EFirst the eight goals conceded by FC Bayern, now an operation on the painful knee – and the duel with Manuel Neuer for the place in the German goal is no longer an issue. For Marc-André ter Stegen things are going to be sticky. The dilemma of the FC Barcelona goalkeeper also exacerbates Joachim Löw’s problems shortly before the restart of the national soccer team after more than nine months of forced break, mostly due to Corona.
The national coach is brooding over his squad for the first Nations League games, which he will announce next week. For the 60-year-old, the question arose: Given the tight schedule two weeks before the Bundesliga start without proper preparation, who is ready for the games against Spain on September 3 in Stuttgart and three days later in Basel against Switzerland?
The big Bayern block should go on vacation again after the premier class tournament in Lisbon at the behest of coach Hansi Flick. The national players from RB Leipzig (Lukas Klostermann and Marcel Halstenberg) and Paris Saint-Germain (Thilo Kehrer and Julian Draxler) also need a rest period after the days in Lisbon. And at Borussia Dortmund and Bayer Leverkusen, as with all other Bundesliga clubs, players will only want to leave the players for Löw with grinding of teeth – especially if Bayern were given a special role.
With Ter Stegen, who is supposed to keep the pressure on captain Neuer high in the direction of EM 2021 and would have been predestined for the first two games, Löw can count on no earlier than November. The 28-year-old is not available for a total of five international matches. “It will take me a few weeks to recover and return one hundred percent. I’m calm and positive about the situation, I’ll be back soon, ”wrote ter Stegen before the operation on his right knee.
“This is a proactive intervention to prevent and be prepared for the future,” wrote Ter Stegen, who now has to pursue the search for a new Barca coach from his sickbed. On Tuesday, the association announced that the operation had gone well. Ter Stegen is said to be missing two and a half months. His failure means for Löw that he can hardly do without a new one in September and October. Kevin Trapp and Bernd Leno are still in the clear reserve role for the goal.
Intensive negotiations about the staff with his former assistant Flick are programmed for Löw. “It is a very special situation that has never happened before. Our players, but also from the other German clubs that are still involved internationally, need time to regenerate ”, Flick said and proclaimed“ at least two weeks of vacation and two weeks of preparation ”for his tournament players from Lisbon. This time buffer would not be possible at a final against Olympique Lyon until the league start.
Löw had reacted quite diplomatically to the demand from Munich: “Of course we always keep an eye on the burden, especially for the top players. But I know that these players in particular are looking forward to international matches again. We will find a solution when the time comes. ”It will soon be time and Löw has to tinker so that he can bring the national team meaningfully into the EM track.
A compromise with Bayern could be that at least Niklas Süle and Leroy Sané, who need match practice after their cruciate ligament ruptures, are part of it. Joshua Kimmich and Leon Goretzka, two pillars for the future, Loew can possibly pull loose for a game. After all, in Toni Kroos (Real Madrid), Ilkay Gündogan (Manchester City) and Timo Werner (Chelsea FC), other top performers with their clubs are not in the premier league until the end.
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