Joshua Kimmich speaks out very honestly about the Germany team in the toughest interview after their World Cup loss.
Germany’s team captain Joshua Kimmich didn’t hold back after their surprising loss to Paraguay in the World Cup, saying that their elimination was fully deserved. For the third World Cup in a row, Germany couldn’t make it past the group stage. This time, they lost to Paraguay, a team that was ranked 41st in the world and only made it through as one of the best third-place teams.
Paraguay hadn’t scored many goals during qualifying—just 0.78 per game, one of the lowest among teams that made it to the finals—but they still managed to edge past Germany. The German team struggled both in attack and defense. In fact, they’ve now let in goals in 10 World Cup games in a row, the longest streak in their history. Their last time without conceding a goal was the 2014 World Cup final against Argentina.
During the match, Kai Havertz equalized after Paraguay’s Julio Enciso scored first, but Germany missed several chances and eventually lost 4-3 in the penalty shoot-out. After the game, a clearly upset Kimmich shared his honest thoughts on their performance. “It feels awful,” he said. “We didn’t play well against any team. We had real problems against teams that aren’t even world-class. That’s just the truth. We fully deserved to be knocked out.”
Kimmich called it the hardest day of his career. “It’s awful. It doesn’t feel good,” he said. “Growing up, watching the national team always meant reaching the semis or finals and winning titles. That’s what inspired us and what we wanted to give to fans and kids back home. But this time, we didn’t bring any excitement or show the team people could connect with. At the end, it’s all about winning, not just feeling good.”
He also talked about how being the captain brings extra responsibility. “I feel that responsibility, and everyone who played should too. We can’t just blame others. In the end, we lost because we couldn’t beat the other team.”
Kai Havertz also expressed his disappointment. He scored the equalizer but missed a big chance to win in regular time. “I’m speechless,” Havertz said. “This is my second World Cup, and we’ve failed again. The last few tournaments have been terrible. All I can say is I’m sorry. We need to really look at ourselves. We’re playing for a proud country with a strong football history.”