National soccer team: “Heated” test in Zenica: How stable is Germany playing?

Julian Nagelsmann took his travel bag, cell phone and notepad and quickly disappeared into the team hotel in bright sunshine. The short trip in the Nations League to Zenica, a good hour’s drive from Sarajevo, presents the national coach with a rather unexpected mentality challenge at the beginning of his second year in office: Will the national soccer team survive on Friday (8.45 p.m./RTL) against outsiders Bosnia-Herzegovina on aggregate seven failures even without half the starting eleven?

The national players could have walked to the rustic Bilino Polje stadium across the Bosna for the final training session on Thursday. The small arena with old seating shells, small shops below the main stand and grassy hills at both ends is a dream for football nostalgics. It will be a bit of a change for the DFB professionals. And it should be loud. The fans of the world number 75, around 12,500 are expected, are looking forward to the home debut of the national coach and old Bundesliga acquaintance Sergej Barbarez.

“I assume that it will be emotional in the stadium, that the home fans will be extremely cheering on Bosnia-Herzegovina and pushing forward,” said Nagelsmann. “We will find a heated atmosphere there.” Next Monday, Germany will face arch-rivals the Netherlands at the group summit in Munich.

DFB selection “convinced that the quality is there”

“Two extremely difficult games” would await the DFB selection, predicted Serge Gnabry. With 22 goals, the Bayern professional is by far the most dangerous player in the squad. Bosnia is a “strong defensive opponent that you have to play against,” said newcomer Tim Kleindienst. The Gladbacher has a good chance of replacing the injured Niclas Füllkrug in the center of the attack. “You have to take control of the game,” said the newcomer. He is “convinced that the quality is there and that we will definitely beat Bosnia.”

That will be the deciding factor for Nagelsmann. After the convincing start against Hungary (5-0) and the appealing 2-2 draw in Amsterdam against the Netherlands, the DFB selection doesn’t necessarily need a magical evening of football. Three points in Zenica would be an indication that it will work even if a number of regulars are missing. By the way, it would be a big step towards the milestone in the Nations League.

Quarterfinals within reach

With two wins in the October games, Germany would reach the new quarter-finals in March early and confidently. In previous editions of the once unpopular UEFA competition, the DFB selection had mostly disappointed. Only others have ever reached the final tournament of the best four nations in the summer.

“Our goals remain,” said Nagelsmann, despite the major renovation work on his starting eleven that has been going on for days. As planned, at the beginning of the month he only had to replace the long-missing goalkeeper Marc-André ter Stegen, for whom Alexander Nübel made his debut in Zenica, and Füllkrug. But then Jamal Musiala, Kai Havertz, Robin Koch, David Raum and Benjamin Henrichs were rejected. “Crazy,” said captain Joshua Kimmich.

Nagelsmann takes the personal challenge pragmatically. “We are now really looking forward to seeing our new players in the team and in training,” he said at the beginning of the week. On Friday evening we will see who has convinced us. “Let’s see what the coach has in mind for me,” said Mainz’s Jonathan Burkhardt, who, like Stuttgart’s Jamie Leweling, was thrown into the squad for the first time due to the cancellations.

Last weekend, Burkhardt scored twice against Bosnia’s goalkeeper Nikola Vasilj, who earns his money at FC St. Pauli and is one of several professionals in the Barbarez squad with experience in Germany. In front, Stuttgart’s Ermedin Demirovic will play alongside old star Edin Dzeko (38) and try to annoy his club friend Nübel. “We have to be honest. We know that we are clearly the underdog,” said the striker. Winning the game, Demirovic said, would be “very, very difficult. Not to say it’s impossible.”