Loss to Colombia
DFB team in free fall, but Hansi Flick sticks to his course – and Völler protects him
Despite all the problems, Hansi Flick wants to continue as national coach
© Federico Gambarini/dpa
0:2 against Colombia. The German national soccer team is still in a downward spiral. National coach Hansi Flick is sticking to his line, and sports director Rudi Völler also sees the problem elsewhere.
The DFB team is anything but smooth. What the players are currently bringing to the pitch is not suitable for the European Championship. That’s why Hansi Flick said a few words to the team in the dressing room before the national football players went on vacation that night. What remained in Gelsenkirchen was a national coach who, even after the third friendly flop, was apparently free of self-doubt and ruled out personal consequences after the national team’s 2-0 (0-0) loss against Colombia. His most important advocate, DFB sports director Rudi Völler, meanwhile shifted his sights to the players by raising the question of quality on Tuesday evening in the direction of the home European Championship.
At the press conference, Flick was asked whether he ruled out personal consequences. “Of course it’s a situation for me that I’ve never experienced in this form. I really, really like to win games. And I really hate to lose,” replied Flick: “I said I’d go uncompromisingly in June this year way. I can train with the best players in Germany. I have a super team around me. I just enjoy preparing a team for a tournament,” said the 58-year-old, referring to the home tournament that is so important for the DFB. Early failure of the World Cup, botched restart with just one win and now four games without a win in 2023 – the national team is in free fall.
Hansi Flick: “It went haywire”
After the 3-3 win against Ukraine, the 1-0 loss in Poland and the defeat against snappy Colombians, which was whistled by more than 50,000 spectators, Flick admitted that his experimentation in the three games that ended the season was a failure. “If we get to the point, it went haywire. What we tried didn’t work in this form.” Liverpool FC’s Luis Diaz and Juventus Turin’s Juan Cuadrado with a hand penalty had dashed all hopes of a good result with their goals.
Flick said goodbye to an uncomfortable summer break with “a promise” to the fans. You will “see another team in September,” he said. Then the opponents are called Japan and France. “We will then try to really tie down and name a tribe of 10, 12, 14 players,” announced the 58-year-old. It should then also be clear who is number one in each position.
Völler defends Flick
Völler had already given Flick a job guarantee in the event of another defeat. The 63-year-old could not question this after the next low point in the mood. In the RTL interview, he described the national coach as “the poorest sow” and instead targeted the players. “One or the other lacks top quality,” said Völler. The sports director announced personnel consequences in the squad, even if he didn’t want to name names: “You have to make sure that you invite the right players.”
Robin Gosens spoke of “a downward spiral” in which the DFB team was stuck almost a year before the opening game of the European Championship on June 14, 2024 in Munich. There was also verbal support for the national coach, who was questioned by the media, from the group of players. “We have absolute trust in him,” said goalkeeper Marc-André ter Stegen to Flick. When asked if Flick was still the right person, Benjamin Henrichs replied: “Yes, absolutely.”
Emre Can said he saw no discussion “at all” about the national coach. “He wanted to try what is his right,” said Can, who, to everyone’s surprise, Flick deployed centrally in the back three this time. “It didn’t work out, but we shouldn’t question the coach,” said Dortmund’s Can. Champions League winner Ilkay Gündogan, who remained largely ineffective and, as captain, could not lead the team on the longed-for success, judged after the next low point, both in terms of sport and mood: “That’s not our benchmark.” However: “If you don’t manage to access this potential on the pitch for a longer period of time, then at some point we have to ask whether we also have the quality to play one hundred percent at the highest level,” said Gündogan.