Photo by ISIPhotos.com
By DAN KARELL
Like his teammate Philipp Lahm, Miroslav Klose has decided to leave international soccer as World Cup champions.
On Monday, Klose announced that he was retiring from the German National Team after helping his nation to lift the World Cup title in Brazil. Klose also became the World Cup’s all-time leading goalscorer with two goals in Brazil giving him a total of 16, one more than Brazilian forward Ronaldo.
“Lifting the trophy in Brazil was the fulfilment of a childhood dream for me,” Klose said in a statement with the German Football Federation. “I’m proud and happy to have been able to contribute to such a great achievement for German football. I had a unique and wonderful time with the national team and enjoyed many unforgettable moments. I’ve used the past few weeks to let all those moments sink in once more and to savour them. I cannot think of a better time to bring the international chapter of my career to a close.”
Klose, 36, made his Germany debut on March 24, 2001, coming off the bench in a match against Albania, scoring on his debut. Klose went on to make 137 appearances for Germany, second most in history behind Lothar Matthaus’ 150 caps.
Here are some more stories to kick off your Monday:
MAN CITY CLINCH MANGALA SIGNING
Manchester City completed the expected signing of French defender Eliaquim Mangala on Monday, signing the 23-year-old to a five-year contract.
Mangala, formerly of FC Porto, moved to Man City for a reported £32 million, and is the sixth signing of the summer for Man City. Mangala spent the summer with the French National Team at the World Cup, though he did not make an appearance.
“Man City is a top club in Europe,” Mangala said in a statement. “For me, it was an important step to leave Porto and join Man City in order to continue my progress. I want to win titles and I believe I can do this. I am ambitious and this is why I am here.
“I’m very happy to come to England because for me, the Premier League is the best league in the world. It is a very intense and very aggressive competition. There are plenty of goals, so it is also really nice to watch and I can’t wait to get started. The fact that Fernando is here is better because I played with him at Porto but there is also other players that I know like Bakary Sagna, Gael Clichy and Samir Nasri.”
REUS, HUMMELS RETURNS TO TRAINING
Borussia Dortmund had a nice surprise in training on Monday as both Marco Reus and Mats Hummels returned to full training.
Both players are recovering from separate injuries, torn ankle ligaments for Reus and a muscular problem from Hummels, but both are now preparing for the start of the season on Aug. 23.
However, the upcoming German Supercup game against Bayern Munich on Wednesday comes too soon for the pair.
QUICK KICKS
Neymar has returned to full training with the Barcelona squad after spending a week working on his own to recover fitness following his vacation and back injury from the World Cup. (REPORT)
New Barcelona signing Thomas Vermaelen likely won’t be available for selection until September as he recovers from a right hamstring injury. (REPORT)
Borussia Dortmund CEO Hans-Joachim Watzke has signed a contract extension with the club through 2019. (REPORT)
Benfica have won the Portuguese Supercup on penalty kicks over Rio Ave FC. (REPORT)
Alexandre Pato scored twice for Sao Paulo in a 3-1 victory over Vitoria. (REPORT)
Boca Juniors fell, 1-0, to Newell’s Old Boys and Independiente defeated Athletico Rafaela, 3-0, in Argentina’s league opening weekend. (REPORT)
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What do you think of these reports? What’s Klose legacy for Germany? Do you see Mangala starting for Man City this season? Do you expect Reus and Hummels to be ready for the start of the season?
Share your thoughts below.