New Löw for Die Mannschaft

                 Six years on from conquering the world it’s hard to believe that German football could be in turmoil. Italian football fans have waited fourteen years for silverware, the Argentines twenty-seven years, the Dutch thirty-two, the English fifty-four and the wait goes on for the poor Belgians. Six years doesn’t look so bad when you pin it up and compare it to other nations but in Germany football is a religion. The Germans are passionate about many things but few as intensely as football. Only Brazil have more World Cup titles, whilst no side can boast as many European Championships as the Germans. Six Euro finals with three victories and eight World Cup finals with four wins, that German efficiency we always refer to goes beyond reliant cars and a delicious pilsner. When boozy English fans roar ‘Football’s Coming Home’ every fourth summer German fans bite their tongues. With such persistent success in the past, any change in the National Team trend will be met with a score of critics. Their recent 6-0 thrashing in Seville by the Spanish, one year on from their worst World Cup since ‘France 1938’, has stirred a nationwide witch hunt for Joachim Löw. Löw’s decision to banish a trio of fan favourite veterans from national duty has resurfaced as further grounds for his sacking. The trio consisted of stalwart central defenders Mats Hummels and Jerome Boateng, and Bayern’s versatile Thomas Müller. Müller (31) and Boateng (32) proved Löw wrong in spectacular fashion last season following a treble winning campaign in which both played a significant and pivotal role. A few senior additions to the squad could be the perfect ingredients to blend the National Team back together. 2018 was Joachim Löw’s first tournament in which he failed to step onto the podium. Six tournaments (not including the Confederations Cup) with three bronzes, a silver and a gold.

Joachim Löw took over as head coach of Die Mannschaft (the National Team) days after the conclusion of the 2006 World Cup, held in Germany. Löw and his assistant Hans-Dieter Flick got off to a flying start, including the first defeat of England at their new Wembley Stadium. Löw guided his country to the Euro 2008 final in Vienna but were narrowly defeated by the Spanish thanks to a Fernando Torres strike. In the following qualification campaign Germany went undefeated, booking their place in the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. Two years on from their Euro heartache a series of alterations were introduced to the squad. Jens Lehmann had retired and in stepped then Schalke keeper Manuel Neuer. Thomas Müller was introduced to the international scene alongside Jerome Boateng, Toni Kroos and Mesut Özil. Once again it was the Spaniards who stood in the way of the Germans. Another 1-0 defeat, this time in the semi-finals, sent Löw’s side home. Once again Germany soared through the qualification stage, with ten wins from ten matches to seal a spot at Euro 2012. Their success continued into the group stages, winning each of their three fixtures. A convincing 4-2 over Greece in the Quarters set up a Semi-Final date with Italy, a date which ended in heartache thanks to a Mario Balotelli double for the Azzurri. 2014 saw Joachim Löw awarded the Fifa Coach of the Year after guiding his country to their 4^th World Cup title. Twenty-two-year-old Mario Götze’s extra-time strike sealed the title in an underwhelming final in Rio de Janiero. However, as jejune a final as it was, the Semi-Final sent shockwaves across the Atlantic Ocean. A 7-1 humiliation of home nation Brazil smashed several records including the heaviest defeat in a World Cup Semi-Final. Germany had conquered the world of football once again. Löw’s tenure as National Team head coach made for decent reading. 2008 silver, 2010 bronze, 2012 bronze, 2014 champions, 2016 bronze. In that Euro 2016 campaign the Germans would reach the Semi-Final phase before suffering a 2-0 defeat at the hands of the host nation France. The following year Löw and a significantly youthful squad travelled to Russia to take part in the Confederations Cup. Germany, minus Manuel Neuer, Thomas Müller, Jerome Boateng, Mats Hummels, Mesut Özil and Toni Kroos to name a few, edged past Chile in the last ever Confederations Cup Final to be contested. Despite their success in St. Petersburg one year earlier, Germany’s 2018 World Cup campaign was a disastrous ten-day journey. Two goals against Sweden in the Group Stage were all the Germans could conjure up in a calamitous campaign which ended with a 2-0 defeat to South Korea.

