Niersbach on World Cup

Wolfgang Niersbach, what has stayed with you after the Portugal game?

I had the same impression as the people who celebrated the win in the streets in Germany. It was superb! We couldn't have imagined a better start, especially against a side that are third in the world rankings. During the game, one thought did cross my mind. It was a bit like the first game against Yugoslavia in the 1990 World Cup in Milan. I recently called Franz Beckenbauer and he thought the same thing. The parallels are clear. Back then, the situation was also 50-50 against a strong opponent and we didn't really know how we would play. That good start didn't do us much good, but here I hope that there's no danger of that and that we can really push on.

You're estimations are quite high then? What potential do you see in this Germany team?

There's no doubt the team has the potential to go really far in this competition. The quality and the team spirit is there. I could sense it in the changing room as well. There's no difference in that feeling between hat-trick hero Thomas Müller and back-up players Roman Weidenfeller and Ron-Robert Zieler. It's a team of 23 players. If you notice how the back-up players celebrate and jump off the bench when a goal goes in, it's great. The team needs that, but it also needs luck. The Portuguese team had no luck: a penalty, a red card, an injury. These things are often closely connected in football.

The next opponents are a physical Ghana side. What are you expecting from the game?

It's a completely different task. I don't even need to check with the staff. I know they'll be observing these opponents fervently. Our coach will find the right answers. We are favorites, of course, but at the 2010 World Cup when Mesut Özil scored the winner in our 1-0 win against Ghana, it was a close game. It was a nervous encounter after the defeat to Serbia. The team will be able to take to the field with more freedom and confidence.

What do you make of the World Cup atmosphere in Brazil? Is the country wrapped up in World Cup fever?

I had the good fortune of being in Sao Paolo for the first few days. The World Cup mood there was far from noticeable. I rarely saw flags or decorations or any crowds either. Perhaps the city is too big for such things, but in the stadiums the atmosphere is great. The quality of the games I have seen is also very high - there's only been one 0-0. In terms of atmosphere, I think we might still have the 2006 tournament in Germany in the back of our minds, when the World Cup spilled across every corner of the country. I can't get an overview here, but at least Santo André is a footballing paradise.

Wolfgang Niersbach has been president of the German FA (DFB) since March 2012. The German FA has 6.8 million members, making it the biggest single sport professional association in the world. Having worked for the Sport Information Service (SID) as a sports journalist, he became Germany's chief press officer in 1988, before he became general secretary in 2007. As president of the German FA, Niersbach has placed great value on youth development and mass sport in German football.