News (engl.)

Germany’s World Cup qualifier against Northern Ireland proved a difficult affair at first, but eventually Julian Nagelsmann’s side broke the deadlock to secure a crucial three points in a 3-1 win. The head coach proved to have a good instinct when it came to changes on the night, as Nadiem Amiri, Maximilian Beier and co. injected a new life into Germany’s play and drove the side to victory. Nagelsmann took the time to speak to DFB.de about how the fixture played out and where the side still need to improve.

DFB.de: What did you take away from the game, Mr Nagelsmann?

Julian Nagelsmann: We deserved to take the lead when we did. After that, though, we let in the only shot that the opposition had today, and just like that, we were level again. In the phase following that, we were much too slow on the ball. I made sure to tell the lads that at half time. ‘What’s going on? We conceded an equaliser. Wow! That happens all the time in football. The fans were whistling. Again, wow!’ Now what’s important is that we react properly. Later in the game we made some good substitutions. I thought that we were back on the right track for the last 30 minutes. We had to win this game, and we did just that.

DFB.de: How surprised were you to hear the whistling at half time?

Nagelsmann: The fans come into the stadium with certain expectations, which obviously were not being fulfilled. I can understand that. On the other hand, however, I also watch a lot of games, and sometimes I’m not happy with what I see. Still though, I don’t start whistling, because I don’t think it does any good for the guys down there. If we all spend our time sitting there like vultures circling, waiting for the next opportunity to pounce and to be able to say how terrible someone is and that they mess everything up – I don’t think we’re going to get anywhere as a country. I do understand it to an extent but I also want to see a different type of reaction.

DFB.de: You’ve already mentioned the substitutions. How good was Nadiem Amiri tonight?

Nagelsmann: Nadiem is just constantly going at full throttle. He’s always got such a desire to win games, it was the same when he was with the U17s or U19s. He came off the bench and just had so much drive. He simply gave everything he had out there. That’s why I’m so happy for him, because he was involved in so much in that phase of the game and it did us a lot of good.

DFB.de: How do you assess the options in midfield?

Nagelsmann: It all depends on who you’re up against. For me, you can’t just put out the same guys against every single opponent. In Formula 1, they don’t always use the same tyres, because it wouldn’t make sense to drive with slicks when it’s raining. Similarly, it wouldn’t make any sense to have a smaller number 6 if the opponent’s game is all based on winning second balls. Or it wouldn’t make sense to run out with a pure ball-winner if you’re expecting to have 90% possession on the day. It’s definitely a goal of ours to have midfield pairs who play together a lot. I also want to keep the squad competitive and make sure the players are hungry to perform.

DFB.de: With this kind of performance, are you feeling optimistic that your team can achieve the aim of World Cup qualification by November?
Naglesmann: We’ll try to use this momentum and concentrate on the upcoming games. I do find it all a bit contradictory, how after Thursday, everything was doomed, and now everyone seems to be back on cloud nine. I’ve no desire to get involved with that kind of thing. This round of games was 50% positive, next time I want to leave feeling 100% positive. We’re just going to focus on ourselves, and try our best to win the next four games.