Julian Nagelsmann wasn’t as happy as his compatriot Ronald Koeman. “Big compliments to Germany and the Netherlands for this game,” said an emotional Bond after their arch-rivals drew 2-2 in the Nations League. Nagelsmann was more subdued in his satisfaction with the team’s evening of intense football at the Johan Cruyff Arena. But the 37-year-old made one thing clear: “We’re on the right track.”
“It was very interesting. Both teams showed that they had something to worry about,” he said. Two games. Four points. First place. That’s the number after the Nations League restart at home in the European Championships. For Nagelsmann, the team’s development is still important.
trial
“I think there’s nothing worse than not being interested,” Nagelsmann said when asked if his team were further along than he believed after the 5-0 win over Hungary and the draw with Oranje. Of course they are. But they’re not that far off, the national team coach said.
What he liked was the attitude and determination. “The demands on the team are that we give it our all. The fans saw that again,” said the 37-year-old. Specifically, his head didn’t go down even after Tijjani Reijnders conceded an early goal less than two minutes later.
The unfazed revolt that followed was also noticed positively by DFB President Bernd Neuendorf from the stands. “In the past, the reaction would not have been so good,” the association president said. Goals from Deniz Undav (38th) and Joshua Kimmich (45+3) were the answer. “Neck hits are the hardest thing in football. You have to fight them,” said Nagelsmann. His work has the following effect: “We spread belief. Players believe in themselves.”
Kimmich and Undav, the lucky scorers. Photo: Peter DeJong/AP
immutability
If the team is far from good enough, what can be improved? There is probably nothing important. But for Nagelsmann, the key is consistency. That means always being able to achieve the best performance. That leads to “consistency of results”. We are not yet “where we want to be”, he points out. “If we hadn’t, we wouldn’t have lost to Spain,” Nagelsmann says, recalling the still painful elimination from the European Championship. If we hadn’t, we wouldn’t have given up the 2-1 lead against Oranje.
And what about the defense that is shaken by the Dutch attack? Nagelsmann doesn’t want to be too harsh. There’s no usual personal trainer criticism of Jonathan Tah. “He had a hard time.” Or Nico Schlotterbeck. “He doesn’t always want to win the ball. Sometimes you have to ask.” Overall, it was clear to Nagelsmann that “we can do better as a group.”
cooperation
The big goal remains: internalize the 2026 World Cup title. Previous life. But that won’t work alone, says Nagelsmann. So he surprised everyone by asking the club. “In the end, as a national team coach, I have to humbly say that the club needs us. We won’t be world champions or anything else just by training here,” says Nagelsmann. The former Bayern coach points out that his options are limited when it comes to keeping the players in the “flow” they need. “In the end, I try to choose the best and develop nuances.”
