TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - In the 2026 World Cup Round of 32 match at Boston Stadium in Foxborough on June 30th, the German national team's flaws were exposed to the public.
At that time, captain Joshua Kimmich approached his teammates to inquire about the sixth penalty taker in the penalty shootout against Paraguay.
From the line of players, Kimmich hoped Leon Goretzka would take a step forward, preparing to shoot the ball past Paraguay goalkeeper Orlando Gill.
However, Kimmich's hopes were unrequited. Goretzka, one of the senior players in the German squad, did not take the step.
Instead, Jonathan Tah stepped forward to take the bold step. He was not one of the designated penalty takers for the German team.
Tah failed to beat Orlando Gill, his shot sailing over the goal. Germany was eliminated from the 2026 World Cup early after being eliminated by Paraguay on penalties with a score of 3-4, following a 1-1 draw in regulation time.
For German football, this defeat was more than just a bad result. It served as a small glimpse into the team's profound mental crisis.
On the grand stage of the World Cup, Germany was no longer the team known for its fierceness. Since their last World Cup title in 2014, Germany's best achievement was only reaching the round of 32 at the 2026 World Cup. In the previous two editions, they were eliminated in the group stage.
Germany's failure at the World Cup has resurfaced the old narrative about the need for a system overhaul to regain competitiveness. Such overhauls almost always begin with a change in head coach.
Joachim Löw, who led Germany to the 2014 World Cup but failed to progress beyond the group stage at the 2018 World Cup, subsequently resigned as coach.
Hansi Flick was the next victim. The former Bayern Munich coach suffered the misfortune of failing to lead Germany beyond the group stage of the 2022 World Cup. Flick, Joachim Löw's former assistant at the 2014 World Cup, was subsequently removed from the coaching position.
The latest victim is Julian Nagelsmann. After only managing to guide Joshua Kimmich and his teammates to the round of 32 of the 2026 World Cup, Nagelsmann decided to step down as head coach.
The German Football Association (DFB) consistently restructures its coaching staff whenever Germany experiences failure at the World Cup.
Most recently, after losing Nagelsmann, the DFB immediately targeted former Liverpool manager, Juergen Klopp.
The DFB began approaching Klopp in New York on June 10th. The approach finally reached a mutual agreement when the Red Bull Head of Global Soccer accepted the DFB's offer to become head coach of the German national team. The appointment was officially announced last Friday.
Klopp's arrival could be a crucial piece in the effort to restructure German football, which has slumped in recent years. However, can the former Borussia Dortmund coach face the complex challenges of the German national team, particularly in instilling a mentality in players with little experience in crucial situations at the international level?
Germany's Problem
Currently, German football is in a difficult situation. A similar situation occurred during Euro 2000, when Jürgen Klopp and Ralf Rangnick—now the coach of the Austrian national team—were still football analysts.
In Raphael Honigstein's biography, "Bring the Noise," Klopp and Rangnick stated that German football's problems at that time were rooted in two issues: weak youth player development and a misconception of football as a collective game, which ultimately sacrificed individual player quality.
This analysis is relevant again 26 years later, when German football is in a very difficult phase in its search for young talent to replace their golden generation at the 2014 World Cup.
In fact, this problem was expressed by the captain of the German national team at the 2014 World Cup, Philipp Lahm. He stated that Germany is currently struggling to produce star-rated players.
Regarding collective play, criticism also came from Mats Hummels, a member of the 2014 World Cup-winning squad.
The former Bayern Munich player believes that Germany is currently trying to imitate the Spanish national team's tiki-taka style of play and has lost its own identity.
Fundamentally, Germany currently lacks identity, mentality, and character. Klopp also acknowledged this thorny issue before being appointed head coach of the German national team.
"We need fundamental change," Klopp said while still a pundit on German television station Magenta TV on June 30.
The piled-up work on Klopp's desk must be untangled one by one by the tactician, who is under contract until 2030.
Klopp's presence is certainly expected to bring a more German-style game. The former FSV Mainz coach embodies an authentic German football philosophy, namely aggressive play without the ball and a gegenpressing approach.
The problem is, the current German squad is lacking talent. They have lost a classy attacking threat since the departure of legend Miroslav Klose.
In defense, Germany has also yet to find a replacement for a player of Philipp Lahm's caliber, despite having forced Joshua Kimmich to play as a right wing-back.
The 59-year-old coach may be a crucial piece in the effort to restructure German football. Klopp was also part of the Bundesliga (DFL) that formed a group to investigate the reasons for Germany's talent shortage.
Klopp diagnosed the ills of German football 26 years ago. Now, he returns to Germany as the man tasked with curing the same ailment.
The question is, can a single coach truly cure the complex ailments of German football?
Klopp's presence could indeed be a catalyst for transforming the German national team's playing style and restoring its identity. However, the fundamental issue remains the DFB's responsibility.
If the DFB views a coaching change as the end of the restructuring process, Klopp will simply become another big name in a long list of coaches who have failed to cure Germany's long-standing ailments.
The question is, could Klopp's fate be far more fortunate than his two predecessors, Hansi Flick and Julian Nagelsmann?
Read: Liverpool Confirm Slot as New Manager to Replace Klopp
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