Germany coach Klopp has rejected suggestions that Joshua Kimmich’s position in the national team is under threat, saying he is “completely surrendering” the debate and inviting the media to “write whatever you want”.
Speaking before Germany’s away match against Greece on Matchday 4 of the UEFA Nations League A, Klopp said the team had performed exceptionally well in their previous game and that competition for places was a positive development.
“I am very satisfied with the current situation,” Klopp said. “Any truly capable player has nothing to worry about. I look forward to the future with these lads and to working with every member of the national team.”
Asked whether he felt the need to protect Kimmich from criticism following the match in Munich, Klopp replied: “Not at all.”
He said Germany needed depth and players with different qualities, including leaders, runners and creative midfielders, rather than relying on one individual to play every match.
“If there were truly only three midfielders in all of Germany, then one would inevitably have to play every match. But why must a certain player always play?” he said. “Any player must be in good form to play.”
Klopp added: “I know that no matter how I answer, you will find a way to interpret it as ‘but this means…’. So I officially give up struggling. On the Kimmich topic, I completely surrender. Write whatever you want.”
He said he was proud that Kimmich was a Germany international, adding that he felt the same about all of his team-mates.
Klopp has yet to confirm his starting XI for the match in Greece, but said Germany would select a side with a genuine chance of winning. He added that every player in the training camp deserved an opportunity after an excellent training period.
The departure of Schlotterbeck means the second centre-back position requires particular consideration, while Klopp said there was strong competition elsewhere. He also joked that S. Pavlovic should not look for an excuse to avoid playing simply because he had attended the news conference.
Jonas Urbig is expected to start in goal for a second successive match, but Klopp stressed that this did not mean he had become Germany’s first choice ahead of Ter Stegen.
He explained that Finn Dahmen, Noah Atubolu and the other goalkeepers regularly play for their clubs, while Urbig has lacked regular opportunities. Klopp said all of them had impressed him and that their shot-stopping in training had been “astonishingly high”.
The goalkeeper rotation, he said, was designed to give Urbig match time rather than establish a permanent number one.
Asked to compare Greece’s current side with the team that won Euro 2004, Klopp recalled a defensive unit that scored with little possession and few chances, often defeating heavily favoured opponents.
He said the present Greece team had technically gifted, quick and clinical attacking players at prominent clubs, with most in their late teens or early twenties and substantial room for development.
Klopp admitted he could not remember enough of the 2004 squad to make a detailed comparison, but noted that Otto Rehhagel’s leadership had been central to their success.
“Without Otto, none of that would have happened,” he said. S. Pavlovic replied: “I completely agree.”
