Germany made a brilliant start to their World Cup campaign with a dominant win over Curacao , but the buildup to the game was not without drama.
That had little to do with Julian Nagelsmann's players and everything to do with Jurgen Klopp. The former Liverpool boss is working as a pundit at the tournament, and one questionable pre-match comment quickly became a major talking point in Germany.
Klopp has long been linked with the national team job, which exacerbated the reaction to his words. After Germany's 7-1 win, he attempted to smooth things over with the man many still tip him to replace in the future.
Klopp's original comment (via GOAL ) came before kick-off when he discussed Germany's team selection and said: "Luckily, Julian Nagelsmann is still picking the team."
It was the word "still" that caused the problem.
Viewers and pundits quickly interpreted it as a suggestion that Nagelsmann's position was fragile. That was always likely to land badly, especially when Klopp's name is so often mentioned whenever Germany's long-term managerial future is discussed.
Lothar Matthaus was among those to criticize the remark. Germany were about to begin a World Cup campaign, and Nagelsmann did not need the focus shifting toward Klopp before a ball had even been kicked.
Photo by Laszlo Szirtesi/Getty Images
Klopp realized that quickly, too.
After the final whistle, he addressed Nagelsmann directly on air and admitted the one word had instantly become a problem.
"I've already found the most hated word of the year: 'Still'," Klopp said. "I could have punched myself in the face for that, but it was already too late and I was on TV. It just slipped out so casually and has absolutely no relevance."
The former Liverpool manager then leaned into the self-deprecating side of the apology as he made it clear that he had no intention of undermining Nagelsmann.
"There's one more thing I have to say… we still need to make time for this. We're also informally part of the team, we're absolutely on your side.
"What I've realized is: I'll be 59 the day after tomorrow and I'm still an idiot. We are completely on your side, whatever you do. Nothing was intended to come of it to disrupt the process here."
That apology should go some way to rectifying the situation.
Klopp has long been seen as the obvious future Germany manager, and that context changes the way any comment about Nagelsmann lands.
That is especially true at this tournament. Germany entered Group E with Ecuador, Ivory Coast and Curacao needing to restore their World Cup reputation after two poor tournaments in 2018 and 2022.
The Curacao result gives Nagelsmann the perfect start, but tougher tests are still to come. Ecuador and Ivory Coast should provide a much clearer idea of where Germany really stand.
Germany do not need a shadow debate around the dugout while the tournament is ongoing. Nagelsmann has started well, and the focus should now be on whether his team can build on that opening win.
