Germany’s record national player Lothar Matthäus sees the concentration of the DFB selection on the sporting tasks at the World Cup in Qatar disturbed by the background noise.
“The many debates about human rights, the captain’s armband, the fans are allowed to drink a beer or not – that doesn’t leave the players untouched,” said Matthäus the TV station RTL. He had the feeling that in the 2-1 defeat against Japan “many players were blocked in the second half. Setting an example – yes. But the players are at the World Cup to play football and to represent us on the pitch . Germany has discussed a lot about these things and how to send messages. That automatically reduces concentration,” emphasized the 61-year-old.
In the second group game against Spain on Sunday, Matthäus expects the DFB team to improve. “We have to go to the performance limit, we have to play compactly, we have to play with self-confidence and, above all, we have to take advantage of the opportunities,” demanded the 1990 world champion. There must be a team on the pitch “that gives it 90 minutes”.
National coach Hansi Flick also took on Matthäus after the opening defeat against Japan. “We have problems in a few positions. I wasn’t at all happy with the full-backs. The coach’s tactics didn’t work out. A few things didn’t work, including the changes,” he criticized.
