German media demand Klopp replace Nagelsmann after World Cup penalty exit to Paraguay

Germany’s World Cup campaign ended in a 5-4 penalty shootout defeat to Paraguay on Monday — a 1-1 draw after 120 minutes — and the fallout has landed squarely on head coach Julian Nagelsmann, with prominent sections of the German media now publicly calling for Jurgen Klopp to take over.

BILD led the charge with a blunt editorial urging the former Liverpool and Borussia Dortmund manager to “rescue” the national team. “Nagelsmann should go — and Jurgen Klopp should come!” the outlet declared, arguing that Germany’s governing body can no longer afford a “business as usual” approach despite Nagelsmann holding a contract through 2028.

The tabloid’s case against Nagelsmann was unsparing. It described the 38-year-old as “petulant, defiant, and know-it-all”, accused him of failing to forge a cohesive unit from his squad, and traced the rot back to Germany’s quarter-final exit to Spain at Euro 2024. “He failed on the pitch and didn’t manage to get his players into top form as a cohesive unit — which is precisely the job of a coach,” BILD wrote.

The call was echoed by Berlin-based Welt, which called the result “not just a sporting debacle, but the failure of a national coach who couldn’t deliver on his promises”, before adding: “It’s time for Jurgen Klopp.”

Other major outlets were equally damning of the performance itself. Der Spiegel wrote that Germany “deserved their downfall” for a series of tepid displays, while Focus Online highlighted the historic nature of the defeat, noting that Germany had never previously lost a World Cup penalty shootout. Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung concluded that Nagelsmann “grossly overestimated his team and his own abilities.”

Klopp, 59, is currently serving as Head of Global Soccer at Red Bull and has been working as a pundit for German television during the tournament. He has publicly stated he is content in his current role, though he has previously acknowledged the Germany job holds a certain appeal. The calls from the media come after Klopp made remarks — which he later apologised for — that appeared to question Nagelsmann’s position.

Whether the German Football Association moves to act on the public pressure remains to be seen, but the unified tone from the country’s biggest sports outlets leaves little ambiguity about where opinion currently stands.