Germany boss doesn’t want to focus on politics
Germany boss Hansi Flick wants the focus on his side redirected from politics to competitive matters as they approach today’s critical encounter with Spain.
The Germans sit third in Group E after one round of matches following their surprise 2-1 loss to Japan on Wednesday, so picking up points against Spain – coming off a 7-0 victory over Costa Rica – will be essential.
Some suggested the Germans were distracted by the debate surrounding their decision to stage a pre-match protest ahead of the opener, a conversation Flick was keen to move past. He said: “It’s just the way it is. We need to accept a lot of other things about all this noise in the background of what happened before the tournament, and the story with the armband. The main focus for me has been the football.” Germany made headlines when they covered their mouths for the team photo before the Japan match in a protest to highlight they felt silenced by FIFA. They were one of seven nations, including England and Wales, whose captains had intended to wear the Onelove armband before the governing body threatened sanctions and the teams dropped their plans. The events resulted in German supermarket chain Rewe deciding to waive its advertising rights with the German Football Association earlier this week. Flick is looking for improvement from his side but remains fully committed to their overall approach, and admitted the Japan result led to some direct discussions.
He said: “I think there were some situations where we made a lot of mistakes, where we got (things) wrong. Clearly, I tried to explain that to the team, because it’s important for them to understand and then to implement.
“We talked about the match. We’re really convinced about our philosophy, how we want to play football. And, of course, we’re going to try to do better.” Meanwhile, Luis Enrique warned overconfidence following their seven-goal salvo could cause Spain’s downfall.
He said: “We tried to manage that victory with all normality. We got the three points, that’s it. “It was a resounding victory that fills us with confidence, but we shouldn’t have too much confidence. We are facing an opponent, Germany, against which we cannot be overconfident otherwise they will hammer us. “We have a very smart squad, smart enough to know that we have to respect our opponent, and we will have to give it our all. It’s a great challenge.”