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The Germany head coach has been discussing his plans for a friendly against Ghana and used Florain Wirtz as an example.
Julian Nagelsmann has suggested that he could rest Florian Wirtz for Germany’s friendly fixture against Ghana.
Wirtz dazzled for DFB with two goals and two assists in their 4-3 victory over Switzerland last Friday. The attacking midfielder displayed all of his quality, having had somewhat of a subdued opening season since joining Liverpool for £100 million from Bayer Leverkusen last summer.
Still, Wirtz is a key player for the Reds and they are better when he is in the team. Arne Slot’s side return to action when they face Manchester City in the FA Cup quarter-final at the Etihad Stadium on Saturday.
And Liverpool could benefit from Wirtz being given some respite ahead of the City clash. While Germany are preparing for the 2026 World Cup, head coach Julian Nagelsmann is wary that his players could suffer fatigue - including Wirtz.
Via Kicker, Nagelsmann said: “The game is viewed from a slightly different perspective. We need to rotate a bit to manage some players who are returning from injuries or are under a lot of strain. Joshua Kimmich , Serge Gnabry , and Florian Wirtz have had and continue to have many intense matches. I'm not completely blinded by my own ambitions and I'm not going to force it through at all costs. I also need the clubs."
Slot, under pressure as Liverpool boss, admitted he hoped that those in his squad heading for international duty would not play two games during the break. After the 2-1 loss at Brighton, Slot said: “I think, but it's also something I'm going to ask our data department, that a lot of our players are in the top 10 in terms of playing minutes, because I have so many times had to play the same players because of the model we are having, because of the injuries we are having. We don't have a big squad, we always have to come back to the same players. But these same players today showed character because I thought I saw that all the ones that played Wednesday were still able to compete in the end. Maybe not as fresh as they were Wednesday but they didn't give up and that's an important asset to have for the last period of the season.”
Hugo Ekitike made his second appearance of the international break when coming off the bench in the 63rd minute of France’s 3-1 win over Ecuador. Ibrahima Konate was an unused substitute for Les Bleus, which is welcome news for Liverpool.
The Reds also would not have been too concerned that Giorgi Mamardashvili played 90 minutes for the second time in George’s 2-0 triumph against Lithuania. Mamardashvili has been second choice to Alisson Becker in goal since arriving from Valencia. But with Alisson currently sidelined, Mamardashvili is in line to start against City and when Liverpool face Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League quarter-final first leg at the Parc des Princes on Wednesday 8 April.
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