Speaking to Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, Germany head coach Julian Nagelsmann has commented on the national team and it future.
The former Bayern Munich head coach was asked about extending his contract as Bundestrainer earlier this year until 2028. On if he did so because he believes the national team will peak then, Nagelsmann said:
“No. I believe that we can reach our peak at the World Cup. The learning curve that I see with us is much steeper than what I know from clubs.”
Under the former Bayern and RB Leipzig head coach, Germany have taken great leaps in their development and after a dire string of tournaments between 2018 and 2022, Nagelsmann rejuvenated the national team despite Germany being knocked out of their home EUROs at the quarter-finals to eventual winners Spain.
During his time as a club coach, Nagelsmann heavily favoured tactics, but sometimes this is not successful with a national team, on his use of emotion more, the head coach remarked:
“In retrospect, I could have done more of that at club level too. That’s one of the things I learned, and what I didn’t do optimally at club level. I never saw myself as an aloof coach. But it’s just the way it is that you can achieve more through training at club than in the national team. As a national team coach, the team, the structure, the atmosphere and the heartfelt connection to the team are some of the most important things. Here I have to hug the players more. It’s my team, I chose the players. And when I see the pictures of the Euros documentary, I feel extremely strongly that the players embody and feel exactly the same thing that I embody and feel: that we played a good tournament, but we’re not done yet.”
The head coach then looked at the future of the team. First he was asked if the style of play that they may play will include more pressing, especially against Italy in the Nations League quarter-finals during the upcoming international break:
“It’s not so easy at national team level. You have to try to reflect most of the players’ characters in the way you play, and of course it should also fit in with how they play at club level. We can’t just call up players from Real Madrid who sit deep and play on the counter. The teams our players come from often play high pressing or active football. And generally, that’s my philosophy too, and I have to try to feel comfortable with what I’m conveying. For me, football is always emotional. That’s also the point that has brought the national team back to the forefront with the fans.”
On the personnel at his disposal, many see VfB Stuttgart’s Angelo Stiller and Bayern Munich’s Aleksandar Pavlovic as the future of Germany’s midfield, on the duo, Nagelsmann said:
“They’re two players we are thinking about and who, in terms of their age structure, would actually be perfect for the World Cup. But if we stick with Pavlo – If his rhythm stays the same as it is now, with him playing a maximum of 50% [of games], then it will be tight. With Rob [Andrich] in Leverkusen, he plays almost even less. If I have one concern with regard to the World Cup, it’s that some players are not playing enough. To have a really important role in the national team, you have to be a regular starter for the club, or at least play 70-80% of the games. But of course I will not go to Vincent Kompany and say: “Pavlo needs to play more.” – That’s not appropriate. Moreover, it’s the job of those who want to play at the World Cup to ensure that this is the case.”
However, this does have a knock-on effect with other players such as Joshua Kimmich. The 30-year-old mainly plays in midfield for Bayern but during EURO 2024 in the summer, Kimmich was solely used at right-back. The former Bayern head coach then confirmed he will continue to play there:
“I have to weigh up: what is the smaller need and what is the bigger need? At the moment I don’t see a more stable right-back than Josh, especially not after Benny Henrichs’ injury. At number six I have Pascal (Groß), Angelo (Stiller), Pavlo (Aleksandar Pavlović ) when he is fit, Rob (Andrich), Felix (Nmecha) and other candidates. That’s the smaller need. That’s why I’m sticking with it [Kimmich at right-back] for now.”
On Thursday, Nagelsmann will announce his squad for the upcoming international break where Germany will play Italy twice in the quarter-finals of the Nations League with the first leg in Milan before the second leg is played in Dortmund. If Germany win, they will host the Nations League finals in the summer, which will potentially be held in Munich and Stuttgart.
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