Bayern youngster Aleksandar Pavlovic will be in the Germany senior squad for the first time. However, national coach Julian Nagelsmann’s call-up has been criticised.
FC Bayern’s Aleksandar Pavlovic has been called up for the German national team’s international matches in France (23 March) and against the Netherlands (26 March). However, national coach Julian Nagelsmann’s nomination has also been sharply criticised.
The 2014 World Cup winner and TV pundit Sami Khedira said on DAZN: „For me personally, after ten or twelve Bundesliga games, it’s too early.“
Pavlovic is „a wonderful boy who is very eager to learn, who has a great career ahead of him“ and „definitely has what it takes to be an international in the long term“, Khedira continued.
However, Nagelsmann’s invitation for the 19-year-old was a „political decision. I’m not involved in that, I’m trying to assess it in sporting terms,“ he said.
Neururer: „Catastrophic and bad“
Former Bundesliga coach Peter Neururer was even clearer. „It annoys me that we’re still talking about a trial phase. We are two international matches away from the European Championship,“ the 68-year-old grumbled on Sport1: „The biggest problems with our national team at the last few tournaments were that there was zero familiarity and that not the best players were on the pitch, but some for political reasons.“
Neururer explained: „He would also be eligible to play for Serbia and the DFB is trying to get him in before the European Championship.“ Neururer described such „experiments“ at the current time as „absolute rubbish, catastrophic and bad“.
However, Neururer now even reckons that Pavlovic has a chance of starting in centre midfield alongside returnee Toni Kroos. „If he only sits on the bench, his nomination would make no sense at all,“ he continued.
Neururer said of Real star Kroos, who will celebrate his comeback in the national team: „Kroos is back for the first time in a long time and will also play one hundred per cent“, otherwise Nagelsmann should „give back his coaching licence.“
