After the goalless draw at the Guiseppe-Meazza stadium in Milan against Italy, Joachim Löw shared his thoughts on his side’s progress with DFB.de as the year 2016 draws to a close. He is also looking ahead to the upcoming tests for his side, such as the 2017 Confed-Cup in Russia, the dress rehearsal before the World Cup in 2018.
Interviewer: How do you assess the 0-0 draw in Italy and the conclusion of international football for 2016?
Joachim Löw: We have gained important and useful knowledge. Aside from the result, it was important to see how certain players would get on. I was pleased with that. Tactically it was a very demanding game. It was a massive test for our young and inexperienced players that have just come into the side and they dealt with it very, very well. We created several good opportunities in the first half. That wasn’t the case as much after the break since we lost the ball too quickly on several occasions. Nevertheless it was a good experience for our young players. We just wanted to see how they would do in this kind of game.
Interviewer: There has been some quite strong public criticism of interim captain Thomas Müller after his statements in San Marino. What did you make of that?
Löw: I have only heard what he said once. I don’t think that he was disrespectful. I found the reaction a bit over-the-top. Anybody who knows Thomas Müller knows that he is a thoroughly decent guy.
Interviewer: How do you sum up 2016 as a year for the Germany national team?
Löw: It’s been positive, although we were eliminated from the European Championships in the semi-finals and we were disappointed with that. We missed a lot of chances in the Euros and we have worked on that. We said that we need to approach qualification differently than after the World Cup and we have successfully done that.
Interviewer: How optimistic are you for the future?
Löw: We have brought in several players to the team, so I am feeling positive looking ahead to next year. We have a lot of good prospects.
Interviewer: Next you await the draw for the 2017 Confed-Cup in Russia on 26th November in Kazan. What other engagements do you have before the end of the year?
Löw: I’ve got several things in the diary. First and foremost there is the Bundesliga with Dortmund against Bayern on Saturday. Then I will spend a few days in Russia. There will be the draw to begin with but we will also be looking at hotels and training possibilities. I am prepared to be both inspired and surprised since I don’t have any accommodation myself and have not seen any training facilities. I will also be at Il Classico in December in Spain and then I’ll be in the stands for Barcelona vs. Gladbach and Real against Dortmund in the Champions League.
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After the goalless draw at the Guiseppe-Meazza stadium in Milan against Italy, Joachim Löw shared his thoughts on his side’s progress with DFB.de as the year 2016 draws to a close. He is also looking ahead to the upcoming tests for his side, such as the 2017 Confed-Cup in Russia, the dress rehearsal before the World Cup in 2018.
Interviewer: How do you assess the 0-0 draw in Italy and the conclusion of international football for 2016?
Joachim Löw: We have gained important and useful knowledge. Aside from the result, it was important to see how certain players would get on. I was pleased with that. Tactically it was a very demanding game. It was a massive test for our young and inexperienced players that have just come into the side and they dealt with it very, very well. We created several good opportunities in the first half. That wasn’t the case as much after the break since we lost the ball too quickly on several occasions. Nevertheless it was a good experience for our young players. We just wanted to see how they would do in this kind of game.
Interviewer: There has been some quite strong public criticism of interim captain Thomas Müller after his statements in San Marino. What did you make of that?
Löw: I have only heard what he said once. I don’t think that he was disrespectful. I found the reaction a bit over-the-top. Anybody who knows Thomas Müller knows that he is a thoroughly decent guy.
Interviewer: How do you sum up 2016 as a year for the Germany national team?
Löw: It’s been positive, although we were eliminated from the European Championships in the semi-finals and we were disappointed with that. We missed a lot of chances in the Euros and we have worked on that. We said that we need to approach qualification differently than after the World Cup and we have successfully done that.
Interviewer: How optimistic are you for the future?
Löw: We have brought in several players to the team, so I am feeling positive looking ahead to next year. We have a lot of good prospects.
Interviewer: Next you await the draw for the 2017 Confed-Cup in Russia on 26th November in Kazan. What other engagements do you have before the end of the year?
Löw: I’ve got several things in the diary. First and foremost there is the Bundesliga with Dortmund against Bayern on Saturday. Then I will spend a few days in Russia. There will be the draw to begin with but we will also be looking at hotels and training possibilities. I am prepared to be both inspired and surprised since I don’t have any accommodation myself and have not seen any training facilities. I will also be at Il Classico in December in Spain and then I’ll be in the stands for Barcelona vs. Gladbach and Real against Dortmund in the Champions League.
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