Bayern Munich star Joshua Kimmich has been an integral figure for both club and country.
With Germany surging, the veteran does not want to see things slow down.
“Of course it’s our goal to reach the final four (of the UEFA Nations League). It’s part of the path we want to take to be successful in big tournaments, like Spain for example, who have won this competition. For us players we enjoy playing in this competition more than friendlies. We want to compete at a high level, so games against the Netherlands or the upcoming quarterfinals are attractive to watch,” said Kimmich (as captured by @iMiaSanMia). “The defeat against Austria last year was an absolute low point. The coaching staff then took a different path. That was important for us to be able to grow and develop. Before that, there were a lot of changes, so it was difficult to identify with wins and losses. The March games against France and the Netherlands changed a lot. We won both games and gained confidence. We had a team spine again and saw that we can keep up with the big nations.”
Never one to get enough of time on the pitch, Kimmich is not one of the player’s advocating for a “strike” of some sort — though he does understand why some players might feel like the schedule is too much to handle.
“For me personally this is the first season where there will be more games – with two more games in the Champions League, possibly 4 (playoffs) and the Club World Cup in the summer. In England they have more games with more teams in the league, a League cup and no winter break. I personally enjoy playing a lot of games, but I can understand every player that says it’s too much. I think it’s individual for each player,” said Kimmich.
Finally, Kimmich was asked about the potential of Leon Goretzka returning to the national team.
“The door is certainly not closed to anyone here. But the basis for that is always to deliver good performances. Robin Gosens has also shown that at his club. The best players must be called up. A certain competitive spirit must be there in order to remain successful,” Kimmich said.
