Löw: “Brandt, Meyer and Süle will play against Finland”

Germany will play their first game since the European Championships against Finland at Borussia-Park on Wednesday at 20.45 CEST. The tie will also be Bastian Schweinsteiger’s farewell game and serve as preparation for the first World Cup qualifying match against Norway on Sunday (20.45 CEST). Coach Joachim Löw spoke ahead of the game in Düsseldorf about the younger players’ chances, his plans for the Confederations Cup next year in Russia and the farewells of Bastian Schweinsteiger and Lukas Podolski.

JOACHIM LÖW ON...

... THE OLYMPIC SILVER MEDALLISTS IN THE SQUAD: The style of play and the development of the Olympic team really pleased me, therefore I’ve called up players like Niklas Süle, Max Meyer and Julian Brandt to the first team. These players will get the chance to play on Wednesday. After consulting (DFB sporting director) Hansi Flick, one or two players will then go back to their club teams on Thursday because they have all worked hard in the last few weeks.

... THE CONFEDERATIONS CUP 2017 IN RUSSIA: There are a few promising players, who, I believe, will be able to play an important role for us and I’d like to introduce them to the team. The door is wide open for them. Next year we have the Confederations Cup and I’d like to use it as a platform to gauge our future development. Our goal at the 2018 World Cup is to defend our title. At the Confederations Cup we won’t necessarily have all of the players who will be with us at the 2018 World Cup. Three tournaments in a row for some players won’t be ideal.

…MARIO GÖTZE AND ANDRÉ SCHÜRRLE: I have spoken to Dortmund coach Thomas Tuchel who says that Mario Götze is not quite match fit which is why he did not play at the weekend. Mario was also carrying a slight knock but he completed the final training session ahead of the Bundesliga season opener. I know that he is fit and has already made up for the sessions he has missed. He will be able to gain some match practise with us. André Schürrle will not be involved with the squad due to a muscle problem, which is primarily a precautionary measure. The main focus for us is the World Cup qualification game against Norway. After a short amount of preparation time and just one Bundesliga game, it is therefore important to share the workload.

...THE SEND OFF FOR BASTIAN SCHWEINSTEIGER AND LUKAS PODOLSKI: Both players contacted me at the start of August and informed me of their decisions. The timing is right for them. Both players have shaped this team and have become world champions. It’s the greatest honour you can achieve as a footballer. It’s good that they now want to once again concentrate on their club football. I agreed for them to have a farewell game on the spot because both have given an extraordinary amount to this team and its progression, both on and off the field. Lukas Podolski is injured unfortunately, but he will most likely play in his farewell match next March. I’ve managed both of them now for 12 years and they’ve given a lot to the national team in that time. They were held in very regard. There are always these kinds of changes after a big tournament. With Bastian and Lukas we lose two great players, but it opens the door for new players to take their chance and make an impact.

…THE NEW CAPTAIN: I will announce my decision after the match against Finland, so on Thursday. I want to speak to speak to the team first and share the decision that I have already made with them. On Wednesday, Bastian Schweinsteiger will captain the team against Finland. For me, the decision of who is captain isn’t so important. We have a functioning team council and these players take on a lot of responsibility. It’s important for me to have more counterparts who are important to me and are accepted in the team. When a place becomes free in the team council, Toni Kroos will be promoted to the post. He has been part of the team for a long time and has also developed well as a person.

…LESSONS LEARNED AT THE EUROS AHEAD OF WORLD CUP QUALIFICATION: Our next exciting task is obviously qualification for the 2018 World Cup in Russia. When we all parted after the European Championship in France, I gave myself and my coaching staff the task of analysing every match one more time. After the next two matches we will meet up and compile everything together to carry out an extensive analysis. We can carry out a deeper analysis of the match using new technical data. In the last few years we’ve worked hard on breaking down defensive opponents. At the Euro’s we have already shown that we can play against defensive sides. There was nothing new at the European Championship, I didn’t see any teams do anything completely new. We have given ourselves two main things to work on. Firstly, we have to make the most of our chances. Secondly, we have to work on our transition from attack to defence. We are a team that often has a lot of possession. We have to learn to get forward quicker after we have won the ball. We want to improve that over the next two years.

...CHANGES IN THE U21 TEAM: I haven’t been able to talk to new manager Stefan Kuntz yet but I will be able to soon. I’ve known him for a long time and completed my training course with him in Köln. His appointment as U21 Head Coach is a good decision. created by mmc/vs