Report: German national team players question Jogi Löw’s decision to oust Mats Hummels

Jogi Löw’s decision to remove Bayern Munich trio Mats Hummels, Thomas Müller, and Jerome Boateng from the national team has proven to be controversial, to say the least. Now, in a mammoth article by Florian Plettenberg of Sport1, he reveals that the ousting of Mats Hummels in particular has not gone down well with the players on the national team.

Self-critical Mats

The article discusses how Hummels has always been critical about himself and his own performances, which has served him well as a defender. Unlike other star players, who want to build a brand, Hummels is simply focused on being a world class defender.

However, things have gone sour since the World Cup. Plettenberg claims that, in recent months, Hummels feels he has come under undue criticism relative to his performances. He feels that he is still a top level defender, and Löw’s decision to remove him and his Bayern teammates from the national team has hurt him personally.

Hummels isn’t alone

What is said to bother Hummels the most is the apparent finality of the decision, a point also raised by Müller in his own response. Plettenberg alleges that several players within Die Mannschaft see it the same way and cannot understand Löw’s decision to drop Hummels from the roster permanently.

We already know that some players on the team have publicly criticized the move, most importantly Joshua Kimmich, a player who might one day become the captain of Bayern Munich and Germany. The idea that there may be even more players who privately harbor doubts about the coach may bode well for Hummels and his teammates’ international careers.

Could a future comeback be on the cards? We don’t know. At the very least, the ousted players themselves do seem to have been adversely affected. Their performances have been better than ever. Hopefully, someone at the DFB sees sense someday.