Nagelsmann gains new insights but no big change of roles planned
Germany head coach Julian Nagelsmann gestures on the sidelines during the International Friendly soccer match between Germany and Ghana at MHP Arena. Christian Charisius/dpa The two wins in the two final matches ahead of the World Cup squad nomination will give Germany and coach Julian Nagelsmann an extra boost of confidence for the tournament in summer. But most importantly, it offered Nagelsmann important insights to build his ideal team.
"We've gained insights that we're now processing. We've taken a few steps forward toward the World Cup," he said after the late 2-1 win against Ghana in Stuttgart on Monday evening, which followed an intense 4-3 victory over Switzerland last Friday. Nagelsmann doesn't see four-time world champions Germany as the favourite to win the World Cup trophy this year.
And the German team will have a lot to prove after consecutive group stage exits in the last two World Cup editions. But after seven straight wins, the team is heading in the right direction and nothing boosts confidence more than success. "We certainly didn't play two perfect games.
But we still won both of them," captain Joshua Kimmich stressed. Great offensive potential The offence offers Nagelsmann a wide range of options: Florian Wirtz is a true game-changer, while Kai Havertz, who scored the opener against Ghana, reclaimed his spot after being sidelined for 16 months due to injury. Serge Gnabry is performing just as good as he does at Bayern Munich and Deniz Undav stood out as a substitute with his late winner.
Meanwhile, Nagelsmann still has hopes that Jamal Musiala will be fit for the World Cup. Musiala didn't play the March tune-up games due to a pain reaction in the ankle he severely injured last summer. There was a new discovery in 18-year-old Lennart Karl, who impressed in his first two games for Germany.