The German national team starts against strong French in the European Football Championship. But what does it take to beat the super troop around Mbappé, Kanté and Co.?
On Monday I went back to a football stadium for the first time in almost two years. Germany versus Latvia in Düsseldorf, the DFB dress rehearsal before the start of the European Championship. And I promptly saw a brilliant one 7: 1 success of our national team. It was a great feeling to finally be back in the stands – and only 10 kilometers away from where I live.
Admittedly, these visits were even nicer before the Corona crisis. I used to go to international matches to meet colleagues from my national team time. At the moment I usually don’t recognize my old companions because they wear masks. Conversations hardly come off that way. And although I have already been vaccinated twice, I had to show a negative corona test when I entered the stadium.
A crazy world.
Fortunately, one thing has remained the same: In Düsseldorf, too, 22 players faced each other on the pitch and fought for victory. It’s wonderful that I was able to watch them again from the stands.
And of course, as a former national coach, I took a very close look. My findings:
Joshua Kimmich’s search for a position
Jogi Löw left Joshua Kimmich against the Latvians on the right play. And of course the Bayern professional can fill this position. He is a world class footballer. But early on in the game I had the feeling that Kimmich wasn’t 100 percent comfortable there. Especially when the ball was passed to him. It is clear to me that he comes into its own as the central player – and that he has to play against France there too. Because against the French it will be a completely different game.
Latvia was a rather weak opponent. The headquarters had hardly anything to do. But the center must be tight against France. And that doesn’t work with the Ilkay Gündoğan / Toni Kroos duo, because both are too offensive. For Kimmich, on the other hand, the defensive comes first. Without him in the headquarters, we will be overrun in the center of France.
Therefore, Löw now has to rethink.
The big question mark behind Volland
What also surprised me in the last two European Championship tests against Denmark (1: 1) and Latvia was that attacker Kevin Volland only played a total of twelve minutes. I was very happy that Löw surprisingly nominated him for the EM. Because until then we were missing a real striker on the team. But there is one point that Löw did not consider: Especially in these tests, Volland could have gained valuable self-confidence for the tournament with more time and a few goals.
Kevin Volland: The AS Monaco attacker was hardly used in the last two DFB tests. (Source: ULMER Pressebildagentur / imago images)
Now he is going “cold” into the EM and will probably only remain the “secret weapon”. It’s a shame, actually. Because Volland is a top player who has the potential for the starting lineup.
The starter against the French
But of course we can survive against France without the attacker from AS Monaco. And I have to admit that I don’t like the current talk in Germany about the chances in this top game. For many, France is the clear favorite. I say: nonsense! Of course, with Kylian Mbappé, Karim Benzema and Antoine Griezmann, the French have outstanding players in their ranks. But we also have them: Manuel Neuer, Gündoğan, Kroos, Kimmich and Thomas Müller are feared in the whole world of football.
Of course we can also win against France. And we even have an advantage: The game takes place in Munich. We’re playing in a spectacular stadium, in a great football city – in front of 14,000 spectators. The home advantage will give our players tremendous extra power. And even if we don’t win, we can still make it to the knockout round with wins against Portugal and Hungary.
Only one thing is currently clear: June 15 will be a feast day for football.
External criticism
What I am annoyed about, however, are the recent statements by José Mourinho. The Portuguese top coach said the following to the British “Sun” a few days ago: “Joachim Löw’s team was terrible in qualifying and in the Nations League.” And it’s “pretty hard to understand why they’ve been so bad over the past few years.” Sure: Mourinho is partly right with his analysis. But I still don’t think that these external interference shortly before the start of the tournament is fair. He’d better sweep on his own doorstep. Especially Mourinho.
This example makes it clear again what kind of great national coach we actually have at the moment: Or can you imagine that Löw speaks so derogatory about the football of another nation? Definitely not! And that has nothing to do with the fact that he is currently the coach of the German national team in an official position. Löw will always be far too much of a gentleman to be at this level.
The discussion about the defense line
Another topic that bothers me a little at the moment is the discussion about the German defense line. I have the feeling that this topic is being brought to the DFB team from outside. Are we playing with a chain of three or even five defenders? One hears this question all the time at press conferences. The discussion about it would really annoy me if I were Löw.
Mats Hummels: Returned to the national team shortly before the start of the European Championship. Will be an important part of the German defense line at the tournament. (Source: Uwe Kraft / imago images)
In a nutshell, the explanation of a former national coach: The alignment of the chain is a matter of interpretation – and can change from game to game. Against the offensively weak Latvians, the three defenders Mats Hummels, Antonio Rüdiger and Matthias Ginter were enough at the back. The two full-backs Robin Gosens and Kimmich oriented themselves strongly towards the front – because they were hardly challenged at the back. But that will be very different against France. Against a top offensive, it is clear that the full-backs will move further back and thus automatically result in a chain of five. Discussion ended.
The future of U21 coach Stefan Kuntz
Finally, I would like to come to a topic that is only indirectly related to the senior national team, but could also become important in this context in the future. My former selection player Stefan Kuntz has just won the European Championship for the second time with the German U21 national team. A sensational achievement, on which I would like to congratulate Stefan.
But what I find particularly interesting is the discussion about his own future. Does he stay or does he go? For me the answer is clear: The DFB must do everything to ensure that Kuntz remains the U21 coach. He knows how to deal with young footballers and is extremely successful at it. If the DFB lets him go, you make a big mistake.
And I would also like to say a few more words to Stefan himself: Keep up the good work. And please be patient! I was also a DFB junior coach for many years – from 1979 to 1990 to be more precise – and was also part of Franz Beckenbauer’s coaching staff before I finally took over the national coaching post. It could be similar for you at some point.
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