Germany's Klose has scoring record in sight

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06/15/2010 - Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Germany veteran Miroslav Klose slid across the ground Sunday, holding three fingers up on his right hand and pumping his left fist as he screamed with excitement.

Klose was celebrating his goal in Germany's impressive 4-0 win over Australia, and at the same time silencing his critics by scoring a goal for the third straight time in a World Cup opening match.

He scored five goals in each of the last two World Cups, helping Germany earn second- and third-place finishes, respectively, but entered this year's event under the microscope following a bad club season for Bayern Munich.

The 32-year-old Klose, a fossil on a team with one other starter over the age of 26, had just three goals for Bayern in the Bundesliga and last scored in a game for Germany eight months ago.

But German coach Joachim Loew remained confident in Klose, predicting before the World Cup, "Miroslav Klose will prove to everybody what he is capable of."

Just 26 minutes into Germany's World Cup, Klose removed all doubt.

Klose made a gutsy play to reach a cross from Philipp Lahm, powering a header into the upper right as he narrowly avoided a collision with Australia goalie Mark Schwarzer.

"I never doubted myself, have never done it and will never do it," said Klose, whose last international goal secured a World Cup spot for Germany.

Klose, who has 49 goals in 97 international games, is second on Germany's all- time World Cup scoring list with Jurgen Klinsmann, three behind Gerd Muller.

With Germany poised to engineer another long run - it has appeared in seven of the last 14 World Cup finals - Klose should have plenty of chances to climb up the list.

Klose has three multi-goal matches in the World Cup, including a hat trick in the 2002 opener. He added five more goals in 2006, including two-goal efforts against Costa Rica and Ecuador, to win the Golden Boot as the top scorer.

Although Klose isn't the same player he was in his previous two World Cups, he proved once again how big of a threat he is on the world's biggest stage. That is where stars are made, and with four more goals in South Africa, Klose would tie Brazil's Ronaldo as the all-time leading scorer in World Cup history.

Next up on the list? Pele. You may have heard of the Brazilian legend, who had 12 World Cup goals in his legendary career. France's Just Fontaine is third with 13 - all in the 1958 World Cup. Muller is second with 14.

Germany continues group play against Serbia on Friday, when Klose can take one (or two or three) more steps toward the record Ronaldo set in 2006 when he scored three goals in his last World Cup.

If Klose has proven anything already, it's that you can't overlook his ability, especially on the World Cup stage.

"I know my strengths. This is one of my strengths, being able to be ready when it matters," Klose said.

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