Deniz Undav does not expect to be named in Germany’s squad for the November Nations League matches against Serbia and the Netherlands, the VfB Stuttgart captain said after his side’s 0-2 Champions League defeat at Galatasaray Istanbul, while former Germany defender Mats Hummels said he has forbidden his eight-year-old son from performing the “blabla” goal celebration made famous by Bayern Munich’s Lennart Karl.
The two stories, both reported Tuesday by n-tv.de, capture contrasting pressures at the top of German football: a veteran striker managing expectations about his international future, and a teenage sensation whose provocative celebration has drawn criticism from a World Cup winner.
Undav: “Not at all” on Klopp nomination hopes
Asked whether he hoped to be called up by national team coach Jürgen Klopp for the matches in Belgrade on Nov. 13 and in Berlin on Nov. 16, Undav answered flatly: “Gar nicht” — “Not at all,” according to n-tv.de. When asked to explain, he added: “Was soll ich sagen? Ohne Tore ist es schwer, dabei zu sein” — “What should I say? Without goals it’s hard to be included.”
🚨🚨| Deniz Undav is set to be DROPPED from Germany's Nations League squad. 🇩🇪❌ Jürgen Klopp has informed the player personally. [@Plettigoal] pic.twitter.com/8SXCnybJu2
Sueddeutsche Zeitung, citing dpa, reported that Undav said he had received no signals from Klopp’s camp and that the 30-year-old captain is still waiting for his first Bundesliga goal of the season. He has scored once in the Champions League, in the 3-0 win at Slovan Bratislava, and once in the DFB-Pokal, in the 1-0 win at Paderborn, the German outlet noted. Undav has nine goals in 13 appearances for Germany.
The nomination window matters this time. After Klopp called up 44 players across two separate squads for his first four Nations League matches in September and October, he can now invite a maximum of 26 players for the final two group games, Sueddeutsche Zeitung reported. Undav was not included in that earlier 44-man selection.
Bild: Undav’s playmaking form keeps him in contention despite goal drought
Bild offered a counterpoint to Undav’s pessimism, reporting that the Stuttgart captain has returned to top form as a playmaker even without a league goal. In Stuttgart’s 4-2 win at Bayer Leverkusen, Undav set up both of Ermedin Demirovic’s goals — the 1-0 and the 4-1 — with passes that Demirovic described to Sky as balls “that no one sees, that no one can play.”
Demirovic said Undav could have had four assists in the Leverkusen match, according to Bild, and Stuttgart sporting director Fabian Wohlgemuth praised a “precision pass” from Undav’s left foot. Undav himself told Sky the absence of a goal was “completely irrelevant.” Bild’s framing: with performances like that, Undav is again a top candidate for the national team, whether or not Klopp agrees.
Undav: endlich sind die undav/nagelsmann tweets geschichte Klopp: https://t.co/bmvOg8ndEr
Karl’s “blabla” celebration draws Hummels’ rebuke
On the same night Stuttgart lost in Istanbul, 18-year-old Lennart Karl scored Bayern Munich’s opening goal in the 2-0 Champions League win at Atlético Madrid and celebrated by cupping his hands to his ears in a “blabla” gesture — telling critics to keep talking. The celebration sparked fresh debate, n-tv.de reported.
Bayern sporting director Max Eberl declined to weigh in, saying: “I honestly didn’t see it,” and therefore offering no assessment. He did confirm Karl remains an important player who “worked hard on the pitch and was rewarded with the goal.”
Hummels, speaking as an Amazon Prime expert, took a harder line. “We see it far too often these days,” the 2014 World Cup winner said, according to n-tv.de. He argued that criticism is part of the well-paid professional game, but added: “My son is eight. In my son’s team matches I already see kids doing this celebration because it’s so common now.” Hummels said he has banned his son from copying it.
Klopp reveals matchday lineups
Klopp is expected to announce his squad on Thursday for the Nations League doubleheader: Germany visit Serbia in Belgrade on Nov. 13 (8:45 p.m. local time) and host the Netherlands in Berlin on Nov. 16 (8:45 p.m. local time).
