Germany fire shot with Malta win

Published on: 13 May 2010

Ghana's World Cup Group opponents Germany sent a strong signal ahead of the tournament after a second-string side thrashed Malta 3-0 on Thursday in a friendly.

Cacau scored in each half as a largely second-string Germany side dominated from start to finish.

The Brazil-born Stuttgart striker opened the scoring with a 16th-minute header for his first goal in six games for Germany, then added the second in the 58th, again with a header.

Lukas Podolski, who set up Cacau's second goal, had a role in Germany's third when his low cross was turned in by Malta's Kenneth Scicluna for an own goal in the 61st.

Dennis Aogo, the Hamburger SV midfielder who surprisingly made the preliminary World Cup squad, made his debut and set up Cacau's first goal.

Germany coach Joachim Loew was without players from Werder Bremen and Bayern Munich, who play the German Cup final on Saturday, and without captain Michael Ballack, whose Chelsea is in the FA Cup final.

Because of the many absences, Thursday's team included several players who are not in the preliminary World Cup squad.

"Some young players had a good game, but we did not score enough goals," Loew said. "We created chances but we missed too many, even after we stepped up the pressure in the second half.

"It was an opportunity for some young players to show what they can and some of them had a good game," he said, singling out Aogo.

"I wish I had all the players but I have no choice. We have some hard work ahead of us."

The incomplete German squad flies to Sicily on Friday for a light training camp, before moving to the mountains of northern Italy.

Seven Bayern Munich players will not join the squad until after the Champions League final on May 22.

Germany Line-up:

Manuel Neuer; Andreas Beck (Christian Traesch, 57), Arne Friedrich (Heiko Westermann, 72), Serdar Tasci (Mats Hummels, 45), Dennis Aogo (Jerome Boateng, 79), Sami Khedira (Stefan Reinartz, 72), Piotr Trochowski, Toni Kroos (Kevin Grosskreutz, 57), Lukas Podolski, Stefan Kiessling, Cacau.

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