Keeper debate costs Maier his job
 |  Maier has lost his job as Germany's national goalkeeper-coach |
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FRANKFURT, Germany -- Germany goalkeeper-coach Sepp Maier has left his job after taking sides in the rivalry between first team keepers Oliver Kahn and Jens Lehmann, the DFB announced Sunday.
The decision was taken after the team returned from Saturday's 2-0 friendly win over Iran in Tehran where Arsenal goalkeeper Lehmann had a rare chance to take over from Kahn.
Maier has been in charge of goalkeeper training at the national team for the past 17 years, but had come under fire after bad mouthing Lehmann in the press.
Maier, who is also goalkeeping coach at Kahn's club Bayern Munich, caused a furore earlier this week when he said: "Lehmann can forget it (about becoming first choice), Kahn is better".
Germany team manager Oliver Bierhoff said: "We demanded from Sepp that he showed a bit of neutrality. His personality seemed to make that impossible."
Lehmann earned his 20th cap Saturday when he kept goal in Teheran as Kahn was rested in what has now become Maier's last involvement with the national team.
Coach Juergen Klinsmann will now likely try to replace Maier with Andreas Koepke, who was goalkeeper when Germany won Euro 96.
Talks are expected to take place with Koepke in the coming days.
Even before the team left for Iran, Maier held talks behind closed doors with Klinsmann, Bierhoff and assistant coach Joachim Loew over his comments.
Couldn't go on
"We made it clear to him (Maier) that it couldn't go on like this," Bierhoff told the German sports channel DSF Sunday.
Maier, who was goalkeeper on Germany's 1974 World Cup winning team, said the decision to part company with the national setup had not been easy.
"Through my daily work with Oliver Kahn at Bayern Munich it probably makes sense if, in future, another goalkeeping coach takes over the job for the national team," he said.
There has been an ongoing war of words between Lehmann and Kahn recently over who should be number one choice.
Earlier this week Lehmann said Kahn was being giving preferential treatment because of his reputation while he was at a disadvantage because he played abroad with English champions Arsenal.
"As far as my form is concerned I have a great chance, but I don't have a lobby behind me because I play abroad," the 34-year-old said.
Kahn, meanwhile, at 35 one year older than Lehmann, has found himself at the centre of negative headlines, most recently at the beginning of this month when he stuck his gloves into the face of Werder Bremen striker Miroslav Klose and was not even booked.
Bierhoff said he hopes with Maier's departure that the goalkeeping issue can now be sorted out between the two players.
"Jens now has no reason anymore to be making any kind of comments," said Bierhoff. "Before the next international Juergen will make it clear to both keepers that they have to stick to the rules.
"Put more frankly, they should keep they mouths shut and concentrate on their performances."
