National team coach Julian Nagelsmann has not ruled out a return for Manuel Neuer to the German national team’s goal, but will only announce a final decision during the official squad announcement on Thursday.
“I stand by my initial thesis that I will first seek conversation with the players. The player will always be contacted first, and that has not yet happened,” Nagelsmann stated on Saturday evening in the ZDF-Sportstudio.
This comes after Sky reported that Neuer would make a comeback for the DFB squad after his retirement following the home European Championship in 2024. It was claimed that Neuer, Nagelsmann, and DFB sporting director Rudi Völler had reached an agreement. “There will be an X-day when the squad is announced. If I start preempting and announcing things just because I feel pressured and Germany is discussing certain topics, then I am not evaluating everything I see,” Nagelsmann said, emphasizing that “every player has the right to receive the information from me. I am far from letting myself be pressured.” The national coach further stressed that he has been “very good with communication with the players to date.”
Neuer’s own statements after Bayern’s 5-1 victory on the final matchday against 1. FC Köln also suggested a swift comeback rather than ruling it out.
If Neuer returns, it would be a significant blow to Oliver Baumann. Nagelsmann had repeatedly stated that the Hoffenheim goalkeeper was his number one after the injury to Marc-Andre ter Stegen. Baumann also continues to assume this. “That is my understanding, I have no other information,” Baumann said on ARD after the 0-4 loss to Borussia Mönchengladbach on Saturday.
Nagelsmann to Announce Squad on Thursday
Nagelsmann will announce his 26-man squad on Thursday at the DFB Campus in Frankfurt/Main. By then, he plans to make “62 phone calls.” It is possible he will also await the results of Neuer’s MRI scan. The Munich goalkeeper had to be substituted in the second half of the 5-1 win against 1. FC Köln due to calf problems.
Neuer had retired from the DFB squad after the quarter-final exit against Spain, having played 124 international matches. If selected, he would participate in his fifth World Cup in the tournament held in the USA, Mexico, and Canada (June 11 to July 19). Neuer was a World Cup winner with Germany in Brazil in 2014, but experienced two major disappointments with group stage exits in Russia in 2018 and Qatar in 2022. On Friday, Neuer extended his contract with the record German champions until 2027.