September 24th: Klopp's first line-up in the game against Holland is immediately thrown out. Jamal Musiala (23) was out immediately before kick-off (torn hamstring), Kai Havertz (27) after almost 30 minutes (strained muscle). Both have to leave due to injury. Germany draws 1-1 after conceding a goal in stoppage time. Klopp builds up his players in the dressing room and praises their pressing. Klopp: “We were in the right rooms!”
Debutants receive medals
September 25th: After returning to base camp and a regeneration session, Klopp gives his players the day off. The following also applies: team measures! The clique around Felix Nmecha (25), Karim Adeyemi (24), Nadiem Amiri (29) and Josha Vagnoman (25) plays “Cornhole”. The goal is to throw a bag into the hole on a slanted wooden board from several meters away. Klopp has scheduled a ritual for the evening: the debutants from the Holland game will be awarded medals. Each player gives a laudatory speech.
Nathaniel Brown (23) praises Younes Ebnoutalib (23): "I'm extremely proud of you. You did an outstanding job against van Dijk, that's not easy."
Joshua Kimmich (31) praises Treu: "You played a top game and helped us a lot. I got a kicker grade of 5.5 on my debut. I'm happy that you were better yesterday."
Nico Schlotterbeck (26) about Engelhardt: "You've gone your way, you've earned your debut. I hope for more games for you, that's just the beginning."
Klopp also has a few words for a few professionals, but these are in private. The national coach says to Alexander Nübel (30): “You’re in the goal against Greece!”
September 26th: At 11 a.m. Klopp gathers his team on the training pitch for a short speech. Klopp: "You look refreshed. That will change!" For the unit he determined: forms of play, shooting and pressing exercises. He then divides the teams into “old” and “young”. The game is shooting crossbars. Team “Alt” wins. The players also came up with something for their new coach. The team tells their coach to include the word “receding hairline” at the press conference. Klopp messes up at first.
September 27th: The national team botched Klopp's home debut, losing 0-1 against Greece. The mood in the dressing room is devastated after the game. The national coach feels this and builds up his players straight away. Klopp: "Don't let your heads down! Keep believing in the new path you've chosen!" Then squad one leaves. Also Captain Kimmich. Klopp had rejected his request to stay with the team several times. Six other players, Finn Dahmen (28), Engelhardt, Schlotterbeck, Treu, Serge Gnabry (31) and Bambasé Conté (23), are allowed to stay.
Kimmich becomes a big topic
September 28th: Squad two arrives. Some players watched the game against Greece the day before in the stands in Augsburg. Regarding Kimmich's departure, Klopp said: "He made an outstanding impression, but even Jo Kimmich can theoretically be injured. We have to see how the group functions when the big heads aren't there. The fact that he really wanted to stay there also sets him apart."
September 30th: There is a shocking moment during training: Schlotterbeck, who was already out of the World Cup, is injured again. After Musiala and Havertz, the BVB star is the third regular to have to leave. Klopp has a long one-on-one conversation with Florian Wirtz (23), building up the midfield star who has been much criticized in Liverpool. The national coach also has a message for Gnabry: Klopp lets the Bayern professional know that he is his captain against Serbia.
October 1st: Germany celebrates its first win in Klopp's third game, winning 2-0 against Serbia in Munich. After an hour, Klopp pauses and looks at the stands where something is happening. Then the national coach smiles because he realizes that the German fans are celebrating his team with a La Ola wave. On the way to the team headquarters, the national coach, who felt the pressure after two winless games, happily remembers this moment. Shortly before, Klopp was asked at the press conference after the game why Wirtz harmonized so well in midfield with Kimmich challengers Aleksandar Pavlovic (22) and Tom Bischof (21). His answer: "It's such a nice evening, and you want to start a topic that isn't a topic. In the end it'll be a Kimmich story, you'll manage that!"
October 2nd: Secret training in Herzogenaurach! From 4 p.m. Klopp lets the reserves and substitutes from the game against Serbia sweat. There is a lot of intensity and speed in the units. The players want to prove themselves for a mission in Greece. Klopp has a drone fly throughout training to analyze the session from a bird's eye view afterwards.
October 3rd: The DFB entourage flies from Nuremberg to Thessaloniki in the afternoon, where the second leg against Greece will take place.
October 4th: The revenge against the Greeks only works to a limited extent. The DFB team is superior, but despite wit, strong counter-pressing and good chances, they are unable to get beyond a 0-0 draw. Klopp said after the game: "What we played in the first half was extraordinary. If you had told me a week ago that we could deliver such a strong performance on Thursday and Sunday, I wouldn't have believed it."
October 5th: The DFB stars travel back to their clubs. The next international matches: in Serbia (November 13th) and against Holland (November 16th) in Berlin. Klopp will no longer appoint 44 players for these games; the XXL casting has ended. From now on, the national coach is relying on a squad. Klopp will decide who will be part of him in the coming weeks.
