- Title: Germany's Goretzka ruled out against Netherlands - Loew
- Date: 5th September 2019
- Summary: HAMBURG, GERMANY (SEPTEMBER 5, 2019) (REUTERS) ***WARNING: CONTAINS FLASH PHOTOGRAPHY*** GERMANY COACH JOACHIM LOEW ENTERING NEWS CONFERENCE NEWS CONFERENCE IN PROGRESS (SOUNDBITE) (German) GERMANY COACH, JOACHIM LOEW, SAYING: "This morning we received bad news, which landed like a drop of bitterness. After the training session yesterday, Leon Goretzka discovered he has a minor internal bleeding in a place that has been bothering him for some time, so he will not be able to play tomorrow. That means I have to think about other options. It is a shame really because this young team - and I know this for my experience from when there was a bit of a break for the team in 2010 - needs to play with more or less the same starting lineup over eight, ten or twelve matches without many changes." MEDIA (SOUNDBITE) (German) GERMANY COACH, JOACHIM LOEW, SAYING: "The atmosphere is really great, I have to say. The young players know each other quite well. They know each other from the U19 and they have played together before. And you can feel that, they have fun together and they are all going in the direction of success, so the coming years are a real beginning for the squad." PHOTOGRAPHER (SOUNDBITE) (German) GERMANY COACH, JOACHIM LOEW, SAYING: "We basically have to say that the Netherlands have improved a lot, they have dangerous and fast players who play very differently to those who played four or five years ago." NEWS CONFERENCE IN PROGRESS CAMERAWOMAN GERMANY MIDFIELDER TONY KROOS ENTERING NEWS CONFERENCE (SOUNDBITE) (German) GERMANY MIDFIELDER, TONY KROOS, SAYING: "Above all, I expect a very interesting game. We know the Netherlands quite well, we have played against them it in the past few months, twice in the Nations League and for the qualifier in March, so we know each other pretty well. It is not a secret that they have become incredibly better. In the past year or two years the players have played very tight and I think they play at a very high level and they are very respectable." NEWS CONFERENCE IN PROGRESS (SOUNDBITE) (German) GERMANY MIDFIELDER, TONY KROOS, SAYING: "However, we still want to win the game tomorrow and make a good game. But we have to be clear: the Netherlands are more under pressure because of our win in March and that is normal. Whether that is positive or negative for us is quite hard to answer right now because I don't know how they are dealing with it." MEDIA
- Embargoed: 19th September 2019 14:39
- Keywords: Soccer Euro 2020 Qualifier Germany v Netherlands news conference coach Joachim Loew Dortmund Marco Reus
- Location: HAMBURG, GERMANY
- City: HAMBURG, GERMANY
- Country: Germany
- Topics: Soccer,Sport
- Reuters ID: LVA001AVDQR0F
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: Germany will be without midfielder Leon Goretzka for their Euro 2020 qualifier against Netherlands in Hamburg on Friday, coach Joachim Loew said on Thursday.
The Germans are already without several players who are forming the new backbone of the team since the disappointing World Cup last year as they prepare to face the Dutch in Hamburg.
"Leon Goretzka is nursing a minor injury that has been nagging him for some time. He will not be able to play tomorrow," Loew told a news conference."
"That means I have to think about other options. It is a shame really because this young team needs to play with more or less the same starting lineup over several matches."
Leroy Sane, Julian Draxler, Thilo Kehrer and Antonio Ruediger are already sidelined with various injuries.
One player who will start is Bayern Munich's Serge Gnabry, despite the winger missing last week's league win over Mainz 05.
Germany are looking to bounce back from an abysmal 2018, when they were knocked out of the World Cup in the group stage and then relegated from the inaugural Nations League.
Loew has brought in many young players in recent months.
"The atmosphere is really great, I have to say. The young players know each other quite well," he said.
Germany, who beat the Dutch earlier this year in Amsterdam, next travel to Group C leaders Northern Ireland on Monday.
Northern Ireland are top on 12 points from four matches, with Germany on nine from three. The Dutch are in third place, on three points from two matches.
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