Thomas Muller to sit out Germany's next TWO international breaks as Hansi Flick makes bold call following disastrous World Cup campaign
- Muller part of World Cup failure
- Will not be called up for a while
- Flick wants to give younger players chances
WHAT HAPPENED? Bayern Munich star Muller, who has 121 caps for his country, was part of the Germany squad that crashed out at the group stage of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. However, the 33-year-old will not be involved for the national team for the next two international breaks at least as Flick wants to give rising stars more chances.
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WHAT THEY SAID: He said to Kicker: "That's been discussed with him, I want to give younger players a chance with the national team, but that doesn't mean he's not an issue for the [2024] European Championship."
Flick did, however, also add in a separate interview with Süddeutsche Zeitung: "Why should I close the door on a player like that forever? Look at his current importance for FC Bayern: He's really important again, and I'm very happy for that him."
THE BIGGER PICTURE: Germany exited the World Cup last year when they finished third in Group E, behind Japan and Spain. As well as their failures on the field, Flick says the controversy around the OneLove armband affected his team.
"We worked through and analyzed the World Cup intensively and were tough on ourselves in the process," he said. "If you add it all up, we deserved to be eliminated. And there are sporting reasons for that. Nevertheless, the players for whom participation in a World Cup is the greatest thing were at least partly driven from outside on this topic."
IN THREE PHOTOS:
WHAT NEXT FOR GERMANY? Flick's men play their first game of 2023 when they meet Peru in a friendly on March 25. Three days later, they will take on Belgium.