Ahead of their Group B opener, the German number one advises his teammates not to take Portugal lightly.
Joachim Low’s men head to the European championships with defeats against Switzerland and France still on their minds. Despite the losses, bookies and pundits still tip them to lift the Euro 2012 trophy on July 1st in
Kiev.
Neuer on, the other hand, advises his team-mates to remain grounded. The favourites’ tag would be meaningless if they lose against Portugal. The Bayern Munich keeper reckons that, if Die Mannschaft want to top their group, a win
against Paulo Bento’s men is crucial. A win on Saturday would take a lot of pressure off the DFB eleven and would give them a much needed morale boost after a few disappointing results.
"I hope we get off to a good start, so the pressure that we impose on ourselves gets less. We want to win, but have to be modest in preparing for the game," he is quoted to have said in an interview.
The former Schalke man is aware of the individual talents that A Seleccao have in their ranks, especially their skipper Cristiano Ronaldo. He faced the Real Madrid forward in the semi finals of the UEFA Champions League and knows
how big a threat he is for the German defence.
"Cristiano Ronaldo? I'd say the Champions League semi-final [between Bayern Munich and Real Madrid] turned out to be a tie between us, but I suppose [Mesut] Ozil and [Sami] Khedira kept him well informed about me," he added.
DFB eleven find themselves in a tough group i.e. the Group of death, which includes the likes of Netherlands, Portugal and Denmark. If they are to keep their title hopes alive, Germany cannot afford to underestimate the Iberian
side.
Die Nationalelf, on the other hand, possess enough talent to top the group, and go all the way to the final. However, they should focus on the task at hand and try to organize their defence, which in recent times have let them
down. The game against Portugal will be a real test of their character, as they have to bounce back from those disappointing performances.
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