The momentum is sought
©IMAGO
Nick Woltemade is finally here. And so the national coach’s hope of scoring goals against Luxembourg still has a name. The problem: Even two days before the game in Sinsheim, the 23-year-old attacker from Newcastle United was not on the training pitch.
Woltemade only briefly watched the teammates around the regular goalkeeper Oliver Baumann, who got fit in time, in Herzogenaurach – all while wrapped up warm in a thicker jacket. There wasn’t more than one individual session possible for the attacker, who got off to a great start with four goals after the summer transfer whirlwind with his new employer.
But can Woltemade, who the English media is already courting as “Big Nick”, actually provide the urgently needed emergency help after a flu-like infection? In any case, Julian Nagelsmann’s need is great: he goes into the important games on Friday (8:45 p.m. / ARD) against the bottom of the table with several zero-goal strikers and three days later in Belfast against Northern Ireland (8:45 p.m. / RTL).
Woltemade, Burkardt, Beier: All at zero in the DFB team
“We don’t always have the top squad available,” Nagelsmann recently complained again in view of the high-profile failures, especially on the offensive. He has to constantly improvise. And let the training impressions take effect. “We have to see which players are in top form at the moment.” So who has the “momentum” that Nagelsmann likes to talk about?
The form curve undoubtedly spoke for Woltemade – until his infection. The young Schlaks, who is being watched particularly closely after his seemingly crazy 75 million euro move from VfB Stuttgart to Newcastle, also has a zero in the goals category after four appearances in the national jersey. When he failed to fire in front of the opponent’s goal again four weeks ago in the 3-1 win against Northern Ireland in Cologne, he was even whistled for the first time.
But where are the alternatives up front? Frankfurt’s Jonathan Burkardt (three international matches, zero goals) and Dortmund’s Maximilian Beier (four/zero), who the DFB lists as other attackers, are also still waiting for their first goal for the national team.
Germany was once a center forward country
Nagelsmann has long been complaining about a lack of “classic strikers” like Germany has had for decades. Just think of Fritz Walter, Uwe Seeler, Gerd Müller, Horst Hrubesch, Klaus Fischer, Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, Rudi Völler, Jürgen Klinsmann, Oliver Bierhoff or World Cup record goalscorer Miroslav Klose. The nine position has not been a weak point for generations. Things are different in the present.
Gladbach’s Tim Kleindienst (six/four) is missing injured. And the national coach apparently no longer believes in Niclas Füllkrug (24/14) after several injuries and a lack of goals at West Ham United. When Nagelsmann responded to Stuttgart’s Jamie Leweling’s adductor problems, he brought in Kevin Schade from Brentford FC as a replacement, not Füllkrug. His record: four international matches, zero goals.
Nagelsmann was able to celebrate 51 goals in his 25 international matches as national coach. 28 of these alone go to Füllkrug, Kai Havertz, Jamal Musiala (seven each), Kleindienst (four) and Deniz Undav from VfB Stuttgart (three). With the exception of Füllkrug, everyone is currently unavailable for action during the World Cup season. Is it the right time to follow your own advice to focus on less quality, “but on players who throw everything into it”, even from smaller leagues or clubs? An unnoticed option could arise in time for the World Cup in North America.
This year, apart from Lennart Thy (27 goals), who is active in the soccer dwarf Singapore, Prince Owusu from the MLS club CF Montréal was the German who scored the most goals for a first division team in the world – ahead of the DFB players Woltemade and Burkardt. The 28-year-old scored 17 goals in 39 appearances across all competitions. The 1.90 meter tall former second division professional brings the classic profile of a striker – and experience from the World Cup host countries. “I always knew about my quality and it was also my goal to gradually make my mark. It’s all the better that it worked out so quickly,” said Owusu recently in an interview with Transfermarkt. However, Ghana may also have its eye on him.
DFB star Wirtz and the lead block on his legs
Only Florian Wirtz, the most successful shooter in the national coach’s two-year term with eight goals, is otherwise available. But the 22-year-old is not getting up to speed at Liverpool FC. The transfer fee of up to 150 million euros acts like a block of lead on his nimble legs.
Nevertheless, Nagelsmann has to rely on Wirtz. “Flo is our most important offensive player. He has to be in charge,” said the DFB coach after the home win against Northern Ireland, when Wirtz, alongside Serge Gnabry and Nadiem Amiri, also scored with a wonderful free kick and thus contributed to the great relief after the 2-0 defeat in Slovakia.
The biggest guarantee of success in the current squad is Gnabry with 23 goals in 53 international matches. And the 30-year-old – like all FC Bayern players – is bursting with self-confidence. Gnabry could also be the first option in the center of attack if Woltemade is still too weak after his infection to play in the starting line-up against the football lightweight Luxembourg.
