The German national team secured its second victory in its fifth match under head coach Jürgen Klopp. Bayern players such as Jonathan Tah and Joshua Kimmich were in the lineup. But the match didn’t go well for all of the FCB stars.
In addition to the aforementioned Tah and Kimmich, Aleksandar Pavlovic was also in the starting lineup. Tom Bischof came on as a substitute. Tah had a solid night, while Kimmich was once again the linchpin of the team and earned a good grade in the player ratings as a result.
Pavlovic, like Kimmich, also played very well, making many passes and once again shining with his ball control.
Two Bayern pros are under pressure with the DFB team
With Jamal Musiala and Serge Gnabry out due to injury, the only other players in the squad were Jonas Urbig, Nathaniel Brown, and Lennart Karl. Urbig will get his chances in the DFB jersey, but he’ll have to wait his turn for now.
The situation is clearly more frustrating for Brown and Karl, though. There’s no question that Karl, as an 18-year-old rookie, can’t play in every game. Still, he would have liked to make an impact.
Jürgen Klopp offered a pragmatic explanation regarding Karl, saying after the game: “Lenny is a wonderful young man. He’s trained really, really well and is fully integrated into the team. He didn’t play today because the player who played in his position also plays very good soccer. But there will be plenty more chances.”
Conversely, this means that the competition for the Bayern youngster is fierce, and he must continue to prove himself week after week—and, above all, when he does play, he must deliver.
In Brown’s case, being on the bench against Serbia doesn’t necessarily have to be a major setback. Klopp has been testing various lineups anyway, and the left-footed player—who has recently been used more frequently in an attacking role at Bayern—has already played a role under the new national team coach. Mittelstädt, however, performed quite well against Serbia. It remains to be seen whether Brown will earn a starting spot against the Netherlands on Monday.