Miroslav Klose found perhaps the only way to make matters worse for Brazil.
On a night on Tuesday when Germany routed the host nation 7-1 in the World Cup semi-finals, Klose also became the tournament's all-time record scorer – eclipsing Brazil great Ronaldo.
Klose scored Germany’s second goal in the 23rd minute for his 16th career World Cup goal in his fourth tournament.
It broke the mark of 15 goals he shared with the retired Ronaldo, who watched the game in the stadium as a TV commentator.
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Klose scored after a corner by Toni Kroos. His first effort was parried by Brazil’s goalkeeper Julio Cesar, but Klose calmly stroked the rebound home.
“We are a team and it shows on the field. It’s also important that our set pieces bring results. You saw it again today. Toni puts the ball where it has to go every time and that’s a big strength,” Klose said.
The Lazio striker, 36, also scored in Germany’s 2-2 draw with Ghana in a group match when he came off the bench to get Germany back into the contest.
After scoring against Brazil, in his 23rd career World Cup game, Klose refrained from doing his trademark backflip.
“I got hit in my left foot while attempting a shot and I was not able to do the flip,” Klose said.
Germany coach Joachim Loew praised the veteran and only true striker on the team.
“It really means a lot to all of us. This is a record,” he said. “This is a record that could be beaten only by [Thomas] Muller. We believe that he really deserves it. Because at his age, he is still playing at the highest possible level.”
Muller scored the opening goal against Brazil and has 10 goals in two World Cup tournaments.
Klose was born in Poland but has always played for Germany. With 70 goals in 134 matches, Klose is Germany’s all-time top scorer, having beaten the record previously held by Gerd Muller.
He was the Golden Boot winner at the 2006 World Cup in Germany with five goals. Klose also scored five goals in his first World Cup, in 2002. He scored four in 2010.
Lazio made it clear that they expected Klose to remain in Rome with them for the coming Serie A season, as Claudio Lotito, the club president, paid tribute to the forward’s achievement. “Now we have a champion who has scored the most goals in World Cups,” he told Italian radio station Rai Due.
“The figure he had to reach, he has already done so, regardless of whether or not he scores in the final.
“In order to receive offers for a player, he must be placed on the market and Klose is not for sale.”
Lazio celebrated Klose’s achievement with a tweet that said: “Sixteen goals in World Cups, the best of all time. Miro Klose enter history. Miro Klose is the history.”
Klose, who moved to Lazio from Bayern Munich in 2011 and has scored 35 league goals since, is under contract with the Rome-based outfit for a further season.
Anatomy of the new World Cup goals mark
Miroslav Klose has become the all-time leading scorer at World Cup finals after scoring his 16th goal in the 7-1 demolition of Brazil in the semi-finals on Tuesday. Here is a look at how he got there with his record at the four finals he competed in:
2002 South Korea and Japan – Games 7, Goals 5
The forward made an immediate impact with a hat-trick in the 8-0 rout of Saudi Arabia, then also found the net in further Group E games against the Republic of Ireland and Cameroon. That was the last of his scoring at the tournament as he did not find the net in any of Germany’s four knockout games.
2006 Germany – Games 7, Goals 5
Klose was immediately off and running in 2006 with two goals in his country’s opening game, a 4-2 win over Costa Rica. He added two more against Ecuador in the final Group A game to ensure they topped the group. In the knockout stages, he scored the equaliser in the quarter-final against Argentina that sent the game to a penalty shoot-out that the Germans eventually won.
2010 South Africa – Games 5, Goals 4
For the third successive tournament, Klose scored in Germany’s opening game, finding the net once in the 4-0 win over Australia in Group D. He was sent off in the 1-0 loss to Serbia but returned for the second-round match with England, where he was on target in a 4-1 triumph. He also scored twice in the 4-0 rout of Argentina in the last eight.
2014 Brazil – Games 2 (1 sub), Goals 2
Klose did not play in the opening Group F game with Portugal but came off the bench to score the equaliser against Ghana. He started the quarter-final against France and the semi-final with Brazil, where he scored his side’s second and his record goal.
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