The oldest German national soccer player was actually supposed to be the focus of attention on Friday in Chicago. But from Manuel Neuerwho is still suffering from the effects of his calf problems, was nowhere to be seen at Soldier Field, at least not during the part of the final training session that was also open to journalists.
The returning goalkeeper then completed an individual session before the friendly match this Saturday (8:30 p.m. CEST in FAZ live ticker for DFB international matches and on RTL) against the USA. And he won’t play even then. “He’s fine,” said the national coach. “But we have decided not to take any risks tomorrow either.”
Suddenly, in the small, warm press conference room in the belly of the spacious stadium, the focus was no longer on the oldest, but on the youngest German national player in the World Cup squad, even if Julian Nagelsmann didn’t even fully pronounce his name.
He just called him “Lenny” – and suddenly had bad, maybe even really bad news. “Unfortunately, Lenny was injured,” said Nagelsmann about the final training session, which had only just ended in the stadium. “To be honest, it didn’t look that good.” The national coach did not reveal any details, neither about the type of injury nor how it occurred in the unit.
DFB provides further information about Karl after diagnosis
Not only did the words give the impression that it wasn’t a trivial matter, the national coach’s expression also meant that the injury could possibly be serious: “He’s going to the hospital now, where a picture will be taken. We have to process the situation first, and so does he.” This requires a diagnosis. “Then we’ll see if we can nominate someone.” You don’t tend to talk about a small injury like that.
And this prospect could have been destroyed just as quickly before the tournament started. Only after the diagnosis will the German Football Association provide information on the state of health and possible further steps. “But everything is calm,” said Nagelsmann.
That new one in Chicago will not play either, Karl suddenly became a side note due to Karl’s personality, and the slow recovery of his calf could have consequences for the start of the World Cup. “He is on the way to peak fitness,” said Nagelsmann and predicted that Neuer would be “in top shape” at the start of the tournament and start team training next week.
Oliver Baumann will be new, as he was in goal in Mainz. After the USA game there is one week left until the start of the World Cup. Deniz Undav, who had to be substituted against Finland after being injured and then given the all-clear, was also still struggling with problems with his buttocks. “He definitely won’t be able to play for more than 30 minutes tomorrow because we don’t want to take any risks,” said Nagelsmann. Kai Havertz starts as a striker.
Because of the acute personal details, the historical memory of Chicago moved a little into the background before the dress rehearsal on Friday afternoon at Soldier Field, where the German team opened the world tournament as world champions in 1994 with a 1-0 win against Bolivia. Goalscorer: Jürgen Klinsmann.
Berti Vogts’ selection also won two more games in Chicago, located directly on Lake Michigan. But even the 38-year-old national coach had hardly any memories of it. And after the bad news about Lennart Karl, it no longer played a big role.
