Thomas Tuchel has no understanding for the German national soccer team’s trip to America. “Playing against Mexico in America before a European Championship in Germany – I don’t know if that makes sense to me. “I don’t know if anyone can explain it to me so clearly that I can understand it,” criticized the FC Bayern Munich coach on Friday. His colleague Edin Terzić from Borussia Dortmund spoke of a “challenge”.
The team of the new national coach Julian Nagelsmann has two international test games in mid-October against the USA in Hartford on October 14th (9 p.m. CEST in the FAZ live ticker for the national team and on RTL) and against Mexico on October 18th (2 a.m. CEST in the FAZ live ticker to the national team and on ARD). The Munich team is releasing five German professionals for the upcoming international break.
“Nobody ever asks”
“The German national players come back on Thursday and are on the plane to Mainz on Friday, are on the plane to Istanbul on Monday and come back on Wednesday,” said Tuchel, referring to his team’s games after the international break. The return of the German national players is scheduled for October 19th. Borussia Dortmund will play against Werder Bremen on October 20th (8:30 p.m. in the FAZ live ticker for the Bundesliga and on DAZN), FC Bayern will play in Mainz the following day (6:30 p.m. in the FAZ live ticker for the Bundesliga and on Sky).
“This is at the end of our endurance. No coach at this level will tell you anything different,” Tuchel continued. “It’s just that we’re always asked about it, and then everything is decided. Nobody ever asks before you decide something. And they probably know our opinion and don’t want to hear it.”
At some point the Champions League will have more games, the European Championship will be expanded, the World Cup will be expanded. “The games are played thousands of miles apart. You won’t find a club manager or a coach who thinks it’s good,” he said. “You won’t find a player who will tell you that I can really reach my performance limit with the schedule.”
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Edin Terzić preferred not to get upset. “We had our experience traveling to the USA in the summer and had our own jet lag plan. Our medical department and our athletic department will remain in close contact with our players,” he said and added: “It is the way it was decided. That has to be respected. We will try to make the best of these circumstances.”
