Jurgen Klopp set off a fresh row over Jamal Musiala before Germany’s game against Curacao when he said he would start Deniz Undav ahead of the Bayern Munich midfielder. What should have been a routine lineup opinion instead turned into a public judgment on Musiala at a time when the 58-year-old was already under pressure.
The reason the comment landed so hard is simple: Musiala has had a difficult time since recovering from a serious left ankle injury and has not looked himself this season. Klopp’s choice was not framed as a cautious wait-and-see call. It was a direct preference, and it came from one of the most recognisable voices in German football working on TV during the World Cup with Thomas Muller.
That made the reaction immediate. Lothar Matthaus said Klopp should know better after the remarks, and Andreas Moller called them completely unacceptable on Doppelpass. Moller went further, saying it was rather disrespectful and that Klopp would not be amused if he were national coach either. The criticism did not stop with the selection call itself. It deepened when Klopp repeated his line that Julian Nagelsmann was still picking the team “for now.”
That single phrase carried more weight than Klopp may have intended. By saying “for now” twice, he gave the impression that Nagelsmann’s position was not secure, and many heard it as a pointed suggestion that the coach might not keep the job. That landed in a climate where Nagelsmann’s popularity has waned since Euro 2024 and Germany have not had a convincing two years in the Nations League or during World Cup qualifying.
Klopp’s preference for Undav was easier to defend on football grounds than on tone. Only Harry Kane scored more Bundesliga goals than Undav, which gave the striker a clear statistical case. But the debate is no longer just about who starts against Curacao. It is about whether Musiala, after the ankle injury and a season that has not yet brought him back to himself, can quickly reclaim the level that once made any public comparison feel unnecessary.
