Klinsmann earns peace and quiet, but can it last?

After weeks of unrelenting attacks from the German media and soccer elite, coach Juergen Klinsmann is hoping Germany's 4-1 dismantling of an undermanned US team has earned him some peace and quiet.

"This win will allow us to carry on in the next few weeks in a much calmer atmosphere," a visibly relieved Klinsmann assured reporters after the resounding victory in Dortmund's chilly Westfalen stadium on Wednesday night.

However, the pressure and second-guessing of the German side and their coach is unlikely to subside as the clock ticks down to a World Cup whose outcome is intricately tied to the mood and confidence of the entire nation.

Top-selling German daily Bild, which has done its fair share of Klinsmann bashing in the past weeks, had a picture of a grinning Klinsmann on its cover next to the headline "Klinsi, now you can grinsi" and the caption "Job Saved".

But the paper could not help taking a dig at the same time, noting that Klinsmann, who has come under enormous criticism for returning home to southern California in between matches, would be getting back on a plane to the United States on Sunday.

Germany crushed a US side missing most of their top players thanks to a dipping free-kick from Bayern Munich midfielder Bastian Schweinsteiger on 46 minutes and quick-fire goals from Oliver Neuville, Miroslav Klose and captain Michael Ballack midway through the second half.

The first strike was particularly gratifying as the 21-year-old Schweinsteiger was playing his first match since being swept up in a storm of betting allegations last week that a German newspaper later retracted and conceded were untrue.

Positives and negatives

But amid the positives, there were also negatives for Germany and their coach. The German strikes only came after a first half in which the home team were whistled off the field for uninspired play.

At least half of the goals followed glaring defensive lapses from an out-of-sorts US team playing without the likes of Landon Donovan, Claudio Reyna, DaMarcus Beasley and Brian McBride due to injury or club commitments.

Klinsmann made a point of downplaying the size of the victory, which was identical to the margin of Germany's defeat by Italy three weeks ago that set off a chorus of criticism from German soccer icon Franz Beckenbauer and others.

"The 4-1 defeat in Italy was not as bad as some people said it was and this 4-1 victory against the US may not be as good as some people will say," said Klinsmann, a coaching novice when he took over the national team in August 2004.

The former striker, who won the World Cup in 1990 when Beckenbauer was West Germany's coach, said he believed his players could emerge victorious from the month-long tournament which begins on June 9 with a match in Munich between Klinsmann's team and Costa Rica.

"We have a good team, we're full of energy, we have the crowd behind us and we're playing in our home country," he said when asked about Germany's chances.

Klinsmann can breathe a sigh of relief before heading back to his family and adopted home on the beaches of southern California on Sunday.

But by the time he returns to the soccer-crazy nation whose collective angst and ambitions are rolled up in the looming World Cup, his quiet time may have already elapsed.