Not the stuff of dreams but the fabric of the hard, professional game. Germany came to do a job and they did it without ornament.

Last night's achievement was a quiet one, being no greater than the overall achievement of getting this far at all. A side and a manager pilloried after the humiliation in Munich at the hands of England, forced into the backwaters of a play-off against Ukraine, shorn of its better players through injury? Only Germany, perhaps, could stay standing.

"I think we played very well early on," said manager Rudi Völler. "We were compact in defence, played with a line of four, which was a small change, and throughout the game we were able to create opportunities. I think we deserved to win."

They did deserve to win, but they have scarcely illuminated this World Cup. Völler knows that the struggle is the thing; sometimes there is an aesthetic just in the struggle.

"Well, a few weeks ago, when we played against high-calibre opponents, Cameroon and Ireland namely, nobody expected us to make last 16 even. Once you reach the semi-final, though, you dream of the final. We played really, really well, we were very organised and, as I say, we deserved to win. We have worked our way to this position."

And now a team thin on resources loses its best player. You want romance and idealism in world football? Rudi's got it.

"Michael Ballack scored the winning goal," he said, "and it is a great pity for him. He scored the goal and he was one of the best players we had tonight, even though he knew that with another card he would miss the final. Still, he made that tactical foul and in doing so he placed himself at the service not only of the team but of the whole of Germany, so not only the team but the whole country will applaud him."

Ballack saw things pretty much the same way. Man did what man had to do. Man not sorry, but man sorry for himself.

"I scored the goal, but it is unfortunate that I will not be playing in the final. My first thoughts are a little bitter, because it is a stupid situation. It has been my dream to play in a World Cup final, but on the other hand the team as a whole has done something we can all be proud of.

"I have no bad feelings towards Torsten Frings, whose slip-up was the cause of me having to commit the tactical foul. It's over and done with now."

So, enjoy the final, Torsten!

Ballack put the German achievement into the only context it can be placed. An ordinary team over-achieving.

"Before these finals not many people would have placed any money on us advancing to the final. As a professional you always have a belief in yourself that you are good enough, but we were realistic too and didn't expect to get this far. Yet we've done it."

Karsten Ramelow, the big, scowling defender, was no more a bundle of laughs than Ballack. "I'm just happy to be in the final and happy today with my own performance. I think I answered a few critics in the German media who said I was too shy about getting forward. There is no champagne in the locker-room, we have a few days to recover now. The final will be tough, we'll take whoever we get. Anything is feasible."

It was left to Korean manager Guus Hiddink to summon the state of grace. The Dutchman, who became a god to the Red Devils, was pensive as ever. No room for delusion.

"We are disappointed, but being calm and thinking in general the German team are more experienced at these occasions. We tried in the second half to close them down, but in the first we had too much respect for them. It's a disappointment now, but we can be proud of the boys tonight. Especially over the long run of the tournament, we can be very proud.

"I don't want to look for excuses. We didn't have power in the first half and we were marking too loosely and we were just too respectful. It's also experience. In the second half we threatened no big chances, but neither did the Germans. But you have to be realistic, they are a bit more experienced and in the end that pays."

When the German goal went in and there was so little time left, had Hiddink any tricks left, any surprises? Not really. His team has been his surprise.

"This team is always reacting, we were controlling the game just then, but we lost possession in midfield, which was not good, and we killed ourselves in that moment. I was confident the team could react, but we couldn't get the final pass. We threatened a lot but couldn't make a good chance.

"There is disappointment tonight, but we will recover and I hope to bring the players to acceptable levels to fight for third place. We have to swallow this and in a few days recover and go for third for the home public who have supported us."

And his players. A couple of them came through the mixed zone. Sober men with futures and already thinking of them.

"What did we talk about in the dressing-room?" said goalkeeper Lee Woon Jae. "We just said we should work hard for our next game. Today we were tired, but just as we were tired the Germans must also be. They won because they were better. As the loser I have nothing to say about the result."

Any words about the referee, he was asked mischievously. "The losing team should say nothing about the referee," he said pointedly.

And, finally, Park Si Sung, the midfielder. A quiet man with a polite nature, the words came slowly.

"We had troubles tonight with the ball in the air because Germany had some physical players and advantages. We thought we could win if we played like we did in previous games, but it was difficult to keep our strength as we did in the first round matches. If we keep trying though we can be on top of the world some day."