Florian Wirtz is just 21 years old but already has a lot of experience in a new Germany team.
As Germany looks ahead to the 2026 World Cup, injuries, retirements, and a short-term focus on Euro 2024 have resulted in a Nations League squad that is low on international experience but not particularly young.
Wirtz, an exciting attacking midfielder from Bayer Leverkusen, is the second youngest player in the squad but also the fifth most experienced with 25 caps. Germany is preparing to face Bosnia-Herzegovina on Friday and the Netherlands on Monday.
None of the three goalkeepers in the squad—Oliver Baumann, Alexander Nübel, and Oliver Blaswich—have played for Germany before. With Barcelona’s Marc-André ter Stegen out injured for months, one of them will need to step up.
As of Tuesday, six of coach Julian Nagelsmann’s top players were unavailable due to injuries, with Leipzig’s left back David Raum being the latest to withdraw. New players like Jamie Leweling, Jonny Burkardt, and Tim Kleindienst are regulars in the Bundesliga but lack international experience.
“Though it’s a shame that this time we have to do without some injured regulars who contributed through the home Euros in the summer, we’re very much looking forward to seeing our new players in the team environment and in training,” coach Julian Nagelsmann said on Monday, as reported by dpa.
Before Bayern’s Jamal Musiala, Arsenal’s Kai Havertz, and West Ham’s Niclas Füllkrug all withdrew due to injury, Germany’s squad was already looking thin after several high-profile retirements following the quarterfinals at Euro 2024.
Toni Kroos, Manuel Neuer, Ilkay Gündogan, and Thomas Müller all retired after Euro 2024, taking with them a combined 451 caps of experience.
There’s also a broader impact from the pressure Germany faced to succeed when it hosted Euro 2024.
Short-term thinking was Germany’s official strategy when Nagelsmann was hired last year on a contract that lasted only until Euro 2024. He aimed to help a struggling group of experienced players work well together again. Nagelsmann later extended his contract to include the 2026 World Cup.
