One thing is team structure. Look at how he (and others) looked v Spain in the WC and France. When we didn't over commit forward, played as a compact unit suddenly our defence looked competent.
For me it's a pairing of Rudiger and Thiaw. We should use the rest of the friendlies for the pair to build up Chemistry.
I second that.... Thiaw has Italian defensive skills and Rudiger plays a crucial role at Madrid, and Tah as RB with Gosens/RAUM or Heinrichs completing the LB The other big question is what does Nagelsmann do with Kimmich and Gundo?? This seems to become a problem , I am happy with Goretska coming of the bench , but the current form of Musiala , Sane and Wirtz they have to be starters, and Kimmicgh and Gundo as pivot 6/8 does not seem to work...........
😲 𝗝𝘂𝗹𝗶𝗮𝗻 𝗡𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗹𝘀𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗻 𝗴𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗯𝗲𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗘𝘂𝗿𝗼𝘀!@honigstein believes there is a possibility that Nagelsmann could be gone before Euro 2024 kicks off in June. #Bundesliga pic.twitter.com/8JXKwkpsjE— Beer & Honey (@BeerAndHoney) December 5, 2023
The Attack of ----------------------fullkrug------------------ Musiala ------------wirtz------------sane Is set in stone. I'd play a double pivot of Pascal Gross and Gundogan
Havertz scores in 3 back to back matches and his 3rd of season in EPL and tying for 3-3. https://dubz.co/v/xz9tba
LOL I recall joking awhile ago that current Germany is basically Pengland's 2000 Golden Generation. Talent is there but no team work is lacking....Gundo seems to confirm. its funny because a DFB clown said that Joachim Low once told him the key is NOT about having best player but having the BEST TEAM...... so yeah TRASH TEAM AND TRASH MENTALITY and add TRASH COACHING. DFB captain recognizes “vicious circle” Gündoğan: “Many exceptional footballers in our ranks may be the problem” After the recent setbacks, captain Ilkay Gündoğan sees a fundamental problem for the German national team on the way to the home European Championship. “At certain times I have the feeling that each and every one of us is too busy with ourselves. We haven't managed to grow as a team yet. “Unfortunately we don’t have much time left,” the 33-year-old midfielder told the weekly newspaper “Die Zeit”. Gündogan explained what still gives him hope for a good final round: “A lot of things are already going well in training. Why we have failed so far in emergencies is somewhat inexplicable to me too. Next summer we will have a real preparation phase before the European Championships – that will be good for us. Our quality is great compared to many other teams.” And: “Perhaps the problem also lies in the fact that we have so many exceptional footballers in our ranks.” His DFB teammates would have to internalize that not all eleven players could make the difference at the same time, but would have to trust each other more. “We don’t look at each other enough. We are often preoccupied with ourselves because each of us thinks that things have to get better. It’s a vicious circle,” explained Gündoğan. After a good start under new national coach Julian Nagelsmann, the national team suffered sobering defeats against Turkey and Austria in November. “We need clear tasks,” demanded Gündoğan with a view to preparing for the European Championships in his own country. “Everyone has to know what to do on the pitch. Then a symbiosis must arise. Actually, it can’t be that difficult because we are a team with character and decency,” said the FC Barcelona professional. He continues to look forward to the upcoming tournament. “I have had little doubt that we will be successful, even though the results and performances in the last few months have not been good at all,” said Gündoğan, who has 73 international matches. At the home European Championships, the DFB selection will face Scotland, Hungary and Switzerland. “This is not a group of death, but there are no really bad opponents,” Nagelsmann explained on “MagentaTV” in his first reaction after the draw. https://www.transfermarkt.de/gundog...vielleicht-das-problem-quot-/view/news/430964
Completely agree with Gundo. This is why generic comments about mentality etc don’t mean much. Building elite performance in a team is quite difficult once lost, even with players who display the qualities with their club side.
that is definition of terrible mentality though. and its not generic because its true, he admitted himself and if it wasn't why does everyone bring it up. media brought it up, DFB coaches have brought it up, NLZ conference brought it up....even Nagelsmann after U17 WC brought it up too. you seem to be only person who thinks mentality in this team is fine.......its rubbish to max. they have more talent than 2000 era but 2000 era were less embarrassing.
