Löw: I was pleased with Karim. He got into the game more and more and had some good moments. He was very lively and hands-on for his first international match. I’m thoroughly satisfied. He improved as the game went on and also provided some danger going forward.
Question: You have lost two of your three games since winning the World Cup. Is life more difficult as World Champions?
Löw: The first defeat (4-2 to Argentina) doesn’t go down as a competitive game. What’s not surprising is that every team wants to give that extra few percent against the World Champions. There have also been more radical changes to the squad since the World Cup than I had hoped for. Not only have three players retired, but four or five players are missing who have always played and have helped shape the team, players like Mesut Özil, Sami Khedira and of course Bastian Schweinsteiger. Over the next two years, our young players have to have experiences that they will learn from. Life hasn’t gotten any harder, despite the huge disappointment of this defeat. Life is much, much nicer than before the World Cup.
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Germany manager Joachim Löw spoke at a press conference following the 2-0 defeat to Poland in Warsaw and broke down the result. “I’m confident that we will make up for it,” he explained, and also heaped praise on debutant Karim Bellarabi. DFB.de summarises the key statements.
Question: Joachim Löw, what did you make of your team during this historic loss to Poland?
Joachim Löw: First off, my compliments to Poland. You could see that they played against the World Champions full of motivation and commitment. I think there’s only one thing I can fault my team for, and that’s that we didn’t score a goal from the numerous chances we had. We played a good game with a somewhat changed side; I can’t criticise the performance. Poland scored with their very first opportunity. We were then left chasing the game. But I can’t be unhappy because we created a lot of goalscoring chances. We just weren’t able to put the ball in the back of the net.
Question: Will it be similarly difficult against Ireland on Tuesday?
Löw: Ireland’s tactics will be similar. We are familiar with a few of their players from recent years. They’re a side that predominantly defend and play on the counter. We will talk about our finishing and how we can convert chances like we had. We really pushed for a goal in the second half and had some good link-up play going forward. We had 28 shots, a tally we don’t often reach. Finishing and efficiency is the main focus for us.
Question: After the 2-1 loss to Italy in the EURO 2012 semi-finals in Warsaw, isn’t it strange to be leaving here once again as the losing team?
Löw: I don’t feel it’s all that dramatic. We still have plenty of chances. Sure, we would have liked to have come away with three points, but I’ve had a slight feeling this week that’s things haven’t been coming as naturally to us. Our attitude and our focus was fine, but the young players need to gain experience. We’ve now lost a qualifier again after 33 games unbeaten; that can happen sometimes. We will try and learn from it. I’m confident that we will make up for it though. I don’t see any major problems in our qualifying campaign. However, we know that we will have to put everything into it. We’ve lost this game, but the ball keeps on rolling on Tuesday.
Question: How happy were you with debutant Karim Bellarabi’s performance?
Löw: I was pleased with Karim. He got into the game more and more and had some good moments. He was very lively and hands-on for his first international match. I’m thoroughly satisfied. He improved as the game went on and also provided some danger going forward.
Question: You have lost two of your three games since winning the World Cup. Is life more difficult as World Champions?
Löw: The first defeat (4-2 to Argentina) doesn’t go down as a competitive game. What’s not surprising is that every team wants to give that extra few percent against the World Champions. There have also been more radical changes to the squad since the World Cup than I had hoped for. Not only have three players retired, but four or five players are missing who have always played and have helped shape the team, players like Mesut Özil, Sami Khedira and of course Bastian Schweinsteiger. Over the next two years, our young players have to have experiences that they will learn from. Life hasn’t gotten any harder, despite the huge disappointment of this defeat. Life is much, much nicer than before the World Cup.