Stefan Kuntz before Türkiye against Germany: pain and confirmation

A dream is shattered, but life goes on. “I’ve been looking forward for a long time now,” says Stefan Kuntz, a person who thinks positively when in doubt, about his dismissal as head coach of the Turkish national football team two months ago and the resulting missed opportunity to represent the team at the 2024 European Championship finals in his home country of Germany .

The sixty-one-year-old, who before his two successful years on the Bosporus was the first builder of a team that was looking for new support and fresh perspectives, was twice European champion with the German U-21 national team, which he developed to be ready for a title, is self-confident enough not to complain for much longer in retrospect. “Because the top management of the association changed personnel and the people who brought me in were no longer there, I had the feeling that the new people didn’t want to celebrate qualifying for the European Championship finals in Germany with the old coach. Therefore, neither my reputation nor my self-esteem suffered as a result of this dismissal.”