What I object to is the morality play. This is not some personal failing of the players, or something where they can just try harder. It's much more complex. Gundo doesn't suddenly lack mentality when he plays for germany - he is an elite performer in europe. its not about him individually, but more to do with the chemistry in the team. That is actually the thing the team management and the senior players need to build.
I think the recent comments of Philip Lahm are also correct. The renewals post 16/18 failed - no new leadership core was ever established, despite various purges and then even bringing people back The team has no real identity. The idea was to build it around Kimmich/Goretzka but they failed. Gundo is the best midfielder by some distance, but he hasn't really been given the authority in midfield. There's still incompatible ideas and stuff that makes no sense like the back 3 and joker Havertz etc Gundo talks about how stuff is built via clear tasks and a symbiosis over time - that process has to happen. The players can't just decide to be tougher - any team can do that - it's not a competitive edge.
As an example of all this I'd offer Havertz at Arsenal It's taken him 23 games to come good. To me it's an illustration of his elite mentality despite a career setback. But it takes a lot of time, faith from the coaches, support from his team mates etc etc In international football, there isn't 23 games to figure it out. He needs to be given a role he can actually deliver on.
these players have been all present for years now and still 0 chemistry that's on them. the U17 squad has been together for like 2 years and won 2 trophies and constantly talk non-stop about German mentality, German virtues, every player fights for the other etc. NON STOP. do the current SNT ever talk about German virtues? Don't recall once either.
LOL DFB president Bernd Neuendorf says Julian Nagelsmann's job will not be up for debate before the Euros no matter what: "We'll stick with him. We won't start debates in any way now. It's all background noise that we don't need. He has to have full support for the next six months"… pic.twitter.com/h6iiklkd0G— Bayern & Germany (@iMiaSanMia) December 6, 2023 on another note, RB Vagnoman made his 1st XI of season since comeback from injury vs Dortmund. Its good to see him back.
ON another note "Gross" I see he scored last night again and I also know he played LB last night - I have also seen him play a few times at RB for Brighton. What are your thoughts about using him as a RB?
Very versatile. But his best position is in the center of mid. Double pivot of him and Gundogan is vital. I see City are not the same team without their former skipper.
Completely agree. The chemistry in the team has been completely undermined, be it in midfield and attack. For me Rudiger is a elite performer , yet he's constantly been paired with novices and chop and change. It's imperitive in the remaining friendlies we stop this tinkering
Ross Tucker, who is a South African high performance scientist, once wrote a really interesting piece (which unfortunately i don't have the link for) about when he started working with South African rugby. He had all the same ideas about values, motivational posters, yada yada He was surprised to find out all his ideas had already been tried, or were common. Literally every south african side worshipped it's traditional values, or tried to reinvent them. And also - the competition did the same thing. So there really was no competitive edge in this. A recent example is Arteta tried to reinstall these values at Arsenal, by putting up big posters of Wenger, and other Arsenal stars. At first it seemed a joke. But maybe it worked? The problem is, if the team plays well, it's hard to know which ideas worked and which didn't matter. Also if the player believes it works - then it kinda does? My point is if you delve into high performance, you learn that many teams decide to do these things, but only few teams actually create a high performance culture. The shared values/belief is actually really hard to create.
