Germany forward Thomas Mueller called the team’s second consecutive first-round exit from the World Cup an “absolute catastrophe.” Teammate Kai Havertz compared it to “watching a horror movie.” Mueller mourns ‘total calamity’ as Germany exits World Cup. Due to Spain’s 2-1 loss to Japan on Thursday, Germany finished in third place in Group E behind Spain. Despite finishing with the same number of points as the Spaniards (4 total).
Mueller mourns ‘total calamity’ as Germany exits World Cup
Mueller played for both the 2014 World Cup champions and the 2010 squad. It was ousted in the quarterfinals in Russia. Havertz said it was much more challenging for Germany. Because they didn’t find their fate until Thursday when the game’s score between Japan and Spain was shown on the stadium’s large screen.
Havertz suggested that things are not well in German football by saying that the team’s poor performance against Japan led to their elimination. Germany’s Euro 2024 coach Hansi Flick stated he had no plans to resign but that “it won’t be up to me.”
The flick is under contract until that tournament is staged in Germany. Flick urged immediate changes in Germany’s youth football development, saying the country should learn from the experiences of other nations.
“It is unbelievably bitter for us because our result would have been enough. It’s a feeling of powerlessness,” Mueller said.
“When it happens this way, it feels like watching like a horror movie,” said Havertz, who scored two goals after coming off the bench.
“We learned during the match that Japan was leading, and then the group standings were displayed in the stadium. But then we noticed that the Japan match was over. We must be honest and say everything hasn’t been going well for four years.
“Now we’ve been knocked out twice in the group stage. I don’t think we’re a tournament team anymore.”
“It will be very important to focus on the new generation of footballers. There are good players for the future, but for the next ten years, it is very important that we make the right steps now.”
