And now? Nagelsmann has to question his plans. Image: dpa
Nagelsmann wants too much from his players? His idea so far has been to distribute as much playful excellence as possible between the positions. A correction seems urgently needed.
The soccer teacher Nagelsmann has a placement problem. This was expressed in an exemplary manner on Tuesday evening in Vienna when it was – once again – about Kai Havertz. It was Nagelsmann himself who brought the name into play when he was asked about the validity of his strategy in the light of the latest findings in the 2-0 defeat against Austria. Before giving his answer, the national coach wanted to know from the questioner how he viewed Havertz’s performance. When the information was generally positive with a view to the Turkey game on Saturday, Nagelsmann said flippantly: “This is the first sensible assessment of Kai Havertz in the last three days.”
So Nagelsmann has the feeling of not being understood. The fact that he burst out like this after just over two months and four games as national coach is, on the one hand, a real nail-biter, but it also says something about the pressure and general irritation that can be felt in this specific situation. But the much more important question is: Does the team understand his ideas, or is there a communication problem there too?
