World Cup off to a good start: Pele

Pele, the all-time great footballer, said the high-scoring World Cup opening game in which Germany beat Costa Rica 4-2 encouraged him.Schedule | Teams | Interviews | Photos

Pele, the all-time great footballer, said the high-scoring World Cup opening game in which Germany beat Costa Rica 4-2 encouraged him.

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"I am happy, very happy, because many people said that this World Cup would be low-scoring. Instead, we saw six goals," he said.

Despite Germany's convincing victory Friday, Pele said it was too early to rank the hosts as a title contender.

"Getting a good start is always good, but talking about a champion is premature," he said.

Pele praised the Germans for performing well under the pressure of playing on home soil, but pointed out defensive lapses that he said coach Juergen Klinsmann would have to tackle.

"The guys were a bit slow in reacting," Pele said. "Klinsmann has to work on that."