By Oliver Trust
BERLIN, Sept. 11 (Xinhua) -- Turbulent times continue for German football after the dismissal of national team coach Hansi Flick.
Sporting director and interim coach Rudi Voller is busy finding a suitable lineup to face 2018 world champion France on Tuesday in Dortmund while the association is forced to find a successor for departed Flick.
To sort out the muddle following the disastrous 4-1 loss to Japan requires quick action as the German squad is taking off on Oct. 9 for a US tour and friendlies against the United States and Mexico.
Voller is dealing with the challenge of having to close doors in his wavering defense as French stars, Kylian Mbappe in particular, pose an unpredictable threat.
Behind the scenes, the association efforts seem to concentrate on Julian Nagelsmann as the new head coach after Liverpool coach Jurgen Klopp's management announced their client isn't available.
But to sign the 36-year-old seems far from a piece of cake as he owns a valid contract with Bayern Munich until 2026 with a monthly salary of a reported 450,000 euros despite his dismissal in March.
Compensation payments might be needed to solve the issue while further candidates such as former Frankfurt coach Austrian Oliver Glasner, former Dutch and Bayern coach Louis van Gaal, current Turkish national team coach Stefan Kuntz, and Felix Magath are mentioned aside from Matthias Sammer and Voller.
Appointing Nagelsmann would make him the youngest coach in the association's history. So far, Jurgen Klinsmann stands for the youngest manager as he took the reins of the German national team in 2004 at the age of 39.
After the disastrous crisis in 2000, Voller stepped in and took the German team to the runner-up at the 2002 FIFA World Cup in South Korea and Japan.
But this time, it seems rather unlikely for Voller to take over for a longer period as he only accepted the association's sporting director job to help until the start of the 2024 UEFA Euro hosted by Germany.
Against France, the struggling 2014 world champion must do without Dortmund defender Niklas Sule who left due to the upcoming birth of his child.
Despite rescue worker Voller's preparations, the dismissal of Flick is triggering various reactions.
While German basketball fans accuse the football association of having spoiled celebrations around Germany's triumph at the 2023 FIBA World Cup, football captain Ilkay Gundogan came up with emotional fare-well words for Flick.
The Barca midfielder called Flick an "exceptional person and coach", adding a "Thank you" to his posting on social media.
German media spoke about an inevitable step due to Flick having lost the locker room and the fans' trust after the painful group exit at the 2020 FIFA World Cup in Qatar. ■
