Hamann Demands Kimmich Leave German National Team; Babbel Opposes
Following Germany's penalty shootout loss to Paraguay in the Round of 32 of the 2026 World Cup, former German international Dietmar Hamann publicly demanded that captain Joshua Kimmich should no longer play for the national team, arguing that Kimmich represents the memory of failure in the past three World Cups and that Germany needs a complete overhaul. However, another former international, Markus Babbel, strongly opposed this view, stating that Kimmich had an outstanding season for Bayern Munich, playing a crucial role in their double-winning campaign, and that age or lack of national team titles should not be criteria for exclusion. Babbel expressed confidence that incoming head coach Jürgen Klopp, whom he described as inevitable for the role, will bring continuity, innovation, and optimism to the team. Kimmich's future with the national team will ultimately be decided by Klopp.
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