed signs of tiredness at that when he was at Santos, I think after a few years he will have that again.

[Orzelek]

As for Ronaldo- his injuries happened rather early in his career while his bad fitness started when he was at Real. The fact is that he never was very professional and in his last years, it was almost a habit that he came overweight after holidays and so on

[Orzelek]

As for Klose- well done Miro

Nobody has claimed that he's some all time greatest, but his achievements are astonishing never the less Starting his career late and achieving so much is really extraordinary. And I can't see why anyone can have a problem with him having the record- he's a nice and humble person, a very fair player and a model professional athlete

[Eztikz]

some of these posts on the first page

[CaptainPlanet]

He'll never be considered amongst the top players, probably not even top 250.

I agree. Not by anyone except the Germans. When people are reeling off the best strikers of all time he'll be lower than Michael Owen for most. That's not that he didn't or doesn't have the ability, but he won't be remembered as a great by the public.

[Doc Gonzo]

Not sure if Klose knows who she is.

[Pangaea]

And I can't see why anyone can have a problem with him having the record- he's a nice and humble person, a very fair player and a model professional athlete

He certainly seems that way from the outside, and he has behaved impeccably at the WC. The incident escapes me now, but there was a moment yesterday where I thought "hmm, not many would have done that there". In terms of sportsmanship and fair play, Müller doesn't reach him to the toenails - although he will probably outscore Klose if he's fit and in-form for the next two WCs.

I suppose he has had the advantage of there being a dearth of German talent up front lately, but you still have to perform and he has always done that. And keeping as fit as he has done at 36 says much about his professionalism and dedication.

Would have preferred Ronaldo to have the record as he was a much better player, but don't really have a problem with somebody like Klose overtaking him.

Didn't attempt his salto at the last goal though. Very poor show!

[RubenJ]

Müller is a grade A ****.

[PMLF]

Imagine if:

Klose wins the World Cup

Klose breaks Ronaldo's record

Klose scores twice in the final against Brazil, like Ronaldo did against Germany in 2002.

Not exactly the same order, but pretty much all the above (with minor variations) happened.

And Germany crushed Brazil 7-1, something I would have never imagined happening.

[robbert_o154]

Shame that Ronaldo like Platini, like Beckenbauer and many more has also entered the club of ex fantastic football players who have outed themselves as unbearable off the pitch after their career was over

I haven't really been paying attention; how has he done this?

[Razzler]

Not sure if Klose knows who she is.

I am sure he has a TV

[robbert_o154]

I don't know who she is either.

[McMaster#28]

Is it Rihanna?