Former Germany midfielder Bastian Schweinsteiger has criticised the national team following their 1-0 defeat to Greece in the UEFA Nations League.
Schweinsteiger, who won the 2014 FIFA World Cup with Germany, said the current team no longer has the quality needed to be considered among the leading sides in international football.
“We’re no longer a top team. We’re now just an average team,” Schweinsteiger said after the defeat.
The former Bayern Munich midfielder also pointed to a lack of players capable of changing games at key moments.
“We no longer have players who make the difference,” he said.
Schweinsteiger compared Germany’s situation with Greece and highlighted three players from the Greek side, Konstantinos Karetsas, Christos Tzolis and Evangelos Pavlidis, as examples of players who can have a major impact on matches.
The comments came after Greece secured their first-ever victory over Germany with a 1-0 win. The result also handed new Germany coach Jürgen Klopp his first defeat in charge of the national team.
Klopp took over from Julian Nagelsmann in August after Germany’s disappointing 2026 World Cup campaign ended with a defeat to Paraguay.
The German Football Association has given Klopp a four-year contract that runs through Euro 2028 and the 2030 World Cup.
Despite his criticism, Schweinsteiger believes Klopp can play an important role in rebuilding the team.
“Hopefully, Jürgen Klopp can develop a team that plays Klopp football,” he added.
Klopp has already said he wants to develop Germany’s players and prepare them to compete at the highest level over the next two or three years.
His first Nations League campaign is therefore expected to provide an opportunity to assess the squad and introduce new players.
Schweinsteiger made 121 appearances for Germany and was part of the team that won the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.
