German squad to say farewell at Berlin fan fest

Jul 6, 2006, 12:02 GMT

Berlin - The Germany squad is to thank its supporters at the World Cup with a farewell appearance at the fan festival zone in central Berlin on Sunday.

The team has decided to fly back to the capital Sunday morning from Stuttgart to appear before supporters at midday in the fan zone around the Brandenburg Gate.

The so-called 'party mile' has attracted close to a million people on German match days, and hundreds of thousands will be expected for Sunday's farewell appearance by Juergen Klinsmann and his squad.

Germany play against Portugal in Stuttgart Saturday evening in the match for third-place. The decision to return to Berlin Sunday to parade before the fans was made by the players at a team meeting.

Goalkeeper Jens Lehmann said: 'We want to say farewell to the fans and express our thanks for the support we have received from the beginning to the bitter end with our elimination in Dortmund.

'It will be a very important gesture and I am sure an emotional highlight for us all.'

Striker Miroslav Klose said: 'It is very important for us as a team to say goodbye in a professional manner. The fans have fevered with us and helped carry us into the semi-finals. We want to give something back to them. I am looking forward to it. I am sure it will be a fascinating experience to appear before so many people.'

On Wednesday evening, Chancellor Angela Merkel expressed her thanks to the squad by inviting players for dinner in the chancellery.

Eight players and team manager Oliver Bierhoff spent around two hours with Chancellor Merkel, during which they enjoyed a tour of the office and spent the evening chatting on the terrace.

It was a 'very relaxed' evening, said Lehmann.

'She made a very relaxed and well-informed impression, which I think surprised us all a bit - how much she knew about football and how up on things she was. The food was also good,' he added.