Nagelsmann reveals how he handled the omissions of Hummels and Goretzka

Julian Nagelsmann's Germany squad for Euro 2024, which was announced on Thursday, had some notable absentees, including Mats Hummels and Leon Goretzka.

At the squad announcement press conference, Nagelsmann explained how he handled the difficult task of telling the two veterans that they wouldn't be in his squad.

"The talks were at the beginning of the week. I had longer conversations with both of them. Of course, both players are extremely disappointed," Nagelsmann said, adding:

"Even as a club coach, I had real problems having these conversations before important games. Telling a player he's not going to play at a European Championship at home has different consequences and isn't nice. But keeping the information secret is even worse.

“In the end, however, as head coach I have to make a decision in the interest of the team. They were both very disappointed, which is understandable, but I tried to explain things. They weren’t bad conversations, but of course I've had more pleasant ones.”

Speaking specifically about Goretzka's omission, Nagelsmann explained:

“It wasn't nasty. Of course these conversations are always emotional. There are different characters who react differently. Some say nothing on the phone, others want a detailed explanation. The shortest conversation lasted 1:11 minutes, the longest 22:30 minutes. It hurts me to give a rejection like that, it hurts him, so it's normal for emotions to arise, but it wasn't malicious on either side.”