In many ways, it was fitting that right when Germany needed to get back on track, they went back to where it all started for head coach Julian Nagelsmann.
In Sinsheim, Nagelsmann made history when he became the youngest ever Bundesliga coach aged 28 back in 2016. Nearly a decade later, after stops at RB Leipzig and Bayern Munich, Nagelsmann’s Germany delivered the performance both expected of and required from them.
Aided hugely by the fact Luxembourg played an hour with 10 men after an early red card, Germany dominated the 96th best team in the world. The contest was over before it began, not that Nagelsmann’s charges cared. This was exactly what the proverbial doctor ordered.
“The red card was good for us, but when we lost possession we were up for it,” David Raum said to ARD afterwards. “Oli [Baumann] was effectively unemployed in his home stadium tonight.”
Captain Joshua Kimmich was moved to right back, as Nagelsmann perhaps ceded that his insistence on having Kimmich in midfield left them exposed in a position of concern. When asked where he preferred to play, Kimmich said calmly: “I don’t care. I will play wherever the coach needs me.”
Serge Gnabry’s renaissance continues and Florian Wirtz looked a player unconcerned by critical Premier League headlines.
“In terms of our hunger, it was a noticeable improvement,” Nagelsmann said afterwards. “Serge was a great example of chasing back after losing the ball. To track back and make a slide tackle like that is exactly what you need against Luxembourg.”
Perhaps the most important takeaway from the evening was the margin of victory. A 4-0 win helps Germany greatly in their search to reclaim top spot, especially as Slovakia lost in Northern Ireland.
Germany answer the noise
The truth is, even before the early red card, enthusiasm for major tournament qualifiers in early October are low for even the most ardent of football fans. And at first glance, Germany vs. Luxembourg falls into that category.
However, Julian Nagelsmann’s Germany are in dire need of these games after a troubling start to World Cup qualifying that saw them lose to Slovakia in the opening game. The win against Northern Ireland didn’t stop Germany’s sporting director Andreas Rettig telling “Sport Bild” recently that the team has to regain credit with their fans after squandering it of late.
Then there are the growing concerns that the best young players born in Germany — such as Frankfurt’s Can Uzun — are choosing to play for the country of their parents rather than Germany. National newspaper Süddeutsche Zeitung even dedicated column inches to it this week.
On top of that, there’s increasing talk of 39-year-old Manuel Neuer coming out of retirement, while Thomas Müller has been confirmed as a pundit on German television for the World Cup next year.
In short, there is a tension around German football at the moment, and none of it feels ideal in the build-up to the biggest World Cup ever.
Joshua Kimmich delivered another inspiring display, but this time at right backImage: Kai Pfaffenbach/REUTERS
Performance an ideal answer
In the story of Germany’s World Cup next year, a 4-0 win over Luxembourg will unlikely be remembered as a turning point. In truth, it wasn’t. Germany delivered what was expected of them in a contest that was over the moment Luxembourg went down a man.
But for a team that, of late, has struggled to meet expectations, struggled to find the right intensity and emotion required for the moment, and hasn’t kept a clean sheet in any of their last seven games, this was a very welcome evening. Now, they must solidify their advantage in Belfast on Monday night.
Edited by: Wesley Dockery