100% agree - Nagelsmann already destroyed the vibe that was growing after France and his first couple of games. It's very difficult for the leaders on the pitch when they get handed incoherent plans and structures. Then when they fail, of course everyone questions each other and the manager and the fear comes back
Resurrecting German virtues: U-17s bring hope to a nation Germany's FIFA U-17 World Cup triumph has given supporters cause for optimism amid challenging period for senior national team. -Germany's U-17s crowned European and world champions in 2023 -Coach Christian Wuck says implementing German virtues has been key to success -Youngsters giving fans hope for the future The events of the past few years have been something of a horror story for Germany's senior national team. Their victory at the 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil™ and passage to the semi-finals of UEFA EURO 2016 was followed by a lengthy dry spell that featured group-stage exits from the 2018 and 2022 World Cups and a last-16 elimination from UEFA EURO 2020. The senior national side – who have historically been renowned for their "German virtues" and reputation for rising to the occasion at major tournaments – have slipped to 16th place in the FIFA/Coca-Coca World Ranking and lost more games than they won in the year before they host UEFA EURO 2024. Yet, despite 2023's challenges, Germany finished the footballing year on a high. The U-17 national team, coached by Christian Wuck, were crowned champions at the FIFA U-17 World Cup™ in Indonesia, an achievement that prompted joyous celebrations among not only the fans who travelled to the tournament but also those back home. Wuck had already highlighted how much this team reminded him of past Germany sides ahead of the tournament, telling FIFA: “The mentality and individual ability of this group of players born around 2006 is reminiscent of Germany teams in [the 1980s and 90s]. The lads are well trained and have an exceptional team spirit and will to win. It will be difficult for any opponent to beat this Germany side. We have tough-tackling defenders and attacking players who can decide games. Above all, we’re a team who can achieve great things together as a unit." How right he was. German football fans often wax lyrical about the "German virtues" of the senior national team. Although this is a broad concept with no precise definition, it includes attributes such as fighting spirit, tenacity, passion, robustness, hard work and discipline. Here, we have picked out three of those qualities that were particularly apparent in Germany's Indonesia 2023 performances. Passion The enthusiasm with which Wuck's side threw themselves into their World Cup matches was undeniable. It was evident in the way they belted out the national anthem, their willingness to push themselves to their limits in every game, and the competitive spirit within each member of the 21-strong squad. To give just one example, Bilal Yalcinkaya was not even in the original World Cup squad and only travelled out to Indonesia to replace the ill Farid Alfa-Ruprecht. Despite having no preparation time with his team-mates, he blended seamlessly into the squad and particularly impressed fans with his incisive dribbling in the final third. By the end of the tournament, he had featured in six games and provided one assist and two goals – including a superb late winner in Germany's last-16 encounter with the USA. Tenacity Germany's journey to the title was anything but a walk in the park. The array of setbacks the squad had to overcome included several injuries before and during the tournament, as well as several situations during matches that would have driven other teams to despair. The semi-final against Argentina was just one example of this, with Germany falling behind and, according to Wuck, being "asleep for the entire first half". After initially turning the game around after half-time, a late equaliser from the Argentinians in the seventh minute of stoppage time must have felt like a bitter blow. Yet Germany shook off this disappointment to eventually win the tie on penalties – thanks in no small part to Konstantin Heide, who began the tournament as back-up goalkeeper before replacing the ill Max Schmitt for this match and repeating his role as a spot-kick saving hero in the final. Fighting spirit Wuck's young charges demonstrated this fighting spirit once again when facing France in the final. The game's momentum appeared to have swung irrevocably towards the French after Germany let a two-goal lead slip and were forced to see out the match with ten players. Although the pressure became even more intense when they fell behind in the penalty shootout, Germany held their nerve to eventually emerge as winners and world champions. One youngster who played a noteworthy yet not immediately obvious role in this match was Maximilian Herwerth, who only amassed a few minutes of playing time during the tournament and was usually deployed in the latter stages of games to shore up the defence. Despite being introduced as a late substitute yet again in the final, the decisiveness and presence Herwerth brought to the game was striking. He threw himself into tackles and challenged whole-heartedly for every ball. Herwerth energised the team and helped ensure 10-player Germany took the game to spot-kicks. The success of Germany's U-17s may have come at exactly the right time to give this illustrious footballing nation a fresh sense of optimism about its future. What's more, Wuck's players could provide the senior team with some much-needed inspiration having impressively resurrected "German virtues" and showcased how the nation can still reign on the world stage. https://www.fifa.com/fifaplus/en/to...ues-christian-wuck-paris-brunner-noah-darvich
Kehrer is linked with Frankfurt Winter transfer, would be nice to see him back in 1BL and Frankfurt always needs more Germans.