a world cup Once upon a time it was unthinkable without Germany. The four-time champions need to turn things around to secure a spot in next year’s tournament.
a Shocking 2-0 loss Losing to Slovakia in World Cup qualifying means Julian Nagelsmann’s side may need a perfect performance in the remaining qualifiers, starting with wins against Luxembourg on Friday and Northern Ireland on Monday.
“Everyone expects us to win 5-0, 6-0 against every opponent, but that is no longer possible,” midfielder Nadiem Amiri said in comments published by German agency dpa. “Times have simply changed. Everyone is good and everyone can protect themselves. All that matters to us is winning. We need victory after victory.”
Due to the qualifying format (a group of four teams from which only the winners automatically qualify), Germany must win each of their remaining matches, unless Slovakia fails, and they must also outscore Slovakia on goal difference. If Germany finishes second, it will be among the four teams competing for one spot early next year.
making history the wrong way
It would be a historic shock if Germany failed to qualify for the expanded 48-team World Cup.
Until last month’s loss to Slovakia, Germany had never lost an away match in a World Cup qualifier. The only times he has missed the Men’s World Cup are in 1930, when he was absent from the inaugural tournament (a 13-team competition) along with most of Europe’s tournaments, and in 1950, when he was excluded after World War II.
Of course, even with qualifications, this does not mean that Germany has always produced products.
Losing out of the group stage in 2018 and 2022 was a huge disappointment for a team that had top-class individual players but was not cohesive as a team. Then-coach Hansi Flick’s goose-themed motivational talk for the 2022 World Cup failed and seemed to symbolize a lack of enthusiasm.
This means Germany has not played in a World Cup finals tournament since winning the final in 2014.
get over the injury
Germany’s fight for qualification has been made even more difficult due to injuries.
Barcelona’s Marc-Andre ter Stegen, who would be the first-choice goalkeeper when fit, has not played all year, while Real Madrid defender Antonio Rudiger is out with a muscle injury and Bayern Munich’s attacking midfield star Jamal Musiala is unlikely to return until the new year.
Nagelsmann appears keen to forge a partnership with Florian Wirtz and Newcastle’s Nick Woltemade, but Wirtz is yet to find his best form since moving to Liverpool. Walte Maid had a flu-like illness. this week. That means the tall striker trained separately on Wednesday.
requires special attention New player Nathaniel BrownHe is a left back from Eintracht Frankfurt and will also play for the United States national team. Brown faces the challenge of outperforming Frankfurt teammate Nnamdi Collins, who was sent off after making a fatal mistake on his debut against Slovakia.
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AP Soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
