By Oliver Trust
BERLIN, Nov. 17 (Xinhua) -- The fact that the 2014 World Champion apparently has lost contact to the world's best is no catastrophe but a significant turning point in German football.
Other football powers found themselves in similar critical situations and solved their problems successfully: France after 2002, Spain after 2014 and England.
Now it is on Germany to face future challenges such as to rejuvenate its squad and renew its education contents.
After the Netherlands beat 2018 World Champions France in the newly formed Nations League the side of German national coach Joachim Loew have to accept relegation to League B.
Despite the questionable value of the Nations League Germany's football managers can't ignore the downtrend. The worst goal record in the association's history (0.82 goals per game in average) and six defeats in 2018 (more than ever in 12 months before) remain in the books.
Yes, 2014 World Champion coach Loew might have ignored the fact that many of his best performers had already passed their peak. But by appointing new faces such as Serge Gnabry, Leroy Sane, Timo Werner, and Niklas Suele the 58-year-old proved to have read the signs correctly.
It took Loew a while to get to that conclusion. The image of German football seems battered. But as great sportsmen know: You can fall down, but the important thing is to get back up again.
Being relegated to group B delivers the chance to increase efforts. The game against the old rival Netherlands this Monday gives the opportunity to continue shaping a new era.
Loew is forced to increase the team's speed and tactical variety.
But not only Loew is to blame. German football, in general, has missed international required developments. It took the painful experience of an early group exit at the 2018 World Cup in Russia to open up for a turnaround.
The contents of the country's talent education needs to be updated. For too long individualism such as dribbling qualities, speed skills, and tactical abilities have been neglected.
Meanwhile, clubs have improved and adopted their education requirements as it seems without an alternative to produce dynamic football playing successors.
Loew called relegation to group B "not the end of the world" and said the team will now concentrate on a happy end of the unsatisfying year 2018 by beating the Netherlands in Gelsenkirchen. From a competitive point of view, the duel against the neighboring country might not be more than a friendly.
But Germany shouldn't wait too long in trying to gain back their fans' hearts. The relationship between team and supporters has suffered. Several of the team's latest games haven't been sold out. To lose the support of the fans seems as critical as to lose the contact to the highest level on the pitch.
