According to DFB director Oliver Bierhoff, the lost showdown with the world football association for the “One Love” captain’s armband is also having a negative impact on the national team’s sporting preparations for the start of the World Cup against Japan.
Given the timing of FIFA’s dictates, the 54-year-old spoke of a special pressure that players who wanted to concentrate on their sporting tasks at the controversial tournament in Qatar would be subjected to. Captain Manuel Neuer and his teammates are now often accused of weaknesses of character.
“I’m close to what’s happening on the day. It’s really annoying. FIFA says it’s about football. It’s about the players being able to prepare well,” Bierhoff said in a joint statement with DFB President Bernd Neuendorf at the training center DFB teams said in Al-Shamal. The threat of punishment from FIFA also surprised and disappointed captain Manuel Neuer, reported Bierhoff, who attacked the world association.
“The campaign didn’t just start yesterday. You’ve known for a long time that we wanted to wear the bandage.” But it was waited until the first games of those European teams that wanted to appear in Qatar with the symbolic armband for human dignity.
“This is really sad”
The decision was “deliberately” made in time, Bierhoff criticized: “Such a pressure situation, knowing full well that both players and coaches are with their heads in the game, it is difficult to make a decision within the group. That it’s really sad.”
DFB boss Neuendorf made it clear that the players were not involved in the collective decision-making process of officials from several European football associations, including those of England, Germany and the Netherlands. “We don’t want to expose the players to such a situation,” Neuendorf said. The threat of sporting sanctions from FIFA “put a lot of pressure on the players, which causes unrest in the teams. That’s really not what you need before a tournament like this”.
The 61-year-old DFB President sees the waiver of wearing the bandage as justified. “Do we want the team, do we want to expose our captain to such a risk that we get sporting sanctions? There was our answer, we don’t want to have the whole debate on the players’ backs,” said Neuendorf.
The topic will continue to follow and concern the German players and national coach Hansi Flick in Qatar. Bierhoff at least hinted at other actions for human rights by saying: “One thing is what happens on the pitch. There are clear regulations. What we do in our free time is more up to us.”
