Hansi Flick’s tests for Germany were increasingly indiscriminate, causing the home team to continuously receive a series of bad results.
Flick made too many mistakes in the recent series of international friendlies. Even the players know that.
After the 0-2 loss to Colombia at the Veltins Arena (Germany) on the morning of June 21 (Hanoi time), midfielder Emre Can exclaimed: “Germany must return to a system of 4 defenders. That’s it. more suitable for the team. The coach tried something (with three defenders – PV) but it didn’t work.” This is Borussia Dortmund’s midfield match being used as a central defender in a 3-4-3 formation.
Coach Flick also admitted that he made a mistake with the idea of using a system of three central defenders. “We wanted to try something new, but it didn’t work out,” the former Bayern Munich captain admitted after the game.
Bad tests
The German team entered the summer break in a bad mood. In the last 5 friendlies, they lost 3, drew 1 and won only 1. The 2014 World Cup champion scored 7 goals, conceded 9 times. After the defeat to Poland on June 17, Flick’s teachers and students lost to Colombia.
There was a moment at the Veltins Arena early this morning when the fans began to lose patience with Germany, whistling and booing the players. Under the field, the German team performed a football that made fans feel insecure. They appear sporadic and slow.
From the German Football Federation’s office , Director Rudi Völler still defended Flick, asking fans to be more patient with the 58-year-old captain, the captain facing a lot of criticism for the team’s string of poor performances. home. The wave demanding the dismissal of the former Bayern Munich captain appeared on social networks
But Flick didn’t seem worried. Speaking to the media, he declared: “Things will be very different in September.” It is like a message showing stubbornness, that you will continue to perform many tests for the home team until the final round of EURO 2024 takes place.
However, the German team is now said to be disoriented. Flick does not create a stable skeleton. Instead, he experimented too much, and then it all fell apart.
In football, consecutive defeats are the clearest sign of instability. Worse, the position and mentality of the team and players are also affected.
In recent friendlies for Germany, Flick “invents” really strange initiatives. He considers it “his own path” and “will do it consistently”.
In two friendlies against Ukraine and Poland, Flick launched a squad “that perhaps only he understands the value of”. In defense, the former captain of Bayern used 3 defenders. Facing Colombia, Flick again lined up with 3 people, in which Emre Can – defensive midfielder – was asked to go deeper to play as a central defender. At the end of these three matches, the German team conceded 7 goals and did not win any.
Also in the confrontation with Colombia, Flick also came up with a crazy idea. He ranked Ilkay Gundogan as a left striker, while his forte position is central midfielder. At Man City, Gundogan is like the boss of the midfield, a “box-to-box” midfielder. Occasionally, the former Dortmund star kicks up like a “number 10”, he also becomes the X-factor, who surprises the opponent’s defense with sudden appearances in the penalty area and finishes like a striker.
On the Veltins Arena, the Gundogan’s potential was wasted. The German midfielder is 32 years old, speed has never been a strong point. Letting him play on the edge makes the player not bring out his best qualities. In the first half, the Man City midfielder had only 25 touches of the ball. The influence Gundogan exerts on the offensive front is a round zero.
In a 3-3 draw against Poland in Bremen (Germany) on June 12, Flick ranked Niclas Füllkrug – who scored the opening goal – the highest kick in attack. Werder Bremen’s 30-year-old spearhead is also considered the best “number 9” of current German football. But in the match against Poland and Colombia, Flick left Füllkrug as a substitute, putting his faith in Havertz. The German team is in a state of stagnation in these confrontations.
In the defeat to Colombia, Havertz touched the ball 28 times, only having one shot on target. He even lost the ball 5 times.
Alarm for the German team
Germany is in crisis. In the last 10 matches, they only won 3 matches. That is an unacceptable achievement. At the 2022 World Cup, Flick’s Germany team played badly, had to bring their suitcases home early from the group stage.
After a disappointing tournament in Qatar, Flick was fortunate not to be fired. However, the recent string of bad achievements has made the former captain of Bayern Munich face great pressure. Next year, Germany will enter the EURO 2024 finals as the host, but now they are lost.
Speaking after the loss to Colombia, Flick insisted he would not resign. Director Rudi Völler also assured the future of the German coach: “I understand the disappointment of the public. I believe Flick is still a good coach, the right person to lead the German team.”
German media believe that the decline of Germany is not only due to Flick’s false experiments, the quality and performance of the players is at a low level. The composition of the German team for many years has been built on the core force of the players of Bayern Munich. Season 2022/23, the quality of the Bavarian “Gray Lobster” declined. In the Bundesliga, the Allianz Arena team no longer created a superiority compared to the rest, they even had to wait until the last match to win the championship.
After the defeat to Colombia, midfielder Leon Goretzka bluntly described a “very uncomfortable situation appearing in the German team”. He said: “It’s hard to explain. It all seems to be missing something. It feels like everything is against us at the moment. What happened in Germany was like the end of the season at Bayern.”
Perhaps it is time for the German Football Federation and Flick to sit down and analyze the situation together. The coming days will be very important for “Die Mannschaft”. Above all, Flick needs to restore the old values that made Germany successful. A formation with four players in defence and with a target striker up front. Flick must quickly map out a suitable route for the home team. Otherwise, he could face a great risk of losing his job in September, when the German team has two friendly matches against Japan and France.