(Germany’s National coach Juergen Klopp. Photo by OneFootball)
Jurgen Klopp named 44 players Thursday for his first camp as Germany coach, handing 16 their first call-ups since taking over following the World Cup disappointment.
The former Liverpool manager split the squad into two groups for Germany’s four Nations League matches over two weeks rather than naming a traditional squad.
One group will play the Netherlands in Amsterdam on September 24 and Greece at home three days later.
The second group faces Serbia in Munich on October 1 and Greece away on October 4.
Klopp said the unusual setup lets him see as many players as possible, stressing the squads were built to fit well together rather than being first and second teams.
Marc-Andre ter Stegen takes the goalkeeper role while Bayern midfielder Joshua Kimmich keeps the captain’s armband.
The 31-year-old, Germany’s most capped player with 114 appearances, will shift from right-back to central midfield where he plays for Bayern.
Klopp said Germany had convinced him plenty of talent exists despite a poor World Cup exit. He picked a squad looking ahead two or three years rather than just the next four games.
Among the 16 potential debutants are Frankfurt’s Younes Ebnoutalib who played second-division football a year ago, Stuttgart defender Finn Jeltsch, Brentford’s Vitaly Janelt and Celtic’s Mika Baur.
Several established players missed out. Leroy Sane, Deniz Undav, Leon Goretzka and goalkeeper Oliver Baumann were left out while veterans Manuel Neuer and Antonio Rudiger have retired from international duty.
Undav, one of Germany’s bright spots at the World Cup, was given recovery time from an Achilles tendon injury.
