Germany host Georgia in Leipzig this evening (20:45 CEST) in their final qualifying match for the 2016 European Championship in France. What is the atmosphere like in the team? Is there great anticipation or optimism heading into this encounter? Assistant coach Thomas Schneider spoke with DFB.de in this edition of the matchday interview.
DFB.de: Mr. Schneider, the final group game has become a real crunch fixture for the DFB team. How great is the pressure ahead of the match with Georgia?
Thomas Schneider: We haven't qualified yet, which is a fact. We still need to take the final step. But I'm 100 percent confident that the team will show a unified performance and win the game. However, another fact is that we will definitely not underestimate our opponent going into this game.
DFB.de: Even a defeat could be enough to qualify for France, as one of the best third place teams. Are in informed of the situation in the other groups prior to the final matchday?
Schneider: We know what kind of situation we are in and we know the set-up. But we are certain that this won't play a role today. Like I said, I'm completely convinced that we will win the match tonight and I have absolutely zero doubts on that.
DFB.de: What makes you so certain?
Schneider: The quality of our squad and individual players. With all due respect towards Georgia, we have the tools to dominate this encounter. If we play to our standard, there can only be one winner tonight.
DFB.de: Are you surprised by the fact that the reigning World Champions need to collect a point on the final matchday in order to qualify for the European Championship?
Schneider: Just because a team won the World Cup, doesn't mean they automatically win every game following that success. In Poland and in both our games with Ireland we failed to get the three points. In all three games we clearly had more chances than our opponent, dominated possession, but lacked efficiency. Obviously we would've liked to qualify for France sooner, but this is the situation for us now. We are required to deliver a solid performance tonight and we will.
DFB.de: Germany recorded a narrow, but deserved 2-0 victory in Tiflis in the return leg earlier this year in March.
That's correct. The team produced a good performance in that game for long spells of the match but the circumstances weren’t ideal. It was our first qualifying match of the season, the trip to Georgia is quite long and we had to adjust to the time difference. Our performance wasn't affected by these issues though, with Thomas Müller and Marco Reus scoring both goals in the first half.
DFB.de: You've studied the opposition prior to this game. What is Georgia's style of football?
Schneider: They don't play destructive football and aren't a side simply looking to disrupt the game flow. They want to play forward, be in possession and try to combine well with their teammates. Since our game with them in March, they've brought in new coach Kachaber Zchadadse and he's further cultivated this type of idea in their game.
DFB.de: Georgia have nothing left to play for in this qualifying group. Is that an advantage for the German team?
Schneider: I don't think so. They have no pressure and can play with a free mindset. They are also presented with a big platform and will want to show a good a performance.
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Germany host Georgia in Leipzig this evening (20:45 CEST) in their final qualifying match for the 2016 European Championship in France. What is the atmosphere like in the team? Is there great anticipation or optimism heading into this encounter? Assistant coach Thomas Schneider spoke with DFB.de in this edition of the matchday interview.
DFB.de: Mr. Schneider, the final group game has become a real crunch fixture for the DFB team. How great is the pressure ahead of the match with Georgia?
Thomas Schneider: We haven't qualified yet, which is a fact. We still need to take the final step. But I'm 100 percent confident that the team will show a unified performance and win the game. However, another fact is that we will definitely not underestimate our opponent going into this game.
DFB.de: Even a defeat could be enough to qualify for France, as one of the best third place teams. Are in informed of the situation in the other groups prior to the final matchday?
Schneider: We know what kind of situation we are in and we know the set-up. But we are certain that this won't play a role today. Like I said, I'm completely convinced that we will win the match tonight and I have absolutely zero doubts on that.
DFB.de: What makes you so certain?
Schneider: The quality of our squad and individual players. With all due respect towards Georgia, we have the tools to dominate this encounter. If we play to our standard, there can only be one winner tonight.
DFB.de: Are you surprised by the fact that the reigning World Champions need to collect a point on the final matchday in order to qualify for the European Championship?
Schneider: Just because a team won the World Cup, doesn't mean they automatically win every game following that success. In Poland and in both our games with Ireland we failed to get the three points. In all three games we clearly had more chances than our opponent, dominated possession, but lacked efficiency. Obviously we would've liked to qualify for France sooner, but this is the situation for us now. We are required to deliver a solid performance tonight and we will.
DFB.de: Germany recorded a narrow, but deserved 2-0 victory in Tiflis in the return leg earlier this year in March.
That's correct. The team produced a good performance in that game for long spells of the match but the circumstances weren’t ideal. It was our first qualifying match of the season, the trip to Georgia is quite long and we had to adjust to the time difference. Our performance wasn't affected by these issues though, with Thomas Müller and Marco Reus scoring both goals in the first half.
DFB.de: You've studied the opposition prior to this game. What is Georgia's style of football?
Schneider: They don't play destructive football and aren't a side simply looking to disrupt the game flow. They want to play forward, be in possession and try to combine well with their teammates. Since our game with them in March, they've brought in new coach Kachaber Zchadadse and he's further cultivated this type of idea in their game.
DFB.de: Georgia have nothing left to play for in this qualifying group. Is that an advantage for the German team?
Schneider: I don't think so. They have no pressure and can play with a free mindset. They are also presented with a big platform and will want to show a good a performance.
