BERLIN, June 22 (Reuters) - Germany's veteran libero Lothar Matthaus lashed out at his team mates on Thursday after their humiliating first-round exit from Euro 2000.

'We must look very closely at the character of the players. It would be better to use less talented players who actually put their hearts into the game and are proud to play for Germany,' Matthaus told the German soccer weekly Kicker.

'There must never be another German team in which every player earns millions, but is not ready to give their all.'

The 39-year-old ended his prolific international career on Tuesday in a 3-0 defeat by Portugal which sent Germany home from Euro 2000 with a single point.

Matthaus followed the mass circulation Bild newspaper in attacking some members of the team for a late-night drinking session after Tuesday's defeat, calling it a 'scandal'.

Matthaus made history against Portugal by winning a world record 150th cap, but it will almost certainly be his last. 'I would have never come back into the team had I known what was going to happen,' he said.

Coach Erich Ribbeck, who resigned after Tuesday's defeat, has been attacked for his blind faith in the ageing Matthaus, who he controversially recalled for international duty.

But Matthaus stuck up for Ribbeck. 'We shouldn't blame Erich Ribbeck for everything. He has been abandoned by some players. I feel sorry for him,' he said.

Thomas Helmer, a midfielder in the German side which won the European championship in 1996, blamed Matthaus for Germany's dismal performance in Euro 2000.

'The whole thing reminded me of the 1998 World Cup. Lothar's presence inhibited the other players. They couldn't develop their own potential,' Helmer wrote in Die Welt daily.

Helmer said many in the German team had not wanted Matthaus to make a comeback. 'Everyone thought that Lothar should not be allowed to play, but nobody dared say it in public,' he said.

Helmer said he would have expected his former team mate to have withdrawn voluntarily if he was not completely fit, but he said Matthaus had put pressure on Ribbeck to include him.

Matthaus predicted a dismal future for the national side if the German Football Federation (DFB) did not make some radical changes to the team.

'Germany must be careful that it does not disappear from the stage of major tournaments for years.' He said he was not convinced the team would qualify for the 2002 World Cup.

Matthaus even put himself forward as a possible future German manager. 'If there was a clear plan, I would calmly listen, talk about it and debate it,' he said.