German national team boss Julian Nagelsmann thinks his squad will have to be ready for a tough test against Northern Ireland on Monday.
“I expect a tough opponent tomorrow. It wasn’t easy to beat them in the first leg. They play a lot of long balls, so you have to fight for the second ball, the third and fourth ball. They did well against Slovakia. It won’t be easy. We have to perform very well to win,” said Nagelsmann (as captured by @iMiaSanMia). “Northern Ireland are very compact in the middle.
They play a lot of long balls. They also used counter-pressing moves with a lot of players against Slovakia. They’re doing that well. We’ll try to impose our style of play. That will be important tomorrow.
“The whole group has to ensure (the team doesn’t come out flat). If we do it right, we’ll have enough emotions to be well prepared. Emotions come from the stands. But we as a team can also ensure that on the pitch.”
When asked about the lineup, which has been rumored to be the same exact 11 players who faced Luxembourg on Friday, Nagelsmann said that one position was still up for grabs — but did not elaborate on exactly which position it was.
“There’s one position we still need to consider. But we don’t have much reason to change. It’s also possible that there won’t be any changes,” said Nagelsmann.
One topic that has dominated discussion is the large presence of Bayern Munich players on the squad. For Nagelsmann, there is no secret sauce to his decisions in that regard.
“This Bayern block is important. But so is the Dortmund block. For us, all teams that have many German players in their starting lineup are important. Bayern are doing very well and have good confidence at the moment,” said Nagelsmann.
Bayern Munich is in the midst of some downtime, but the German national team and the news cycle has kept us busy at Bavarian Football Works and Bavarian Podcast Works.
We’ve got some hot topics to cover, so let’s get down to it. This is what we have on tap for this edition of the Bavarian Podcast Works Show:
- German got off to a good start vs. Luxembourg, so what else does the team need to show in another winnable match vs. Northern Ireland?
- Dayot Upamecano really might have dug in with Bayern Munich as the Frenchman is reportedly unwilling to budge from his contractual demands. Should fans be worried?
- Fabrizio Romano says Dušan Vlahović and Bayern Munich really could be a thing.
- Alphonso Davies talks through his rehab and why the worst is behind him.
- Thomas Müller had another game winner for the Vancouver Whitecaps and will be a pundit for the World Cup. Not a bad week, eh?
Also, be sure to stay tuned to Bavarian Podcast Works for all of your up to date coverage on Bayern Munich and Germany. Check us out on Patreon and follow us on Twitter @BavarianFBWorks, @BavarianPodcast @TheBarrelBlog, @BFWCyler, @2012nonexistent, @TommyAdams71 and more.
