Almost immediately after Germany’s loss to England in the U-21 EUROs, some talking heads and fans assumed that Bayern Munich’’s interest in VfB Stuttgart attacker Nick Woltemade could have been a distraction.
When asked about it during the postgame rush, the notion was widely dismissed by members of the German national team:
U21 coach Antonio Di Salvo on whether the Bayern noise around Woltemade before the final affected him and the preparation for the game: “All the background noise wasn’t ideal. But that wasn’t the reason we lost the game”
Captain Eric Martel: “No, that didn’t matter”
Paul Nebel: “That’s complete nonsense. Nick was completely focused on the game against England and wanted to win. You can’t score every game. Nick gave it his all.”
There is no doubt that Woltemade was fully focused on the match vs. England, but the noise was there and — unfortunately — does create a little of a distraction for the team itself even if the individual is on-point.
On that day England was the better team, but some fans will likely still believe that Woltemade’s transfer saga just came at the wrong time.
The feeling here is that Bayern Munich’s interest in Woltemade did not play a olein Germany’s loss.
Looking for more thoughts and analysis on Bayern Munich’s big swing at chasing VfB Stuttgart star Nick Woltemade? What about our takes on Bayern Munich’s secret transfer target meeting where Max Eberl laid out his plans for wing? If that is not enough, we also cover the latest on Dayot Upamecano’s contract situation and the possibility of both Timo Werner (New York Red Bulls) and Thomas Müller (LAFC) heading to MLS.
