The German end and its consequences …
Despite a 4-2 win against Costa Rica, the DFB team are eliminated in the first round of a World Cup for the second time in a row. Four points were not enough in the final count because Spain had a much better goal difference.
Michael Ballack (46), former captain of the national team, did not mince his words as an expert on “MagentaTV”, calculated with the team, but especially with the association: “That just happens if you don’t question yourself critically. It’s about alignment. And if I have an orientation, then I also look for the people to go with it.”
Especially with a view to the European Championships at home in a year and a half, Ballack calls for a rethink: “You mustn’t make the same mistake as in 2018, when the president stood up shortly after leaving and said: The DFB and his coaching team are analyzing it now – and then Jogi continues at the end.”
Four DFB goals in the World Cup
These scenes really hurt
What: ARD
After the World Cup in Russia (preliminary round in a group with Mexico, Sweden and South Korea; editor’s note) there were no personal consequences in the lead. Three years passed before the European Championships, in which the German team struggled through the group phase and then deservedly lost to England (0:2) in the round of 16.
The 98-cap international sees a pattern in failing three tournaments in a row. “We won’t get very far with this kind of football. We see it in the teams who are less talented but who pose problems for us,” said Ballack.
In the end it was the lack of support from Spain that prevented them from making the round of 16, but the 4-2 win against Costa Rica was anything but sovereign. 20 minutes before the end it even looked like a defeat with an interim 1:2 deficit. The goals from Kai Havertz (73′, 85′) and Niclas Füllkrug (89′) were no longer able to bring about a conciliatory conclusion.
