The group stage of EURO 2016 in France is over, and now the tense stage of the tournament begins – the knockout rounds. For the Germany national team, that means a round of 16 match against Slovakia on Sunday (18:00 CEST, live on ZDF and the Fan-Club-Radio). After dominating their group, with seven points and no goals conceded, the team can now take a breather – national coach Joachim Löw has given his players some time off. His assistant managers have been speaking to the media. At the press conference in Évian, Thomas Schneider and Marcus Sorg spoke about their opponents in the first knockout round, Jerome Boateng’s injury and team spirit.
THOMAS SCHNEIDER on...
... the level of the DFB team’s performances at EURO 2016: We have been constantly improving and are now at a very high level. Our starting position is very good, and we are full of confidence and ready, going into the next match. But of course, there is still room for improvement.
... the round of 16 opponents, Slovakia: We are happy to now know who our opponent will be. You can’t use the friendly at the end of May (3-1 defeat to Slovakia) as a comparison, because there are now different things to consider. In May we were still in preparation, but now we are looking at the knockout stage of a major tournament. Nevertheless, the Slovakians play very nice football. It will be a tough challenge, but one that we can, and will overcome.
... the Slovakians’ potential tactics: I think that the opponent will once again be very defensive minded, and will be looking to hit us on the counter attack.
... the tournament tree: We are focussing our full concentration on the round of 16. Then we will see what comes next. You have to beat every possible opponent, if you want to be European champions.
... the spirit within the Germany national team: We do not have to constantly motivate the players who are not starting. They are important to the success of the team and will have their time in the tournament.
... the reaction of Benedikt Höwedes to being left out of the starting line-up against Northern Ireland: Benedikt is a top team player. He reminds me a little bit of Per Mertesacker at the 2014 World Cup. However, it does not mean that he has played his last game at this tournament.
... his role as assistant manager: We want to support the head coach as much as possible, so that he has the best foundation on which he can make his decisions. Now, with Marcus still here as well, we have more opportunities to scout. Marcus sits in the stands for the first half, and he makes a significant contribution at half time during the analysis. We are simply formed much better in every area.
MARKUS SORG ON...
... the round of 16 opponents, Slovakia: The friendly has got nothing to do with what stands before us now. The opposition have the ability to cause a shock and proceed to the next round. We are very aware of that and have prepared well.
... Jerome Boateng’s injury: The medical team and Jerome are working flat out. We remain extremely positive, and hope that it all works out ready for Sunday.
... the performance of the reserve players in training: All players except for Jerome were at training yesterday. The players who appeared against Northern Ireland have all done recovery training. The rest all trained together, and I must say, that as a coach I was taken aback by how the players who have played little or no time in the tournament so far present themselves in training. I have to express great praise for that. As a coach, it gives you great confidence, being able to pick from such a big pool of players.
...the spirit within the Germany national team: There is an unbelievable team spirit. The players are getting on with each other very well. I am impressed by the quality of the players, not just on the pitch, but the team spirit off it too. They are professionals, and they know that they only have a chance if they stick together. At the end of the day, the only thing that matters is the team’s success.
...Bastian Schweinsteiger’s fitness: Basti is in a good condition. He is getting better and more stable all the time. He will get to the level that he needs to, in order to help us from the start.
...his role as assistant manager: We talk things through as a coaching team. We try to support the manager, and to make him feel more comfortable with his decisions. We don’t have a lot of time together, so we try to make as full use of it as possible – and that is always easier with more manpower. The role as assistant manager has given me a fresh impetus, and means something a bit different, which I am constantly adapting to. It keeps things fresh and I am very much enjoying it.
created by mmc/mb
The group stage of EURO 2016 in France is over, and now the tense stage of the tournament begins – the knockout rounds. For the Germany national team, that means a round of 16 match against Slovakia on Sunday (18:00 CEST, live on ZDF and the Fan-Club-Radio). After dominating their group, with seven points and no goals conceded, the team can now take a breather – national coach Joachim Löw has given his players some time off. His assistant managers have been speaking to the media. At the press conference in Évian, Thomas Schneider and Marcus Sorg spoke about their opponents in the first knockout round, Jerome Boateng’s injury and team spirit.
THOMAS SCHNEIDER on...
... the level of the DFB team’s performances at EURO 2016: We have been constantly improving and are now at a very high level. Our starting position is very good, and we are full of confidence and ready, going into the next match. But of course, there is still room for improvement.
... the round of 16 opponents, Slovakia: We are happy to now know who our opponent will be. You can’t use the friendly at the end of May (3-1 defeat to Slovakia) as a comparison, because there are now different things to consider. In May we were still in preparation, but now we are looking at the knockout stage of a major tournament. Nevertheless, the Slovakians play very nice football. It will be a tough challenge, but one that we can, and will overcome.
... the Slovakians’ potential tactics: I think that the opponent will once again be very defensive minded, and will be looking to hit us on the counter attack.
... the tournament tree: We are focussing our full concentration on the round of 16. Then we will see what comes next. You have to beat every possible opponent, if you want to be European champions.
... the spirit within the Germany national team: We do not have to constantly motivate the players who are not starting. They are important to the success of the team and will have their time in the tournament.
... the reaction of Benedikt Höwedes to being left out of the starting line-up against Northern Ireland: Benedikt is a top team player. He reminds me a little bit of Per Mertesacker at the 2014 World Cup. However, it does not mean that he has played his last game at this tournament.
... his role as assistant manager: We want to support the head coach as much as possible, so that he has the best foundation on which he can make his decisions. Now, with Marcus still here as well, we have more opportunities to scout. Marcus sits in the stands for the first half, and he makes a significant contribution at half time during the analysis. We are simply formed much better in every area.
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MARKUS SORG ON...
... the round of 16 opponents, Slovakia: The friendly has got nothing to do with what stands before us now. The opposition have the ability to cause a shock and proceed to the next round. We are very aware of that and have prepared well.
... Jerome Boateng’s injury: The medical team and Jerome are working flat out. We remain extremely positive, and hope that it all works out ready for Sunday.
... the performance of the reserve players in training: All players except for Jerome were at training yesterday. The players who appeared against Northern Ireland have all done recovery training. The rest all trained together, and I must say, that as a coach I was taken aback by how the players who have played little or no time in the tournament so far present themselves in training. I have to express great praise for that. As a coach, it gives you great confidence, being able to pick from such a big pool of players.
...the spirit within the Germany national team: There is an unbelievable team spirit. The players are getting on with each other very well. I am impressed by the quality of the players, not just on the pitch, but the team spirit off it too. They are professionals, and they know that they only have a chance if they stick together. At the end of the day, the only thing that matters is the team’s success.
...Bastian Schweinsteiger’s fitness: Basti is in a good condition. He is getting better and more stable all the time. He will get to the level that he needs to, in order to help us from the start.
...his role as assistant manager: We talk things through as a coaching team. We try to support the manager, and to make him feel more comfortable with his decisions. We don’t have a lot of time together, so we try to make as full use of it as possible – and that is always easier with more manpower. The role as assistant manager has given me a fresh impetus, and means something a bit different, which I am constantly adapting to. It keeps things fresh and I am very much enjoying it.
