Former national player Cacau still sees the quality in the German team to play at the top of Europe at the home European Championship. However, he does not see the problem in the storm center as solved by then.
Stuttgart (dpa / lsw) - Even after the recent failures, the former national soccer player Cacau trusts the German team to play a strong role in the 2024 European Championship in his own country. "If passion and joy are brought back onto the pitch, then the quality is there to go far," said the former striker and third-placed in the 2010 World Cup on Tuesday of the German Press Agency. "The semi-finals are at least possible."
However, the 41-year-old, who was German champion in 2007 with VfB Stuttgart, doubts that national coach Hansi Flick will be able to completely solve the problem in the center forward position by the time of the European Championships at home from June 14 to July 14, 2024. Cacau explained at an event in Stuttgart City Hall that there will not be time until the summer of next year to "conjure up" a striker like Miroslav Klose, with whom Germany became world champion in 2014. Maybe Niclas Füllkrug from Werder Bremen or Timo Werner from RB Leipzig could fill this role when Werner is 100 percent fit again.
The selection of the German Football Association (DFB) was eliminated at the World Cup in Qatar as well as in Russia 2018.
Alongside European gymnastics champion Elisabeth Seitz and the 2016 Paralympics winner in shot put, Niko Kappel, Cacau is one of three "host city ambassadors" for Stuttgart. Four group games and one game of the quarter-finals will be played there at the European Championship. In any case, the DFB-Elf will play their second group game in the Baden-Württemberg state capital.
500 days before the opening game, Lord Mayor Frank Nopper (CDU) started the countdown to the continental tournament in the town hall. He also hopes that a top-class footballer will set up his training quarters at the Waldau in Stuttgart. The associations of European champion Italy, vice world champion France and European Championship finalist England have already "put out their feelers", said Nopper. The decision will only be made after the group draw in December.
