Because of that but even more because both nations brought young teams without most of their major stars each remains somewhat of a mystery to the other. ``Germany has young players, the same thing with Brazil,'' 19-year-old Brazilian forward Ronaldinho said yesterday. ``All the young players on the field will be wanting to show what they can do so they can become known across the world.''

As for the team itself, Brazilian coach Wanderley Luxemburgo said Germany's soccer tradition is daunting. ``They're strong, and they don't give up,'' he said.

He said the Germans are a different type of adversary from those Brazil faced in the Americas Cup, which Brazil won Sunday last, and the team plansto modify its strategy to take advantage of the fact that the Germans are just coming off a break while the Brazilians have been playing solid for weeks. ``We'll put on a strong midfield press to wear down their team, with the possibility of switching in the second half to a looser, more fluid game,'' he said.

The team's captain, midfielder Emerson, also said there would be a strong press in the middle of the field, but cautioned: ``It won't be a defensive team.'' The Germans held a closed-door training and didn't meet with news media.

The Brazil-Germany game will be immediately followed by another between United States and New Zealand. Those four teams make up one group, based in Guadalajara, while in Mexico City, there will be a round-robin between Mexico, Bolivia, Saudi Arabia and Egypt. The top two teams from each group will advance to the semi-finals.