By Barry Whelan Jul 7, 2006, 16:32 GMT
Berlin - Goalkeeper Oliver Kahn will captain Germany against Portugal in the match for third place in Stuttgart on Saturday, coach Juergen Klinsmann confirmed Friday.
Kahn, who will play his first World Cup match for Germany at the 2006 tournament, gets the captain's armband in place of Michael Ballack who is sidelined with a knee injury.
'Olli is the captain. That goes to the player with the most caps,' Klinsmann told Deutsche Presse-Agentur dpa.
With 85 caps, Kahn, 37, is the most experienced player in the German squad. It will be 49th appearance as captain for Kahn who was the national team's skipper until Klinsmann took over almost two years ago and gave the job to Ballack.
Kahn is playing after Arsenal keeper Jens Lehmann agreed to make way in another sign of a thawing of the frosty rivalry between the two keepers.
Klinsmann said Kahn's attitude in the squad as number two behind Lehmann had been impeccable.
'We have a lot to thank him for what we achieved here. The role he has played in the side has been fantastic and he deserves this chance,' said Klinsmann.
'Jens has no problem with this. He is full of compliments for Oliver.'
Kahn and Lehmann, once bitter rivals for the goalkeeping position, have drawn closer during the tournament. Kahn made a point of encouraging Lehmann ahead of the quarter-final penalty shoot-out against Argentina and the two keepers embraced briefly afterwards.
'It is simply a wonderful story which football has written here in the last few weeks, how these two have got on with each other,' Klinsmann said.
'It hurt Oliver to sit on the bench as number two but he has been fantastic. Jens has had an absolutely world class tournament, for me he is the goalkeeper of the World Cup.'
Saturday's match in Stuttgart could be Kahn's international swansong, while Lehmann, 36, in unsure what his future holds.
At club level, Lehmann has signed a contract with Arsenal until 2007, while Kahn wants to play for another two years.
Kahn, voted best player of the 2002 World Cup, extended his contract with Bayern Munich at the start of the year until 2008. In an interview recently he said he could 'imagine the coming two years being the nicest in my goalkeeping career'.
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