News (engl.)

The Germany men’s national team preparations for the upcoming World Cup in the USA, Mexico and Canada (11th June to 19th July 2026) are gradually starting to gather steam. Ahead of the first international break of the year, with games against Switzerland in Basel on 27th March (20:45 CET) and against Ghana in Stuttgart on 30th March (20:45 CET), coach Julian Nagelsmann spoke about his current squad and the path to the World Cup. DFB.de has gathered the most important quotes from the press conference.

Julian Nagelsmann on…

…the make-up of the squad: We have faith in the players – that’s the most important thing. We’ve spoken a lot about how we want to approach the international matches in March. We’ve got a large pool of regular players in there who should continue to become more cohesive and get used to playing with one another. We also want to see a couple of players who we’ve chosen and who have a realistic chance of going to the World Cup. The squad definitely has a lot of similarities with the one that we’ll announce at the end of May. There are players in the squad who we don’t know that well yet and who will now have the chance to prove themselves. It also means that one or two players will stay at home, players who we know contribute to the collective. It’s a good mixture of the experienced core, who will play at the World Cup, and fresh, new players.

…his thoughts on the World Cup: You can’t ignore things that are happening in the world at the moment and, privately, I have thoughts about them. I have certain values and standards. That being said, I’m responsible for the sport and, in that regard, I’m looking forward to the tournament and seeing the team prepare for it. It’s my first World Cup. But I can understand the scepticism when things that deviate from our ideal come under threat. As coach of the national team, I’m focusing on the sport and trying to spread positivity through football.

…experimenting with the squad: When everyone’s fit, the squad is pretty much set in stone. We won’t be doing any more experimentation – we’ve got clearly defined attacking and defensive tactics. We’ve played every game in the same way – now, there’ll be a blend to throw some variety into the mix. It’s a case of having the requisite variability in the event that the opposition adapt to our plan A. It’s normal for us to have three or four players in the squad to give them a chance to show what they’ve got. We can’t take everyone and give everyone the same opportunity, but nobody’s completely ruled out of contention yet.

…the kind of players he’s looking for: When there are options at your disposal, it’s a good idea to assemble a certain group of people. At the moment, Bayern are showing a fantastic mentality and display an eagerness to win every game. Of course, we’d like to draw on that group of people, because they bring something to the national team.

…his areas of focus for this international break: When you play, you should play to win. Tactical ideas take precedence, though. We want to make the most of the time we have in order to consolidate certain things and be armed for the decisive moments that occur on the pitch at tournaments. We also want to ensure that the new players integrate well and give them a platform to perform well.

…players who weren’t called up: Across the board, I called all the players and told them that the door isn’t shut. We’re not basing our decisions on dips in form or differing returns, rather we’re showing faith in the players. At a tournament, generally, 14 or 15 players end up playing 95% of the time, and the remaining roles have to be filled with as much liveliness as possible. It’s not got anything to do with character traits – everyone’s made for a certain position. Naturally, we’ve got to decide: Does the player fit the role that we’re envisioning for him? For instance, Angelo Stiller is an excellent footballer, but I think that Aleksandar Pavlovic is just that bit better than him at the moment, and Angelo doesn’t make the starting XI. We’ve decided to fill the remaining spots in the squad differently, but it’s not a decision against Angelo, rather in favour of another player.

…Jamal Musiala: Jamal had a small flare-up with his ankle which tends to be normal after such a long injury. Of course, it’s frustrating, since he’s on the right track. We would’ve loved to have had him here. We and the club have the same priority: keeping the player fit and healthy, so that he can play for us at the World Cup. I’ve decided against naming him in the squad, because it doesn’t benefit him, us or Bayern.

...Lennart Karl: He should bring that youthful fearlessness onto the pitch. He should play with freedom, on instinct and without any baggage. He has the dream of playing at a World Cup and he should show the same qualities he shows at Bayern, where he poses a real threat in and around the box.

...Kevin Schade: Of the players who thrive from counter-attacks, like Karim Adeyemi, Maximilian Beier and Kevin Schade, only one or two will go to the World Cup at most. We want to give Kevin Schade the chance to get to the same level as the other two in terms of familiarity and chemistry within the group, as they already know many of the players from the national team and club football, whereas Kevin is a bit more on his own at Brentford. All three have the same chance.

...Antonio Rüdiger: I have a very close relationship with him, one built on a great deal of honesty. We always tell each other exactly what we think. He’s hugely committed and very protective of the national team family. He embodies an absolute will to win. He can be a polarising figure, which is why he is watched so closely in that respect.

...Nathaniel Brown: He brings so much to the table, has great dynamism, is very creative and so calm on the ball. He’s been very consistent for Frankfurt. He’s got strong competition here in David Raum and Maximilian Mittelstädt, but I can absolutely see him playing as well. I rate him very highly and there’s still more to come from him. Maybe his time will come now, but it will definitely come at some stage – I’m sure of that.

...Pascal Groß and Anton Stach: We decided to look at holding midfielders with a different profile. Both offer something different with their physicality. Anton Stach was always under consideration, but he’d never had the chance to show what he can do with us. We want to see how he gets on in our set-up. He was absolutely delighted, which was a great reaction and shows how much this means to him. The move has done Pascal Groß good. He makes other players better, works incredibly hard and has a real gift for bringing people together. He’s like an extension of the coach, whether he’s playing or not. He can connect with all sorts of players, regardless of their personality. He’s very selfless and puts nothing ahead of the team’s success. It’s not a free pass, but he’s exactly the kind of squad player who may not be in the starting XI and still lives and breathes football from morning to night.

...Jonas Urbig: Finn Dahmen and Noah Atubolu are both doing well for their clubs, so this isn’t a decision against either of them. We’ve gone with Jonas because he’s played 25 matches and, at such a young age, has shown strong mental stability. He’s a very good footballer, has good links with a lot of players from the youth national teams and from FC Bayern. They all rate him highly because he loves training. He’s got huge potential in German football, and we just want to see how he fits in with us.

...Leon Goretzka: I want to stress that Leon doesn’t have a free pass. I said he has a good chance of playing, nothing more. He’s at an age where he has a huge amount of experience, so you can’t compare his game time directly with others. There were communication issues around the EUROs, and we’ve cleared those up. We don’t have many players in the squad who attack the box whenever a cross comes in. When we need goals and a physical presence, Leon is reliable and a real goal threat in an advanced role. He has a strong presence in the box. He should know we trust him, but he also needs to play more minutes – and he knows that too.

...Deniz Undav: He has an outstanding strike rate in front of goal and you can’t leave a striker like that at home. I gave Deniz feedback in December on what he had to do to get back into the frame. He knew what was required, put it into practice well and that’s why he’s back in the squad.

...Jamie Leweling: He’s doing very well, both here and in Stuttgart. He had a slight dip in form, but now he’s playing almost every game. He has a real eye for goal and always looks to get a shot away. He always wants to put the opposition under pressure, has good pace and has a good chance of getting minutes at the World Cup.

...Nick Woltemade: It definitely will help him to be here with us. I rate Nick very highly – he’s a really pleasant guy with outstanding character. He isn’t having an easy time at Newcastle at the moment, but I think that’s normal. He’s done well for us, can start games, but can also come on and make an impact with the technique he possesses. He has very good memories with the national team. You have to look at the overall set-up at Newcastle – there isn’t a striker there who starts every game. The coach has clearly decided to rotate his forwards. In that context, I’m less concerned than I would be if he had three rivals all playing every week.