The national coach would prefer if FC Bayern won the Champions League. Because as many players as possible should go to the World Cup with a sense of success from their clubs, Julian Nagelsmann told “Kicker”. And most of the players who are eligible for the World Cup squad are under contract with Bayern. But how does Leon Goretzka fit into this logic? The image of the midfielder grimly leaving the Dortmund stadium on Saturday evening spoke for itself: Goretzka had once again been sitting on the substitutes’ bench.
Sure, Goretzka can win the title with the Munich team, but his part in it will likely be small and will only improve self-confidence and mood to a limited extent. In the last five Champions League games he was on the field for a maximum of nine minutes – a total of 61 minutes in eight premier class games. The national coach contradicts himself with his interview statement.
If Nagelsmann proclaims the performance principle and demands regular appearances from young stars like Lennart Karl or Said El Mala in order to nominate them, then the same should apply to Goretzka – experience or not. Especially since he hasn’t made any positive difference in the past tournaments.
With this statement, Nagelsmann has taken away any arguments should one of Goretzka’s competitors play better and his playing time should continue to be so short.
And just as a reminder: Goretzka was not expected to have a positive impact on the group at the 2024 European Championships at home, despite being 15th or 16th in the squad. He had to stay at home and was not called up even after other players were injured. It even took a discussion between him and the national coach afterwards. So what happens if the Bayern star is taken out of the first eleven during the tournament and is unhappy with his role?
