Germany firmly focused on 2026 World Cup, says coach Nagelsmann

BUDAPEST: Germany have nothing to play for in their last Nations League game away to Hungary on Tuesday after having already secured top spot in the group but for coach Julian Nagelsmann the game is a key step in their development towards the 2026 World Cup.

The Germans, already qualified for the Nations League quarter-finals set for March, crushed Bosnia and Herzegovina 7-0 on Saturday for a statement victory that secured first place in Group A3 ahead of the Netherlands with a game to spare.

“There is no great motivation as far as the group is concerned. We won the group. We get the motivation from wanting to develop,” Nagelsmann told a press conference on Monday. “We do not have many matches until the World Cup but just a few. Little time to develop until the World Cup qualification and little time, if hopefully qualified, until the World Cup. So there is limited time tolerance in terms of development.”

The four-times world champions are eyeing the 2026 World Cup co-hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico, with a good showing in the Nations League providing a major boost. Germany, who last won the World Cup in 2014, will start the qualification competition in March following December’s draw, but after more than decade without any tournament success, they are desperate to restore their international reputation.

The Germans crashed out of the last two World Cups in the first round, while they were eliminated in the last 16 at Euro 2020 and the quarter-finals of Euro 2024 on home soil. “We don’t have time to waste,” said Nagelsmann, who took over a year ago. “That does not mean that everything has to work perfectly every time.