Germany head coach Julian Nagelsmann has challenged his players to respond to growing scrutiny by beginning their World Cup knockout campaign with victory over Paraguay, insisting that only lifting the trophy will silence doubts surrounding his team.
Germany face Paraguay in the last 32 on Monday after topping Group E despite an inconsistent group-stage campaign. Convincing wins over Curacao and Ivory Coast secured early qualification, but a defeat to Ecuador in their final group match has reignited questions over whether Nagelsmann’s side can mount a serious title challenge.
A victory over Paraguay, who progressed after finishing third in their group, could set up a daunting last-16 meeting with France. However, Nagelsmann said his immediate focus remains firmly on the task ahead.
“When you talk about the German national team, it is all about trying to win every game. It is all about winning the game tomorrow,” Nagelsmann told reporters on Sunday.
“To deal with expectations is just to have a good self-confidence, just to have a good plan, try to give the players a good plan so that they can feel comfortable on the pitch, have the capability to do the right things on the pitch, show what good players they are and just win the game.
“It is all about winning in soccer. If you win, everything is perfect. If you lose, everything is shit. So we have to win tomorrow.”
Germany had appeared to be gathering momentum after a dominant 7-1 victory over Curacao and a dramatic 2-1 win against Ivory Coast, but Nagelsmann admitted his side were their own worst enemies in the loss to Ecuador after taking an early lead, describing the display as “tactical suicide”.
Unlike several teams that rotated heavily after sealing qualification, Germany fielded an almost full-strength side in their final group fixture. Nagelsmann, however, believes his squad is ready to deliver when it matters most.
“We need a perfect performance tomorrow,” he said. “When I looked at the training session, I can tell you that I’m very happy and the boys, they will bring their A-game tomorrow.”
Up front, Kai Havertz is expected to retain his place despite strong competition from Deniz Undav, who has contributed three goals and two assists from the bench during Germany’s opening two matches.
The Arsenal forward is preparing for his first experience of World Cup knockout football after Germany failed to advance beyond the group stage at the previous two editions of the tournament.
“I think in general I just like bigger occasions. I do not know why. I just feel comfortable,” Havertz said.
“I just hope I can continue that streak on the biggest stage, the World Cup.”
Havertz found the net twice against Curacao, but Germany’s attacking trio of Havertz, Florian Wirtz and Jamal Musiala have yet to consistently reproduce the form that made them one of Europe’s most exciting combinations during Euro 2024.
Injuries disrupted the seasons of both Havertz and Musiala, while Wirtz endured a difficult first campaign at Liverpool following his £100 million move from Bayer Leverkusen.
Despite those challenges, Havertz believes the understanding between the three attackers continues to grow ahead of the knockout stages.
“We are very close. Obviously, we talk about what we could improve and what we could tweak. We really want to draw on our full potential and we three know that,” he said.
“Going into tomorrow’s match, we are fully convinced that we can win. I think that the three of us have already played football in a very big stage and we trust in our capabilities.”
With Germany entering the knockout rounds under increasing pressure, Monday’s meeting with Paraguay offers Nagelsmann’s side an opportunity to restore confidence and keep alive their ambitions of claiming a first World Cup title in more than a decade.
