Thursday April 6th, 2000

Michael Schumacher said on Thursday he had emerged unscathed from his first full soccer match since he broke his leg at last year's British Grand Prix.

Double world champion Schumacher, aiming to make it three wins in three races this season in Sunday's San Marino Grand Prix, also denied that his Ferrari team had ever banned him from playing soccer.

Asked about a match he played in with other drivers and celebrities at Imola on Wednesday, the 31-year-old German grinned and said: "I played quite well but I missed four easy goals."

He added: "It is not true that I was ever told not to play football by the team. I did a lot of running and I think I ran several kilometres, so I feel really fit now.

"It is the first time I have felt fit enough to do this and I really enjoyed it."

Schumacher said he was not at all concerned about returning to Silverstone for the British Grand Prix in two weeks time.

"It doesn't matter to me because all that matters is that you don't lose the brakes on the car -- where it could happen is not something to think about," he said.

Schumacher won the Australian and Brazilian Grands Prix while defending world champion Finn Mika Hakkinen suffered two successive retirements. The German is now hoping for a third win.

"It would be really nice if it could happen," he said. "The car feels really great and it is certainly possible."