By Arne Richter, dpa
Frankfurt /Germany: Germany coach Hansi Flick wants his players to give their all with an improved defensive effort and more efficiency up front in order to win the fans back with good results after a second straight World Cup group stage exit.
“We have an obligation to deliver,” Flick told dpa in an interview at the German Football Federation (DFB) headquarters in Frankfurt ahead of Sunday’s final in Qatar between France and Argentina.
“We have to generate enthusiasm again,” he said. “We want to show attractive football. As a team, we want to show the fans: We get it, we want to give everything, we want to play for Germany, we are proud of it and we are looking forward to this home European Championship” in 2024.
“You have to give everything so that you put in a top performance in every game. That is our task and then we hope that the fans will support us. We are also convinced of that.”
Germany lost 2-1 against Japan and drew 1-1 with Spain before a 4-2 win from 2-1 down against Costa Rica was not good enough for the four-time champions to survive the group stage.
“If you look at the data, we are among the teams that created the most scoring opportunities. We lacked efficiency. And defensively it was simply average because we were not compact enough,” Flick said.
“The opponents ruthlessly exploited that. Japan and Costa Rica scored twice each from three chances. They had the efficiency we lacked.
“We also didn’t manage to follow through with the match plan over 90 minutes. Performing at 100% for a change – that’s one thing we need. That is very important for the future.”
Flick said the tournament in Qatar showed that defensive-minded teams had the biggest success, saying that in the semi-final between France and Morocco there were stages “in which they played some great football and defended with great passion at the same time.
“You could feel this energy and passion with us in the Spain game. In the end it is the basis, the basic prerequisite for playing a successful tournament,” he said.
Looking ahead, he said: “It is important that we have consistency in every game, against every opponent, and that we have the discipline to deliver 100% over the entire match.”
Full dedication would also reconcile the fans of who many were also indifferent around the World Cup because of Qatar’s human rights record. And Flick also suggested that the debate around the One Love armband could have been handled in a better way.
“Have we done everything in Germany that the people are looking forward to the World Cup?” Flick asked.
“French President Emmanuel Macron has said that ‘football is becoming too politicized. Our players should concentrate on football. Politics is what I do’. That would have been a good sign, also for us.
“Fact is that the mood in Germany was against Qatar and many said, I’m not going to watch that. It’s a pity. I found it inspiring to see the fans of other teams who supported their team unconditionally.
“That’s what we should focus on again, playing football as successfully as possible for Germany. That is our task – it would be nice if we were allowed to do that. Others are trained for politics.”
Flick had reacted frustrated to the exit of national team director Oliver Bierhoff two weeks ago but was entrusted by the DFB to fulfil his contract until the 2024 home Euros, and fully confident now that he will also get along with Bierhoff’s successor.
The 57-year-old must now find a team with the right balance between the youth of 18-year-old Youssoufa Moukoko and the experience of a Thomas Müller, 32, whom Flick is not writing off because he doesn’t rate age a criterion.
“It’s good for a team to have a breath of fresh air. We have some good, very talented young players coming up. We have to look at that because it’s about the future,” Flick said.
“We have a year and a half. We want to try to accompany one or two of them so that they take the next step and improve in such a way that they become interesting for us or become established. That is our task as a coaching team.”
