Former national player Dietmar Hamann would not like to see Joshua Kimmich from FC Bayern as a right-back at the home European Championships in 2024.
“The risk would be too great for me. At the 2018 World Cup he played right back, that didn’t turn out so well for us. That’s a position he hasn’t played in five years when the European Championships start next summer. He “It’s not the fastest either, but you play against teams that have fast wing players,” said Hamann in the football talk “Sky 90”.
National coach Julian Nagelsmann announced on Saturday in the “Aktuelle Sportstudio” that Kimmich’s move from midfield to the right was an option for the tournament. “Through a small adjustment, it’s not a 180-degree change, Josh is also a candidate for this position,” said the former FC Bayern head coach.
Nagelsman emphasized that he had “of course” already spoken to the FC Bayern professional about it: “I don’t think it would be wise to sit here and say (it) without informing him about it.”
National team needs “defensive stability”
According to Hamann, possible candidates for the problem position at right back would be Benjamin Henrichs (RB Leipzig), Jonathan Tah (Bayer Leverkusen) and Niklas Süle (Borussia Dortmund). “You could play there. We need defensive stability, we’ve been missing that in the last 18 months. The last thing we need now is Kimmich as a right-back,” explained the 50-year-old.
Nagelsmann had also made it clear that he wanted to move captain Ilkay Gündogan further forward from the six. This would mean two vacant positions in the defensive center, as the 36-year-old football teacher wants to ensure more stability and balance there with a duo.
According to Nagelsmann, the idea of helping Toni Kroos (Real Madrid) make a DFB comeback is “interesting”. According to the national coach, it is his “job” to think about “players who have a German passport”.