Germany 1 Republic Of Ireland 0: Keane looks at positives after narrow Irish defeat

On a day that German luck collided with Irish fighting spirit, Steve Staunton made a somewhat successful competitive coaching debut here in Stuttgart, even if it was not a winning one. Although he was dismissed and Germany triumphed by a solitary goal, a spirited performance left reasons for optimism.

Seventeen days after a 4-0 home thrashing at the hands of the Netherlands, only a deflected free-kick divided the courageous Green Army from a powerful German side

"I thought we were very unlucky not to come away with something," said Staunton, who was banned from the bench after kicking a water bottle with 15 minutes on the clock. "We had plenty of opportunities from corners. I thought the Germans were very worried by us." It certainly did not take a passionate Irish side long to silence the sell-out crowd of 53,000, with Robbie Keane sending a gently-placed header only inches past the left post after some 80 seconds.

Germany, led by the former Klinsmann assistant Joachim Low, regained control midway through the first period when Miroslav Klose and Lukas Podolski forced Shay Given into two world-class saves with a header and a powerful blast from a left angle.

With Germany firmly on the front foot and Ireland waiting for chances, luck as well as controversy came into play in the 57th minute after Andy O'Brien and Richard Dunne were dubiously called for sandwiching Klose some 20 yards out on the right channel.

Podolski rammed the free-kick goalwards, but it would have never broken the deadlock had it not taken a vicious deflection off an unfortunate Robbie Keane. "That's about as unlucky a goal as I've ever conceded,'' said a frustrated Given. It was not the luck of the Irish, but the luck of the Germans that it went their way. Things got worse for Staunton with 15 minutes left when he kicked a bottle of water in disagreement over a call - only for the referee Luis Medina Cantalejo to ban him from the dug-out. Keane urged his team-mates to take the positives out of the defeat and said: "We have to get over it, move forward and look forward to the next game," said the captain. "If we can do that in the future then we've a great chance. There's certainly a sense of optimism amongst the lads.''

Meanwhile, Michael Ballack congratulated the Irish on their "strong performance" and added: "They are a very good team and not pushovers at all."

Germany (4-4-2): Lehmann (Arsenal); Jansen (Borussia Mönchengladbach); Friedrich (Mainz), Friedrich (Hertha Berlin); Lahm (Bayern Munich); Schneider (Bayer Leverkusen), Frings (Werder Bremen); Schweinsteiger (Bayern Munich), Ballack (Chelsea); Podolski (Bayern Munich), Klose (Werder Bremen). Subtitutes used: Neuville (Borussia Mönchengladbach) for Podolski, 76; Borowski (Werder Bremen) for Schneider,83.

Ireland (4-4-2): Given (Newcastle United); Carr (Newcastle United), Andrew O'Brien (Portsmouth), Dunne (Manchester City), Finnan (Liverpool); Reid (Blackburn Rovers), O'Shea (Manchester United), Kilbane (Everton), Duff (Newcastle United); Doyle (Reading), Keane (Tottenham Hotspur). Subtitutes used: Alan O'Brien (Newcastle United) for Kilbane, 83; McGeady (Celtic) for Duff, 77; Elliott (Sunderland) for Elliott, 79).

Referee: L M Cantalejo (Spain)

Booked: Germany: Schweinsteiger; Klose; Schneider. Ireland: Reid; Dunne; Given.

Man of the Match: Podolski