No Country for Old Men: Rudi Völler won’t be tempted for longer stay on Germany’s bench

Before Bayern Munich and the rest of the Bundesliga get back to action, the German national team is still in focus for many fans.

After Germany picked up its first win in what felt like forever (in reality, it the first victory since beating Peru on March 25th), the man on the bench — Rudi Völler — was already looking to get out of Dodge.

“Yes, for me it was a one-off. That was very clear to me. The result doesn’t change anything. It was a very tiring, very stressful few days. The whole thing was very strenuous. I had brief contact with the president and with Aki Watzke,” Völler said (as captured by @iMiaSanMia). “We will get together over the next few days. My wish is that we can introduce the new coach by the next international break. I would like to take the opportunity to compliment Hannes Wolf and Sandro Wagner. I didn’t know Sandro well, he’s full of energy. I’ve known Hannes for a long time. It was a wonderful collaboration.”

Managing this group of German players certainly can wear down any good man (as evidenced by Amazon Prime’s All or Nothing: Die Nationalmannschaft in Katar) and Völler — at 63-years-old — is well past the point in his accomplished career where he wants to take on this type of challenge.

The strain and stress of re-forming Germany into a world power of football will not be for the faint of heart. Neither Joachim Löw, not Hansi Flick could connect with the group of players in this format. Will the next manager be able to buck that trend?

That remains to be seen, but whoever takes the job will need some of that energy and youth exuberance that Völler spoke about.