Fans Back Germany’s Coach
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BERLIN — Despite their team’s missing the announced target of reaching the World Cup final, Germans keep backing Coach Juergen Klinsmann. A poll by TV news channel N-TV showed 89% of 12,000 people surveyed supported Klinsmann staying on as national coach.
His popularity might be better measured by an Internet auction due to close Tuesday. Klinsmann’s vintage Volkswagen Beetle turned up for sale on EBay. The posting said the VW was “to be picked up in Stuttgart, Southwest Germany, no delivery.”
By late Friday evening the top bid for the 1967 convertible was almost $387,000. Klinsmann, who drove the Beetle during his time in Stuttgart and London as an active player, commented in Friday’s daily news conference: “I really can’t recommend to bid for this car.... It was completely rusty when I dropped it.”
But Klinsmann’s car seems to be a bigger draw than even the pope’s: Benedict XVI’s Volkswagen Golf was sold a year ago on EBay for $240,000.
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-- Christian Retzlaff
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