Not so friendly

Brazil decries German aggressiveness in friendly draw

Sebastian Deisler (right) and Torsten Frings close down Brazil's Ronaldhino. AP

BERLIN (AP) -- Brazilian-born striker Kevin Kuranyi scored the equalizer to earn Germany a 1-1 draw with Brazil in an exhibition game Wednesday that was a rematch of their 2002 World Cup final. (Scores and match reports)

Ronaldinho fired Brazil ahead from a free kick in the 9th minute and Kuranyi equalized in the 17th.

A capacity crowd of 74,315 saw the match at the renovated Olympic stadium, which will stage the 2006 World Cup final.

Two years ago in Yokohama, Brazil beat Germany 2-0 on a pair of goals from Ronaldo to win its fifth World Cup title.

Although Brazil scored first Wednesday, Germany played aggressively to give new coach Juergen Klinsmann a partially successful debut before home fans.

"This is where we want to come back in 2006," Klinsmann said. "All the compliments to my team. We held our own ground against Brazil."

Brazil coach Carlos Alberto Parreira said Germany played too hard for an exhibition match.

"The Germans were very fast and intense, but also too hard at times," he said. "Considering the jet lag and the fact that the Germans wanted to build their confidence by beating us, we didn't play that badly."

Ronaldinho earned the free kick when he was brought down by Frank Fahrenhorst at the edge of the penalty area. While the Germans were expecting Roberto Carlos to take the kick, Ronaldinho sneaked in to send a soft, curling shot over the German wall and into the goal. Goalkeeper Oliver Kahn watched the ball sink into net, making no attempt to stop it.

"I couldn't see a thing, there were 10 men in front of me in the wall," Kahn said after the match. "But it was also well shot."

On the other side, Gerald Asamoah replied with a good shot that went just wide.

Ronaldo then picked up a long pass from Juninho but shot over Kahn's goal.

Germany got the equalizer after a deflected shot bu Torsten Frings. Kuranyi, the Stuttgart striker, chested down the ball and slid it past goalkeeper Julio Cesar. Kuranyi scored all three goals for Germany in a 3-1 win over Austria last month.

"It's great that I scored against Brazil. I couldn't be happier," Kuranyi said.

Kuranyi nearly picked up his second of the night a few minutes later after a through pass from Sebastian Deisler, but Julio Cesar got his finger tips on the ball, just enough to make it go outside the post.

A swift Brazil move down the right flank ended with Adriano heading over the goal.

Germany had two chances to take the lead before halftime, but Asamoah and Philipp Lahm both shot poorly.

Ronaldo had one of the few opportunities in the second half, shaking off Fahrenhorst but shooting high.

Defender Juan connected on a good cross from Alex late in the match but sent the ball high with only Kahn to beat.

With three minutes left in the match, Kahn made a save with his foot to deny Julio Baptista.

"We played good soccer for much of the game," Kahn said. "We kept up a high pace. This result is good for our confidence."

Germany, a three-time World Cup champion, has not beaten a top-ranked team for nearly four years.

Klinsmann is rebuilding the German team after its failure to clear the group stage at Euro 2004 this summer.

Lineups:

Germany: Oliver Kahn; Andreas Hinkel (Andreas Goerlitz, 87), Robert Huth, Frank Fahrenhorst, Philipp Lahm, Sebastian Deisler (Lukas Podolski, 87), Michael Ballack, Torsten Frings, Bernd Schneider, Gerald Asamoah (Miroslav Klose, 70), Kevin Kuranyi.

Brazil: Julio Cesar; Belletti (Maicon, 57), Edmilson, Juan, Roque Junior, Roberto Carlos, Juninho (Renato, 57), Ronaldinho (Alex, 57), Edu, Adriano (Julio Baptista, 63), Ronaldo.