Banter before the battle
England's James and Germany's Hamann suggest it will be tasty in Saturday's clash
For David James, England's 1966 World Cup final victory over then-West Germany was the only match between the arch-rivals that mattered.
"Forget about the rest," the former Liverpool and England goalkeeper, who played in the 4-1 loss to Die Mannschaft in the last-16 of the 2010 World Cup, laughed cheekily.
From the other end of the table, Dietmar Hamann, another former Red, swiftly fired back.
"I don't know how often David has had the pleasure of playing Germany," the former Germany midfielder said of James, who had 53 caps over a 13-year period.
There were friendly banter and good-natured jibes at the Marriott Tang Plaza hotel during yesterday's press conference for the Battle of Europe 2016 on Saturday, but it was also clear that intense rivalry still exists between the former internationals from England and Germany.
And that will be good news for fans watching the Masters teams from both countries lock horns at the National Stadium.
James, along with compatriot Teddy Sheringham, faced the media yesterday for the Three Lions, while Germany were represented by Hamann and Karl-Heinz Riedle who was part of their 1990 World Cup-winning side.
The quartet are among the plethora of stars on show on Saturday, including former German midfield powerhouse and 1990 World Cup-winning skipper Lothar Matthaeus, and England's Paul Scholes and Steve McManaman.
"A game against England always provides top motivation for all of us German players," said former Liverpool striker Riedle, who had also won the European Cup with Borussia Dortmund.
"England are one of the big nations in football and, when we meet, it's definitely one of the best games in the world."
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Interestingly, the average age of England's 16-man squad is 43.9 compared to Germany's 45.4, with the likes of Emile Heskey (38), Darius Vassell (36) and Lee Hendrie (39) all still in their 30s.
Grimacing at the thought of his last encounter against the same opposition, which ended in a 7-2 defeat at Upton Park in March, James, 46, vowed that Saturday's affair will be very different.
In that encounter, the Germans showed no mercy despite taking on an England side that also featured actors, comedians and even social media stars.
"It's nice to have some old team-mates to go to battle with on Saturday," said James.
"I came here to win and, looking at the lads in front of me, I think we will on Saturday."
Any chance the Germans might be taking things lightly was dismissed by Riedle.
When asked if the players would enjoy a couple of nights out in Singapore in the build-up to the game, Riedle quickly pointed out that any such move would incur the wrath of Matthaeus, who will arrive only on the morning of the match.
"Lothar is the captain and I'm sure he will tell us off if we go out!" said Riedle with a grin.
“Forget about the rest.”
- David James (above), who said England’s victorious World Cup final against then- West Germany in 1966 is the only match between the arch-rivals that mattered
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