<a href="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/UAe90l4_tLO_1qncARhi5QI9AhU=/1001x1100:5183x3888/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/71698278/1245284278.0.jpg">Costa Rica v Germany - FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022</a>Photo by Serhat Cagdas/Anadolu Agency via Getty ImagesGermany leave the World Cup on a win. Another tournament disaster from them.<strong>Hansi Flick didn’t have a clue</strong>If Flick has any dignity, he should probably offer his resignation. For a man who won the treble with <a href="https://www.bavarianfootballworks.com">Bayern Munich</a>, he has shown none of the intensity or tactical acumen that took the football world by storm in 2020. Germany floundered, and the coach was heavily responsible.Right from the opener versus Japan, the decisions made by Flick turned a straightforward game into an almost Sisyphean task. He refused to keep it simple, instead opting for baffling experiments and lineup combinations that made no sense.Niclas Fullkrug, the man in form and the only real striker on the team, did not start a single game at this World Cup. Joshua Kimmich and Leon Goretzka, the midfield pairing used by Nagelsmann to amazing success at Bayern Munich, got only a single game versus Spain. Thomas Muller and Kai Havertz, players who are not strikers by trade, were asked to play up top. We can go on and on.When Joachim Low got knocked out in the 2018 group stage, he took the brunt of the criticism. Well, Flick must take the blame here. His decisions crippled Germany from the start, and this group stage knockout was the only viable outcome.<strong>Thomas Muller’s legacy tarnished</strong>Thomas Muller has had two horrendous World Cups in a row. What a fall from grace for a man who won the Golden Boot over a decade ago. Now he’s exited the national stage, probably never to return.Sounds like someone is saying "Goodbye" <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Qatar2022?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Qatar2022</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/CRCGER?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#CRCGER</a> <a href="https://t.co/GrOXQwAWxv">pic.twitter.com/GrOXQwAWxv</a>— DW Sports (@dw_sports) <a href="https://twitter.com/dw_sports/status/1598425493350469633?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 1, 2022</a>This is so sad to see. What will people remember when they think of Thomas Muller the national team footballer? Will they remember the good early years, or the bad later ones?Then again ... maybe it’s for the best. He can focus on club football now, win some more <a href="https://www.sbnation.com/champions-league">Champions League</a> titles with whatever little bit his body can still offer him. Then, when he’s ready to hang up his boots ... a coaching position? Maybe? Germany could use a decent coach.<strong>A whole generation of players wasted</strong>People will say that this German national team side lacks talent, but that couldn’t be further from the truth. Look at the players that Flick had at his disposal. Not only were there veterans like Thomas Muller, Manuel Neuer, and Ilkay Gundogan, guys like Joshua Kimmich, Leon Goretzka, Leroy Sane, Niklas Sule, Antonio Rudiger, and Serge Gnabry were all available and in their prime years.This is the kind of talent that coaches dream of having. Yet, Germany couldn’t do anything with it. Now, a chunk of that talent will be well into their thirties when the next World Cup rolls around. Can they recover from this setback?Besides, in terms of the next generation, who does Germany have? Jamal Musiala and Kai Havertz? Maybe Florian Wirtz and Youssoufa Moukoko? That’s just not enough. The Germans might have missed a window of opportunity here. Talent like this doesn’t just grow on trees.<strong>The Bayern Munich core was rendered pointless without defenders</strong>When Germany won the World Cup in 2014, the core was made up of players from Bayern Munich. Muller, Schweinsteiger, Gotze, Kroos, Lahm, Boateng and Neuer all contributed heavily to that triumph, and they all played for the same club at the time. Coming into this tournament…
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<a href="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/7k-dEjcSv4VDzMShks0F1sMN6uw=/0x0:5080x3387/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/71699468/1245284184.0.jpg">Costa Rica v Germany: Group E - FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022</a>Photo by Robbie Jay Barratt - AMA/Getty ImagesGermany is out...and down bad.<a href="https://www.bavarianfootballworks.com/2022/12/1/23485981/costa-rica-vs-germany-lineups-live-stream-how-to-watch-2022-fifa-world-cup-updates-highlights">Die Folgen: Germany’s empty 4-2 victory over Costa Rica (Bavarian Football Works)</a>Germany won their match against Costa Rica, but because the squad underperformed against Japan, the squad is headed home with another group stage exit.Disappointment reigns supreme. Let’s get into it...here are some quick hitters on the match:While the game was a win, seeing the starting lineup was a gut punch. Thomas Müller is an all-time great player, but in this tournament — coming off of an injury — he was cooked. In addition — and I will acknowledge that none of this matters because Japan beat Spain — Hansi Flick’s insistence on sticking with İlkay Gündoğan set the tone for a flat start. Those were two players who brought little-to-nothing to the table in the tourney:Your <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/GER?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#GER</a> line-up to face <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/CRC?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#CRC</a><a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/FIFAWorldCup?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#FIFAWorldCup</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/CRCGER?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#CRCGER</a> <a href="https://t.co/gF06duuWyT">pic.twitter.com/gF06duuWyT</a>— Germany (@DFB_Team_EN) <a href="https://twitter.com/DFB_Team_EN/status/1598371459151368196?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 1, 2022</a>Again, Germany was eliminated on Match Day 1 when Flick’s loyalty to Müller led him to ignore the fact that the <em>Raumdeuter</em> was not ready after an injury and really had nothing to offer the team. Müller may or may not be done...we will see how things look at <a href="https://www.bavarianfootballworks.com">Bayern Munich</a>, but he clearly had nothing valuable to offer the team in this tournament. Niclas Füllkrug was the best option available and not starting him in any of the three games will go down as a huge gaffe for Flick. Müller just did not look like himself...and it was very concerning.The most stunning part of this tournament is that when given the chance, Flick morphed into 2018/2019 Joachim Löw with absolutely no provocation.Antonio Rüdiger was pretty terrible after having two strong games.It is no longer appropriate to say that Jamal Musiala will be a beast...he’s already there. That said, he needs to improve his finishing. It feels like he could have walked away with four goals against Costa Rica.I thought David Raum, Joshua Kimmich, and Lukas Klostermann turned in admirable performances at the outside-back positions.Kai Havertz came on to score two goals and it was insinuated on the broadcast that Havertz’s poor showing in game one and subsequent game two benching had nothing to do with performance, but with an illness. Whatever the case, Havertz did well against Costa Rica — it was just too little, too late.Where do things go from here? It feels like Flick might not stick around after the next Euros and the core of the team will be in their early 30s by the next World Cup. Clearly, to avoid what has happened in both 2018 and 2022, Germany has to make changes.Spain getting exposed for what it really is only made this loss more fitting for Germany.What a mess...I am still stunned.Overall, this was an out-and-out debacle. From poor coaching decisions to consistently underachieving performances from the players, this was arguably worse than 2018. Beating Costa Rica is nice...drawing with a good (but not great Spain squad) was decent...but coughing up a lead and subsequently losing to Japan will go down in the annals of German national team football as perhaps the most costly loss ever.If you missed our…
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