The 6-0 defeat to Spain last week was a flattering score-line for a sorry German side. If it weren’t for their captain Manuel Neuer, Germany could have been looking at double figures. Three goals per half for the Spaniards marked the largest German defeat since 1931. The opening three goals all came from crosses into the penalty area. The opener, an uncontested header from Juventus forward Álvaro Morata inside the six-yard box, with 5ft9 winger Serge Gnabry somehow assigned marking duties to the 6ft3 striker. Spain’s second came from a Ferran Torres half-volley after Daniel Olmo’s free header had rattled the crossbar, Neuer was helpless and full-back Philipp Max too slow in reacting. The home side bagged another goal from a corner as half-time approached with one City man escaping another in the area. Again, question marks over tactics as Ilkay Gündoğan, 5ft11, was paired with 6ft3 teammate Rodri, the outcome, a bullet header from the Spanish midfielder. After the restart it wasn’t so much a case of routine rookie errors from crosses as pure tactical submission from the Spanish. Germany restructured their approach, transforming from a back four into a back three, opening large areas of the field for the speedy Spanish to utilize. A masterclass in counter-attacking gifted Spain their fourth and fifth goals, and clinched Ferran Torres’ hat-trick, neither of which even Neuer could have prevented. Minutes before the final whistle José Gayà crept in behind the Germany defence to set up Mikel Oyarzabal and complete the rout. Although the visitors lacked creativity up the field it was their defensive woes that were most detectable. A lack of defensive positioning and awareness were Germany’s downfall in Seville, which once more highlight the magnitude of Hummels and Boateng’s absence in the squad. This spineless defence are in desperate need of a leader, in fact, the same can be said for the rest of the side. Germany are in somewhat of a transition. It’s patently clear where the lion share of wisdom sits within this squad. Besides Real Madrid’s Toni Kroos there is a destitute of experience in this current cluster of German National Team players. Of the nine non-Bayern men on the field during the slaughtering in Seville, 150 international caps and 22 trophies were split amongst them. Veteran Toni Kroos, the eldest of the starting line-up (besides the fine wine Manuel Neuer in the sticks) has amassed 101 caps for his country and 23 career honours alone. Löw can no longer seek solace in the seniors, a dilemma that the sixty-year-old himself must take accountability for having exiled three key members of the 2014 World Cup winning side.

Whilst the German defence applied social distancing measures on the field, their teammates up field were far from inspiring themselves. Leon Goretzka, a mainstay in Hansi Flick’s side, was off the pace during the drubbing to Spain whilst his Bayern counterpart Joshua Kimmich is currently side-lined following knee surgery earlier this month. When the gritty little central midfielder/full-back returns to the side, Germany’s midfield should thrive once again. Goretzka, Kimmich and Kroos? Good luck finding a midfield three as polished as this German trio in next summers European Championships. As for the forward line, Gnabry and Sane shouldn’t cause any manager headaches. Whilst Chelsea couple Timo Werner and Kai Havertz have escaped the monopoly of German league football and are now plying their trade in arguably the most competitive league in the world. Plenty of game time in the English Premier League will inject some much-needed competitive experience to this group. With a vast array of promising youth coming through the National Team ranks it feels imperative Löw backtracks on his senior shunning policy he outlined last year to give his team a healthy balance. That is if Löw is to call the shots come the summertime.

The UEFA Nations League isn’t quite the be-all and end-all to a country with aspirations as high as the Germans, but the resounding thrashing the Spaniards handed to both Löw’s squad and reputation has Germans in a state of panic over next summer. Group F of Euro 2020 isn’t the most accommodating when in the midst of a ‘national crisis’ as the Germans appear to be treating Löw’s poor handling of National Team operations. Defending European champions Portugal and World champions France stand in their way along with Hungary. Ironically the man favoured by the German media to replace Löw, ridiculed for snubbing the more experienced players, is Ralf Rangnick, renowned for nurturing the younger generation. Something of a national treasure, Rangnick has been credited with influencing fellow German managers, Thomas Tuchel, Jürgen Klopp and Julian Nagelsmann by deploying a ferocious attacking style of play with an abundance of youth players. If you’re familiar with the Klopp and Nagelsmann approach of full-backs charging down the field to offer support to the wingers and fast-flowing football with runs in behind (think Werner, Mane etc.) this is the forecast for a Rangnick revolution.

Löw is precisely the word to describe the motivation of an entire nation right now. Although Germany have relished during his tenure, with the previous World Cup the only black mark on an otherwise glittering CV, the consensus around the country is that Löw has outstayed his welcome.