Mainz
Captain Kimmich hopes to start a winning streak in the style of world champion Argentina. The national team should get rid of the tournament legacy against Peru and get in the mood for the home European Championship.
Hansi Flick’s fight against the big World Cup mortgage begins. 114 days after losing the preliminary round despite the 4-2 win against Costa Rica in the Bedouin tent stadium in Al-Bayt, the national coach is back on the sidelines in an international match.
The first touchstone for the national soccer team on the way to the home European Championship in 2024 is Peru. The national coach made one thing unmistakably clear. A win is needed in the evening (8.45 p.m. / ZDF) in Mainz. This is the only way to achieve the necessary mood swing quickly.
New staff
Flick has appointed six newcomers. However, the national coach also received criticism for this. “We want to put the squad on a broader footing,” Flick justified the selection of half a dozen possible debutants. Full-back Marius Wolf from Borussia Dortmund has a good chance of making a debut in the starting XI. Mergim Berisha, Malick Thiaw, Felix Nmecha, Kevin Schade and Josha Vagnoman may have to wait a little longer, but Flick announced that they should become senior national players against Peru or against Belgium on Tuesday.
In order to be able to see the youngsters play and certainly also to set stimulus points, Flick left proven players such as Thomas Müller, Ilkay Gündogan and Leroy Sané at home. Joshua Kimmich is the captain in his 75th international match. Marc-André ter Stegen stands in for the injured Manuel Neuer in goal.
New tactic
Niclas Füllkrug thinks the idea is a good one. With a dual leadership, the search for goal efficiency should finally lead to success. At Werder Bremen, Füllkrug plays this tactical variant with Marvin Ducksch. In the DFB-Elf he will now have returnee Timo Werner, who missed the World Cup injured, at his side against Peru. Two central attackers offer advantages and disadvantages, said Füllkrug and added: “I see the advantages.”
In the new 4-2-2-2 system, the full-backs would have new tasks, said Flick. The 58-year-old sees the six in particular in focus, along with Kimmich and probably Leon Goretzka. These would have to be more stable defensively and thus make a greater contribution to remedying the chronic weakened defenses.
New focus
Kai Havertz was honest. “They overwhelmed me personally. The national team stands for values. But at the World Cup the pressure was too high; We footballers were expected to solve what even politics can’t do,” the Chelsea professional told the newspapers of the Funke media group in an interview on the discussions outside of football in Qatar.
Flick and the new sports director Rudi Völler have made it clear several times that football must be the focus again. The black, red and gold captain’s armband instead of the One Love symbol on captain Kimmich’s arm is representative of this. The DFB still wants to live up to its social responsibility. The advertising boards in Mainz are adorned with the slogan: “We have something against racism.”
