Joachim Löw slams Bundesliga tactics as German clubs struggle | OneFootball

There are only two Bundesliga clubs still alive in European competitions and Joachim Löw isn’t happy about it.

Löw has blamed the poor results of Bundesliga clubs in Europe on a number of factors, highlighting how the league’s coaches have too much of a defensive focus.

“It’s often heard, how do I work when we don’t have the ball? A core problem is that they always want to work on not having possession,” Löw told Eurosport.

According to the World Cup-winning manager, teams should focus on possession instead of working on defensive tactics,.

“The solutions in football are: What happens when I have the ball? The layout, game resolution, the positions of the players, so I can play defensive teams,” Löw explained.

He advocates finding “solutions when you have the ball, if I do not have those solutions then there are games that are decided by chance”.

Löw used Borussia Dortmund’s elimination at the hands of Red Bull Salzburg as a prime example of his philosophy. Dortmund lost the first leg 2-1, and weren’t able to break Salzburg down in a goalless second leg.

It’s no secret that German football went through significant changes at the turn of the century to remain competitive at international level. It paid off almost four years ago when they were able to lift their fourth World Cup in history.

Germany displayed an exciting and effective style of play based around possession, something that remains true now.

Löw, though, warned German football not to rest on its recent success as other nations are developing and closing the gap.

“We have to improve the game with the ball,” says the coach. “We certainly did a good job in Germany, but that’s not enough anymore, we all have to question each other.”

Bayern Munich will be facing Sevilla in the Champions League quarters, while RB Leipzig were drawn against Marseille in Europa League.