Mission complete. With two wins and a draw in the second qualification round for the 2016 European U17 Championship in Azerbaijan, Germany secured their ticket to the tournament. Meikel Schönweitz's team beat the Netherlands 1-0 after recording a 5-1 victory over Slovakia and a 1-1 draw with Bulgaria. The manager spoke to DFB.de about his team's character, his players' development and his plans for the European Championship.
DFB.de: Mr Schönweitz, your Germany U17 side have come through an incredibly exciting qualifying campaign. How did you, as manager, experience the deciding game against Holland?
Meikel Schönweitz: I never had the feeling it would go pear-shaped. The way my team approached the game, worked together on the pitch and grabbed the game by the scruff of the neck was incredibly impressive and speaks volumes of their character. We never had any doubt – the boys were very convincing.
DFB.de: The team's record reads two wins and a draw, meaning they qualified as group winners. How do you assess their performance?
Schönweitz: I'm very pleased with their performance. There's obviously always room for improvement but on the whole, they were very impressive. The boys approach challenges with a lot of passion, possess plenty of team spirit and have a lot of footballing quality at their disposal. Those things will be the building blocks for the tournament in Azerbaijan.
DFB.de: You've led the U17 age group for a year and a half and you're constantly emphasising the importance of development. How would you say the team has taken a step forward in the qualifying campaign?
Schönweitz: Every clash at this high level against different opponents brings the team, as well as individual players, a step further. In this tournament, there was a lot of pressure to get results. We couldn't just try things out like we would in a friendly as the result is all that matters. The boys dealt with this pressure very well.
DFB.de: You'll have to select a squad of two goalkeepers and 16 outfield players for the European Championship in Azerbaijan. Do you already have a solid idea of what the group will look like?
Mission complete. With two wins and a draw in the second qualification round for the 2016 European U17 Championship in Azerbaijan, Germany secured their ticket to the tournament. Meikel Schönweitz's team beat the Netherlands 1-0 after recording a 5-1 victory over Slovakia and a 1-1 draw with Bulgaria. The manager spoke to DFB.de about his team's character, his players' development and his plans for the European Championship.
DFB.de: Mr Schönweitz, your Germany U17 side have come through an incredibly exciting qualifying campaign. How did you, as manager, experience the deciding game against Holland?
Meikel Schönweitz: I never had the feeling it would go pear-shaped. The way my team approached the game, worked together on the pitch and grabbed the game by the scruff of the neck was incredibly impressive and speaks volumes of their character. We never had any doubt – the boys were very convincing.
DFB.de: The team's record reads two wins and a draw, meaning they qualified as group winners. How do you assess their performance?
Schönweitz: I'm very pleased with their performance. There's obviously always room for improvement but on the whole, they were very impressive. The boys approach challenges with a lot of passion, possess plenty of team spirit and have a lot of footballing quality at their disposal. Those things will be the building blocks for the tournament in Azerbaijan.
DFB.de: You've led the U17 age group for a year and a half and you're constantly emphasising the importance of development. How would you say the team has taken a step forward in the qualifying campaign?
Schönweitz: Every clash at this high level against different opponents brings the team, as well as individual players, a step further. In this tournament, there was a lot of pressure to get results. We couldn't just try things out like we would in a friendly as the result is all that matters. The boys dealt with this pressure very well.
DFB.de: You'll have to select a squad of two goalkeepers and 16 outfield players for the European Championship in Azerbaijan. Do you already have a solid idea of what the group will look like?
Schönweitz: In essence, the squad will consist as much as possible of the players who took part in qualification. I have full faith in the boys so there won't be any wholesale changes. In any case, we'll track their progress with their teams, talk to their managers and keep an eye on them.
DFB.de: What planning do you have left to do before Azerbaijan?
Schönweitz: The players are returning to their respective teams now, where their task is to show the will and passion they did here week in, week out, in order to maximise their personal development. We've explained that they need to continue the hard work in order to keep their level as high as possible. The coaching staff will also observe their progress. We plan to meet up in Frankfurt at the end of April to begin our preparations for the European Championship finals.
