Hansi Flick’s debut as national coach did not generate the expected optimism – on the contrary: Many fans are already reminded of the last appearances of the national team under Joachim Löw. The statements of the national players fit in with this.
At the latest when Niklas Süle shot the second shot attempt from a distance very far past the goal of the Liechtenstein national team, it also dawned on the most heartfelt supporter of the national team: There is a lot of work waiting for the new national coach. The senseless attempts of the Bayern defender in the middle of the second half symbolized the performance of the DFB team that evening in St. Gallen. The attempts to somehow turn the 2-0 lead into 4-0 or 5-0, i.e. a result that can be seen against a fifth-rate opponent, ended without success.
The team sent by Flick onto the field radiated no creativity, no speed, no precision and radiated little goal danger. It was just as bad as in the last leaden years under Joachim Löw. As expected, the German followers reacted on Twitter with the usual social media ridicule.
One should not expect an explosion in performance against Armenia
Now you can dismiss the gossip of the supporters, but you can also see it as an indicator of the general state of the national team. Another yardstick are the statements made by the players after the game, in which – consciously or unconsciously – there was a lot of denial of reality. And excuses. Bayern professional Joshua Kimmich said: “Of course we decided to score more goals. We struggled. It was funny, difficult, the opponent defended so deeply, I’ve almost never seen it like this before. Nothing really works functions.” But Kimmich does not want to overestimate that. The team takes “victory with them”. And you have to get better too. But he also said: “(…) It is difficult to rate this game. It wasn’t really a football game.”
Marco Reus, who played his first international match since October 2019, emphasized how deep the Liechtensteiners were: “The opponent was almost on their own goal line. It’s difficult to get through.” Goal scorer Werner said it similarly. He has “seldom seen that a team is so deep behind”.
What they didn’t say: It wasn’t that surprising that the opponent curled up in his own penalty area. It is precisely the task of top teams to find ways and means to break such defensive bars, even if the opponent is as unattractive as little Liechtenstein, which does not even have its own league. The fact that the DFB-Elf played so weakly not only has to do with a lack of motivation, but also with the fact that they were unable to do so. The appearance reminded a little of the time before and during the European Championship, when the team too often persuaded themselves to be able to keep up and become a top team at the push of a button. As if passes, combinations, moves and motivation can simply be conjured up overnight and are not the result of a long process. The next opponent on Sunday is Armenia, who are group first after four games in the World Cup qualification. Don’t expect too much.
I have been working in the news industry for over 6 years, first as a reporter and now as an editor. I have covered politics extensively, and my work has appeared in major newspapers and online news outlets around the world. In addition to my writing, I also contribute regularly to 24 Hours World.
