Hitzfeld was offered the job vacated by Rudi Voller who resigned after Germany crashed out of Euro 2004 at the group stage last week.

The 55-year-old former maths teacher known as the Gentleman had said last week his wife would prefer he did not accept the offer to prepare Germany for the 2006 World Cup finals which will take place in Germany.

However apparently Beatrice Hitzfeld did change her mind and say he should take it if he felt so disposed.

Hitzfeld explained he had agonised over the decision.

"This process has been an agonising one to go through," said Hitzfeld, who is the only coach to win the Champions League with two different teams Borussia Dortmund (1997) and Bayern Munich (2001).

"I had a good meeting with with German Football Federation (DFB) president Gerhard Mayer-Vorfelder and we agreed on all the salient points about the job.

"To be national coach is a great honour and with the World Cup in your own country it is a dream.

"But sadly I am not able to come to the help of the German team," added Hitzfeld in a statement issued by the DFB.

However he later told the DPA agency that he felt not up to the challenge at the moment.

"I still feel as if I am running on empty.

"My batteries are far from recharged," added Hitzfeld.

Hitzfeld has an impressive track record apart from his Champions League triumphs he won two domestic championships at Dortmund (1996, 1997) and four at Bayern (1999, 2000, 2001, 2003), though two successive failures in the Champions League in the past two campaigns and no trophies last season atall saw him leave a year ahead of the end of his contract.