National team
Nagelsmann: Squad decision made
Has already made his squad decision: national coach Julian Nagelsmann. Photo
© Federico Gambarini/dpa
Who is not allowed to take part in the European Championship? Julian Nagelsmann still has to eliminate one player. The national coach wants to announce his decision on Friday evening.
The national coach will not announce which player will not be part of the national football team at the home European Championships until Friday evening after the last friendly match against Greece (kick-off 8.45 p.m./RTL). The player has not yet been informed of the decision either, Nagelsmann reported at the press conference in Mönchengladbach.
“The decision has been made. We will make the final announcement after the game,” said Nagelsmann. He had “discussed various options” with his coaching staff, the national coach reported. The course of the game against Greece is no longer decisive for the selection, unless a player is seriously injured.
Koch and Beier were recently considered candidates for elimination
Nagelsmann is allowed to call up 26 players to his tournament squad. Nagelsmann called up 27 players for preparation. Maximilian Beier from TSG Hoffenheim and Robin Koch from Eintracht Frankfurt were recently considered candidates for elimination. Nagelsmann once again asserted that no player deserved to be eliminated.
The tournament squad must be registered with UEFA by midnight on Friday. Players can then only be exchanged up until the first match against Scotland on June 14 in Munich, provided that a UEFA doctor confirms an injury that makes it impossible for the team to play in the European Championship.
Against Greece, Kai Havertz will once again be preferred to Niclas Füllkrug in attack, reported Nagelsmann. “If Kai performs, he’ll have the edge,” he said. Toni Kroos and Antonio Rüdiger, who missed the friendly against Ukraine (0-0) on Monday after winning the Champions League with Real Madrid, are also in the starting eleven. Leroy Sané is “an option” after his long-term pubic bone problem, said Nagelsmann.