Arsenal forward dubbed ‘difference-maker’ by former Man Utd star after huge international upset | Football

Germany legend Bastian Schweinsteiger hailed Christos Tzolis as the kind of difference-maker his country no longer has after Greece stunned their hosts in Augsburg.

Dimitrios Kourbelis scored the only goal of the game as Jurgen Klopp’s reign as Germany boss took an early blow in front of a home crowd.

Klopp’s first game in charge was a 1-1 draw with Netherlands in Amsterdam on Thursday and his second has proved to be Germany’s first ever loss to Greece.

Schweinsteiger, who won 121 caps for Germany and the 2014 World Cup, made it clear what the thinks of the current crop of players representing his country.

‘We are no longer a top team. We’ve reached mediocrity. We no longer have those players. We have to get away from that,’ said the former Manchester United and Bayern Munich midfielder.

He pointed to Arsenal’s summer signing, along with Borussia Dortmund’s Konstantinos Karetsas and Benfica’s Vangelis Pavlidis as players who can impact gamesmore than any Germany have to offer.

‘Those who make the difference. If you look at Greece today, if you take Karetsas or Tzolis or Pavlidis up front, those were difference-makers for me. And for the Greeks today too. And we just don’t have them,’ he said.

‘That’s why Jurgen Klopp – and it’s the right thing to do – has to look at everyone who could be considered, in order to develop a team that will then play Jurgen Klopp’s style of football. Hopefully, we’ll see that in November.’

Tzolis was in buoyant mood after the win, which followed victory against Serbia last week for Greece.

‘It feels amazing,’ he said. ‘That’s two away games with two wins against very difficult opponents of high quality, especially today. I’m very happy for everybody, including the way we stuck together. It was a great performance – not the best with the ball, but great team spirit.

‘Germany were in control, but we didn’t lose our minds. Everybody was making runs; we stuck with our positions, and we knew that we were going to have some chances. We missed a big opportunity before the goal, but we knew that we were going to have another one.’

Klopp, who named 44 players across two squads for the four games of thecurrent international break, said the loss was ‘not cool’ but part of his process.

‘I could have lived with us not winning but you cannot lose such a game,’ Klopp said.

‘We have been together for a week now, all mixed together, and that needs time. The result is not cool but it is absolutely part of the process.’

When Klopp was unveiled as Germany boss in July, he memorably said: ‘I’m taking this job even though I’ve seen how you treated [Julian] Nagelsmann. I’m taking this job even though I’ve seen how you’ve treated, in England, Thomas Tuchel.

‘The day you don’t want me any more, I’m gone, without any severance pay. If you say tomorrow: “He’s s**t,” tell me to my face and I’m out. If you behave badly and don’t leave my family in peace, I’m gone, I’ll just turn away.

‘Criticise me if something doesn’t work. Jurgen Klopp is not going to have any career after the national team. This is the pinnacle of my career as a coach. I will give it everything I’ve got.’

After a stuttering start to his new job, Klopp said: ‘This is the path we’re taking now. And while we’re on that path, I would personally appreciate it if people didn’t make final judgments about the players and say, “He can’t do this, he can’t do that, he can’t do this either.”

‘If you want to vent your frustration at someone, then do it at me. There has been a big misunderstanding about that. You can absolutely criticise me. I mean that seriously.

‘In my first press conference, I said: You can criticise me all you want – just leave my family out of it.

‘You can say or think whatever you want about me. So direct your criticism at me and leave the players alone. Then we can really build something here.

‘Let the new players develop. They’ve already shown glimpses of what they can do. Don’t judge them by the same standards immediately and start saying this and that about them.

‘They’ve genuinely made a very good impression.’

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