dpa
Frankfurt
Left back Maximilian Mittelstädt appears set for his Germany debut in Saturday’s friendly international against France, with midfielder Robert Andrich and forward Kai Havertz also possible starters in the important Euro 2024 tune-up game.
Thursday training for the match in Lyon saw VfB Stuttgart’s Mittelstädt in a group of 10 outfield players coach Julian Nagelsmann seemingly has decided to be starters.
They included the already confirmed centre backs Antonio Rüdiger and Jonathan Tah, and right back Joshua Kimmich.
Bayer Leverkusen’s Andrich was in defensive midfield alongside returning Toni Kroos, with captain Ilkay Gündogan further up alongside youngsters Jamal Musiala and Florian Wirtz, and Arsenal’s Havertz as striker.
Marc-André ter Stegen is to be between the posts after the injury-related departure of Manuel Neuer the previous day.
Other starting 11 candidates like forwards Niclas Füllkrug and Thomas Müller as well as midfielder Pascal Groß trained with the other group.
Mittelstädt is among four players called up for the first time, left from an original six after Bayern Munich’s Alaksandar Pavlovic and Heidenheim’s Jan-Niklas Beste are unavailable due to illness and injury, respectively.
The others still present are Mittelstädt’s Stuttgart team-mates Waldemar Anton and Deniz Undav, plus Maximilian Beier of Hoffenheim, rather seen as back-ups.
“You don’t need 11 players at the Euros but 23 who all acept their role. The team stands above everything,” Undav said on Thursday.
Saturday’s match against France and a Tuesday date with the Netherlands in Frankfurt start the year in which Euro hosts Germany aim to rebound from poor showings in 2023 with just three victories from 11 matches, and defeat against Turkey and Austria in the last games of the year.
Nagelsmann urged a winning mentality, saying: “You must accept to lose once in a while. But once you accept losing in general you can forget about it.”
The coach named France with their star forward Kylian Mbappe “a top team” and “maybe the best team in every position based on the depth of the squad.”
Nagelsmann’s squad overhaul with the newcomers and dropped players including Leon Goretzka and Mats Hummels had raised eyebrows and was deemed risky, but he has insisted it is the right thing to do, also citing his personal experience.
Nagelsmann, 36, was the youngest Bundesliga coach when he took charge at Hoffenheim in 2016, and he is now the youngest national team coach after being appointed last year.
He said at a news conference with fans on Wednesday night that “you will never gain experience” if a lack of it was a disqualifier, and that experience alone doesn’t help against the likes of Mbappe.
He said he plans to use the players in the same positions they have at their clubs, saying “the sport is the same” as at league matches and that “the ball is similar if not the same.” Despite the big changes, Nagelsmann said that the majority of the Euro squad is finalised, and that he also has a preferred starting 11 in his mind for the Euros Germany open on June 14 against Scotland.
Barring injuries, that is, as he found out Wednesday when Neuer, set to be first choice, withdrew with an adductor injury, with Beste following on Thursday for the same reason.
“In the end it is good when we have found the first choice 11 by June 14,” Nagelsmann said.
