Germany’s 4-1 home loss to Japan on Saturday jumped off the results list, and it spoke just as loudly to the German federation as it’s announced the firing of coach Hansi Flick on Sunday.
Flick, 58, was named Joachim Loew’s replacement at Germany after leading Bayern Munich to a pair of Bundesliga crowns as well as the European Cup as the Bavarians triumphed in the 2019-20 UEFA Champions League.
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Germany is on a five-match friendly winless streak with four losses in the run. It had won 12 times in 25 matches under Flick, losing six times and drawing on seven occasions. His win percentage is far below predecessors Loew, Jurgen Klinsmann, and Rudi Voller.
The side failed to advance from the group stage of the 2022 World Cup, going 1-1-1 and finishing behind Japan and Spain. Perhaps fittingly, another loss to Japan was his final bow as German boss.
Assistant coaches Marcus Sorg and Danny Rohl were also fired. Germany meets France on Tuesday for a friendly at the Westfalenstadion.
What’s next for the Germany men’s national team?
This is a rather ugly end for a second-straight Germany coach, as Joachim Loew won the 2014 World Cup but saw a drawn-out end to his tenure.
It’s not the right time for Jurgen Klopp, who is embarking on a major rehaul of Liverpool and it just wouldn’t seem to fit his personality or ethos to skip town now.
Julian Nagelsmann is going to be mentioned at every turn, but will he be viewed as another ex-Bayern boss and one who did not leave the Bavarians on a fine note. His relationships inside the team were reportedly quite frayed as well, and there’s quite a bit of carryover from club to country.
The team undoubtedly has talent, as Marc-Andre ter Stegfen, Antonio Rudiger, Joshua Kimmich, and Ilkay Gundogan providing a strong spine. Serge Gnabry, Leroy Sane, and Thomas Muller are fantastic attackers as well. Missing from this roster were Jamal Musiala, Leon Goretzka, Marco Reus, and Karim Adeyemi amongst others.
