Gomez fears Art stopper

Jun 8 2008 By Gavin Berry

GERMAN stars Mario Gomez and Christophe Metzelder are worried Celtic hero Artur Boruc will shut them out in their Euro opener today.

They singled out Boruc for special praise ahead of their Group B clash with bitter rivals Poland in Klagenfurt tonight.

Hoops star Boruc was outstanding when the teams met at the last World Cup and will need a similar display if the Poles are to score their first win over Germany.

And the keeper's class is not lost on his opponents. Real Madrid defender Metzelder said: "I know Boruc from his performances with Celtic in the Champions League.

"He is a good keeper and key for Poland. He is excellent in the air and commands his area well. He dominates situations."

Stuttgart hitman Gomez said: "We have watched the videos and Boruc is one of the stars and undoubtedly a key figure in the Poland team.

"I know him from watching Scottish football and Stuttgart's Champions League meetings with Rangers. His aerial presence is his best quality but our manager has told us to shoot from any position."

Metzelder knows it's crucial to get off to a flier.

He said: "The opening game is always vital and our challenge is to start with a victory.

"It won't be easy but we're optimistic. Our mission is to break down their defence and open the match.

"It's normal for our opponents to counter-attack because we control possession. People expect us to win and that is good but we must show why we are favourites."

Poland suffered a blow yesterday when Boruc's rival for the No.1 jersey Tomasz Kuszczak was forced out the tournament.

The Manchester United man - who was vying for a start with Boruc and Arsenal's Lukasz Fabianski - suffered a back injury in training.

He had a scan and was ruled out for three weeks.

Manager Leo Beenhakker has drafted in Korona Kielce's Wojciech Kowalewski as a replacement.

It is the latest injury setback for the tournament outsiders after the withdrawal of midfielder Jakub Blaszczykowski.