National team
Nagelsmann confirms: Gündogan will remain DFB captain in the European Championship year
Ilkay Gündogan would like to continue wearing the captain’s armband of the German national football team. photo
© Robert Michael/dpa
Ilkay Gündogan will remain captain of the German national football team in the European Championship year. National coach Julian Nagelsmann announced this on Thursday when nominating the squad for the international matches on March 23rd in France and three days later against the Netherlands.
Ilkay Gündogan will remain captain of the German national football team in the European Championship year. That was what the national coach gave Julian Nagelsmann was announced on Thursday when nominating the squad for the international matches on March 23rd in France and three days later against the Netherlands.
“For me, this captain’s issue is more about something that concerns the team,” said Nagelsmann: “For me, every player is a contact person anyway, because I talk to every player – not just the captain. But the players should have the feeling that they have a leader in their ranks who they can always come to if they have concerns that they may not want to discuss directly with the coach.”
Nagelsmann’s predecessor Hansi Flick appointed Gündogan as the new captain in June 2023. Nagelsmann confirmed the FC Barcelona midfielder after taking over last September. Due to the major upheaval during the first squad nomination in the European Championship year, there was also a question mark over the captaincy role.
“In the end, it doesn’t matter who wears the bandage,” the 33-year-old Gündogan recently said on Amazon Prime. “In the end, it’s important that we are a team, that we show unity, that everyone is aware of their role. And if we do that well, then I am convinced that we will play a very, very good European Championship.”