Joshua Kimmich was a central face of the national team for a long time. He’s currently taking a backseat to the big dream.
By Benjamin Zurmühl, Frankfurt
Joshua Kimmich has won almost everything there is to win in club football. As part of the “Sextuple-Bayern” he lifted one trophy after another in 2020 and 2021. But the 29-year-old apparently doesn’t feel “completed” yet. Because Kimmich only won the Confederations Cup, the World Cup dress rehearsal, with the national team in 2017. At the 2016 European Championships he failed with the DFB selection in the semi-finals, and in 2021 in the round of 16. At the World Championships in Russia (2018) and Qatar (2022) it was over after the group phase.
After the exit in Qatar, Kimmich spoke of the “hardest day of his career” and the “fear of falling into a hole”. With tears in his eyes, he said: “It’s not that easy for me personally to cope with because I’m personally associated with the failure. That’s not something you want to stand for.”
The pressure on the shoulders of the highly talented national player was immense. Partly self-inflicted because the expectations placed on oneself are high. On the other hand, also because the public had great hope in Kimmich as the front man of a successful DFB team. Too much?
“I’m a six”
Things didn’t really get quiet for the 83-time national player after that either. A few months after the World Cup exit, Julian Nagelsmann had to leave as head coach of FC Bayern. Afterwards, Kimmich saw “little love, little heart” in the decision. And he contradicted the version that Nagelsmann had no support in the team. “I can say that the coach hasn’t lost the dressing room,” he emphasized.
In the weeks that followed, FC Bayern suffered an exit from the DFB Cup, an exit from the Champions League and a narrow championship that hardly anyone had expected.
In the summer, coach Thomas Tuchel wanted a “holding six,” a defensive midfielder like Bayern had in Javi Martínez. Someone who primarily thinks about defending and organizing the game from the back. Kimmich didn’t see the “six” search as urgent. During the training camp tour in Asia, he made it clear: “I’m a six.” Nevertheless, Bayern continued to look for reinforcements for weeks before they found João Palhinha too late. The transfer did not take place due to time constraints. Much to the disappointment of Thomas Tuchel, who also communicated this. According to “Sport Bild”, Tuchel’s repeated criticism of the squad displeased the Bayern bosses at the time – and probably also some of the affected players like Kimmich.
But things didn’t get much better in the weeks that followed. In the national team, Kimmich had to give up his beloved position in defensive midfield and the captain’s armband at the beginning of September. National coach Hansi Flick made him a kind of scapegoat when he feared for his job. The effect did not materialize. As a right-back, he experienced firsthand the 4-1 debacle against Japan, which also meant the end of national coach Hansi Flick. Kimmich missed the subsequent 2-1 win over France under interim coach Rudi Völler due to injury. Finding fodder for his critics.
However, ex-professional Thomas Broich defended him, saying on the BR program “Blickpunkt Sport”: “I think a lot is attached to him. He is the symbol of the whole thing and he is caught up in something that is not just something has to do with his athletic performance.”
A difficult autumn
As the fall progressed, Kimmich missed Julian Nagelsmann’s international debut due to illness. After the two-week break he was healthy again and attacked again. The next setback followed in the second game after his recovery. Against Darmstadt he was shown a red card after four minutes. A scene that Kimmich himself was most annoyed about because he was supposed to miss the big game in Dortmund. But he was allowed to play against third division team Saarbrücken a few days later. The game ended in defeat. Kimmich’s drive home after the game was filmed by celebrating Saarbrücken fans and immediately uploaded. There was a lot of malice and ridicule online.
2024-03-26 12:50:55
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