Seogwipo, South Korea ? Germany is promising a better performance in the quarterfinal round of the World Cup.

The Germans have reached the final eight in every World Cup appearance except in 1938. They reached that point again Saturday on Oliver Neuville’s goal in the 88th minute, giving the three-time champions a 1-0 victory over Paraguay.

Paraguay's Roque Santa Cruz, left, competes for the ball with Germany's Torsten Frings in second-round action at the 2002 World Cup. Germany won, 1-0, Saturday in Seogwipo, South Korea.

But the Germans struggled to finish their attacks before they finally scored the decisive goal just before extra time.

“We were happy to score such a late goal, although I think it was a bit lucky,” midfielder Marco Bode said.

“We tried to attack in the second half without taking too many risks, so we were a little lucky, although the goal was a result of our improvement in the second half.

“There are things to improve on for the quarterfinals, but now that we’re through, our confidence will improve.”

Germany will face either the United States or Mexico in quarterfinals on June 21.

“I think Mexico is a bit more dangerous than the United States,” he said. “But any team that qualifies for the quarterfinals will be a good team.

“The United States have shown in this World Cup that they are a good team, and if they did make it to the quarterfinals, their confidence would grow.”

Neuville swept in a 6-yard, right-footed shot after Bernd Schneider charged down the right wing and sent in a perfect cross.

“I believed we could still win, because we played very well in the second half,” Neuville said. “They were just playing for a draw.”

Paraguay ended the game with 10 men after Roberto Acuna was ejected in second-half injury time.

It is the second straight World Cup in which Paraguay was knocked out on a late goal in the first game of the second round. Paraguay lost to eventual champion France in 1998 on an overtime goal.

Paraguay coach Cesare Maldini resigned after the game.

“I’m going to Milan to work as a scout. This has been a great experience, the Paraguayans have been very professional,” the Italian said.

Maldini led Italy to the quarterfinals of the 1998 World Cup. And that’s where Rudi Voeller has taken Germany this year.

“I got a bit excited in the locker room at halftime,” Voeller said. “We played just the opposite of how we wanted to; sometimes we just blindly pushed the ball forward. But after the break, the team played well. We knew Paraguay would be tough, they are very robust defensively.”

The game picked up in the second half.

Germany came close in the 47th when Neuville broke down the right side of the penalty area and sent the ball back to Schneider, With plenty of space, he shot straight at goalie Jose Luis Chilavert from 8 yards.

Moments later, Paraguay broke upfield and Jorge Campos, who outran his defender, unleashed a fierce left-footed drive that forced a diving save from Oliver Kahn.

Chilavert disputed that it was the Germans who had the best chances.

“We went down like heroes,” said Chilavert. “The Germans didn’t outplay us, we played them equally.

“We had chances in the first half, but football is like that. The important thing is that we’ve played well.”

Meanwhile, in Beppu, Japan, Senegalese players held some spirited scrimmages in preparation for today’s game against Sweden.

“Soccer is a game, and don’t you forget it,” coach Bruno Metsu said. “You have to feel good together. There has to be good humor.”

Senegal’s first World Cup tournament already was a success when it stunned the French, 1-0. Then the Senegalese persevered with two dogged draws to advance into the second round.

With a quarterfinal berth at stake today, even the suspension of Salif Diao and Khalilou Fadiga, and a knee injury to Ferdinand Coly cannot dampen their spirits.

“At the World Cup, you see too many teams with long faces,” Metsu said.