Jürgen Klopp declined to engage in discussions about whether Joshua Kimmich remains indispensable after Germany’s midfield trio of Pavlović, Bischof, and Wirtz performed impressively against Serbia.
A reporter indirectly alluded to this topic by asking, “To what extent did having Pavlović and Bischof alongside him make it easier for Flo Wirtz today, and how close is their understanding to your ideal?”
Klopp caught the hint and responded, “It was such a wonderful evening. And even without mentioning it, you’re trying to blow up a problem that doesn’t exist. Flo Wirtz doesn’t need specific players next to him. Our style of play suited Flo Wirtz. Turning this into a story that he can only play with Pavlović…”
The reporter interrupted, “I meant something quite different. I wanted to ask if Pavlović helps Flo Wirtz in some special way in his playing style. I wasn’t talking about Flo Wirtz, but about Pavlović and Bischof.”
Klopp replied, “And in the end, this will turn into a story about Jo Kimmich. You can make that happen. Pavlović, Bischof, and Wirtz really worked well together.”
The reporter said, “That depends on you. I didn’t mention any names.”
Klopp concluded, “Unfortunately, I can’t take part in that discussion. We can play a certain style of football with many different combinations; that’s the plan. Football needs to remain stable — the lineup can’t, mainly because of player injuries. If someone is unavailable and we just stand around looking at each other saying, ‘We can only play like this if this player and that player are on the pitch,’ then it doesn’t make sense. So I’m very happy with the performance, but I don’t believe it only works with this particular combination of players.”
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