German FA chief defends Nagelsmann over Under-21 no shows
German Football Federation managing director Andreas Rettig has expressed surprise at critical media reports regarding national coach Julian Nagelsmann's absence from the Under-21 European Championship.
Antonio Di Salvo's Germany have reached the semi-finals in Slovakia, where they meet France on Wednesday. Senior squad coach Nagelsmann says he will come to Bratislava if they make the final, but media reports have suggested he should have been there earlier.
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"This is a bit of a German phenomenon. Jogi Löw was criticized as national coach for supposedly only watching games in Freiburg. When it came to Jürgen Klinsmann, the country practically fell apart because he wasn't diligent enough in sitting in the stands at matches. And so on. I don't want to take part in this discussion," Rettig told Sky Sport.
Gennaro Gattuso, who recently took over as coach of the Italian senior team, has been in Slovakia. But Rettig pointed out that the coaches of England and France have not.
"I watched the games on site. I didn't see Mr Tuchel, Mr Deschamps or other coaches. Mr Gattuso was there because he had just started his new job," Rettig said.
The former player and Bundesliga sporting director emphasised that Nagelsmann is deeply engaged with the Under-21 team.
"You can be sure that Julian not only takes a great interest but also assesses the games in detail," Rettig said.
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