Sinsheim (dpa) – Less than 20 kilometers from his home in Bammental, the international game year begins for Hansi Flick. The national coach wants to expand his amazing record against Israel in the evening (8.45 p.m. / ZDF) in Sinsheim.
Seven games, seven wins, after many disappointments, this quota raised expectations of the German national soccer team before the World Cup in Qatar. The DFB-Elf only travels by bus from Frankfurt to Kraichgau on the day of the match.
Starting position:
240 days before the World Cup kicks off in Doha, Hansi Flick is checking the tournament form of his candidates for the finals in Qatar for the first time this year. After successfully completing the compulsory task of seven wins in seven qualifying games, the national coach is going into a short test mode with the games against Israel and three days later in the Netherlands. During four intensive training days in Frankfurt, it was clear that the former Bayern title collector was serious. If you want to go to the World Cup, you have to be focused on success right now. “We’re concentrating on the performance we want to bring,” said Flick.
Staff:
Central defender Nico Schlotterbeck from SC Freiburg is the fifth debutant under Flick in the starting lineup. As a left-footed player, the 22-year-old certainly has a chance of making a start in the A-Elf after winning the European Championship with the U21s last year. In goal, Marc-André ter Stegen and Kevin Trapp are each allowed to play one half as Manuel Neuer’s backups. Thomas Müller will probably take over his captain’s armband in his 111th international match. Timo Werner should find his marksmanship again after a difficult few weeks at Chelsea in the DFB jersey. In defensive midfield, alongside veteran Ilkay Gündogan, Julian Weigl should celebrate his comeback after five years.
Opponent:
Fourth in their qualifying group behind Denmark, Austria and Scotland, Israel clearly missed out on participating in the World Cup. Now the team of coach Gadi Brumer is in transition. Gündogan warned of a young, courageous team that has regained momentum with a new coach. The previous four duels clearly went to the always victorious DFB-Elf. In 2012, at the last meeting, Flick was still assistant coach to Joachim Löw. There was a 2-0 win in Leipzig with goals from Mario Gomez and André Schürrle.
Spectator:
25,600 fans will be in the arena in Sinsheim. For the first time since the 6:1 in Frankfurt in the European Championship qualifier against Northern Ireland, a home game of the DFB-Elf will be sold out again. Then Corona came and caused ghost games and massive restrictions.
Flick as a fan:
Even the national coach is sometimes a normal football fan. Before the game against Israel, Flick reported on his gimmick on a fictitious manager platform. There, of all places, Hoffenheim’s Israeli international Munas Dabbur is part of his squad. But Flick is not satisfied with the attacker’s performance. “He doesn’t score enough points. He could score one or two more goals. He doesn’t have to start tomorrow,” said Flick.