As alarm clocks rang on the morning of June 30th, Germany and the Netherlands awoke with a painful realization: their countries were no longer members of European soccer’s elite. Both national teams had exited the World Cup on penalties as the bulk of their inhabitants slept through the European night, Germany’s defeat against Paraguay in Boston being followed about four and a half hours later by a Dutch loss to Morocco in Monterrey. The teams had traveled to North America with dreams of glory; now they were headed home after falling in the Round of 32, forced to watch on as six of their European neighbors reached the quarterfinals or better. For two nations that have played in a combined nine World Cup finals, it was a humiliation.
Eighty-seven days after that twin embarrassment, the Germans will meet the Dutch on Thursday evening in Amsterdam to kick off the 2026-27 UEFA Nations League. Thursday’s match marks the start of a new era, both countries having installed new managers to regain their familiar place as contenders to win major tournaments. On the German touchline, Jürgen Klopp’s tracksuits and baseball caps have replaced Julian Nagelsmann’s oversized t-shirts; the Dutch have swapped Ronald Koeman’s wry stubbornness for the calmness of Xavi Hernández. Klopp and Xavi differ greatly in managerial experience and demeanor, yet they share the same task: stopping their team’s slide down the FIFA rankings while restoring a national playing style that each country feels it has strayed from.
The Dutch and German press were unsparing in their assessments of a disappointing World Cup, each assigning blame to the head coaches. In Dutch broadsheet De Volkskrant, Willem Vissers savaged Koeman’s gameplan against Morocco, writing that “even debutants at the World Cup showed more courage” than Oranje did in their Round of 32 tie. By playing with five defenders and ceding possession to Morocco, Vissers argued, Koeman had violated the gospel of Johan Cruijff, which upholds dominance and ball control as its guiding principles. The Netherlands had lost not just a game but its soccer identity. “The once-distinctive Dutch soccer culture has dissolved in a mush of internationalism,” seethed Vissers.
Philipp Lahm, captain of the German team that won the 2014 World Cup, was equally critical of Nagelsmann’s performance as Germany manager. Lahm felt that Germany had strayed from the foundations of its past successes under the youthful Nagelsmann, whom he accused of changing the lineup and formation too frequently and of not providing players with clearly-defined roles. Lahm’s criticism also reflected a fear that Die Mannschaft was squandering its inheritance and losing what makes it unique as a soccer nation. “Are we France? No, we are Germany,” Lahm wrote for the Guardian. “We have our own culture, our own brand of football. We should reconnect with our identity.”
Vissers’s and Lahm’s words seem to have resonated in federation boardrooms. Koeman and Nagelsmann both resigned under pressure shortly after elimination, and in selecting their successors Germany and the Netherlands sought coaches who would lead them to success by reverting to a semi-mythologized national style of play. Yet it is unclear whether those types of neatly-wrapped national styles still exist in European soccer. Tellingly, while pundits from both countries saw the seepage of foreign influences as to blame for their early exit, each ended up hiring managers best known for their work abroad.
Xavi may refer to himself as a “son of Dutch soccer” due to Cruijff’s influence on him, but the 46-year-old is best remembered for his years commanding the midfield at Barcelona, the club which he returned to coach in 2021 before resigning after two and a half seasons. Though he did win the Spanish league as Barca manager in 2023, Xavi the gaffer remains relatively unproven, two years at Al-Sadd in Qatar his only other experience. It is also unclear how well he knows the Dutch player pool, having only attended his first-ever Eredivisie match– between Ajax and PSV on September 5th– after accepting his new job.
Although Klopp is German and twice won the Bundesliga with Borussia Dortmund, it was his nine-year stint as Liverpool boss that earned him his reputation as one of the global game’s best managers. Klopp became an icon on Merseyside, leading Liverpool to their first league title in three decades and claiming the Champions League in 2019, and in doing so he amended his tactical style away from pure Gegenpressing toward a greater emphasis on possession. At his introductory press conference, Klopp spoke of wanting to play “the German way, very intense.” The catch, though, is that Klopp’s own approach has been internationalized.
The shared Dutch and German quest to recapture their native way of play thus feels somewhat quixotic. It also contrasts with the approach taken by other leading European nations who see change as opening the path to success. England, for instance, hired Thomas Tuchel to play less cautiously and unfasten them from their siege mentality when holding a lead late in tournaments (a mentality Tuchel himself succumbed to in the World Cup semifinal vs Argentina). France have appointed Zinedine Zidane in the hope he will allow their forward line to flourish in the same way Real Madrid’s did under his leadership. Perhaps it is easier for England and France, who have both reached three major-tournament semifinals this decade, to embrace change coming from a position of strength. But it also feels more realistic, an acknowledgement that sticking with one’s traditional style has its limitations.
Klopp and Xavi are also new to international management, which has different nuances to the club game. Running a national team is increasingly centered around the recruitment of dual nationals, an area in which Klopp and Xavi’s predecessors struggled. Ibrahim Maza, Malik Tillman and Kenan Yıldız, three German-born creative players who have shone for their club teams, all played at this summer’s World Cup– but not for Die Mannschaft. Similarly, Dutch-raised Noussair Mazraoui and Anass Salah-Eddine were in the Morocco team that sent the Netherlands home.
The short time international coaches spend with their teams means their ability to implement sophisticated tactical schemes is limited compared with club management. Klopp and Xavi’s legacies might therefore end up being decided by how successful they are in getting homegrown starlets to play for the country they were raised in. Klopp’s overtures have already worked on one highly-rated prospect, Eintracht Frankfurt striker Younes Ebnoutalib having committed his future to Germany over Morocco after talks with the former Liverpool manager. Discussing his choice, Ebnoutalib– who could make his international debut against the Netherlands– said: “[Klopp] is one of the best coaches in the world. And when he calls, you can’t say no.”
Ebnoutalib is not the only new name in the German setup. Klopp was unsentimental in selecting his first squad, leaving out veterans like Deniz Undav and Leroy Sané and calling up an astonishing 14 uncapped players. With Manuel Neuer’s retirement, none of the players who lifted the Jules Rimet trophy at the Maracanã 12 years ago remain active for Germany. Klopp, the newcomer to international soccer, will lead a group of players who have never savored international glory.
Xavi has also refreshed the Dutch squad, granting maiden call-ups to PSV’s Ruben van Bommel and Feyenoord’s Gjivai Zechiël while omitting Memphis Depay, Oranje’s all-time top scorer. One reason the Catalan was hired was his reputation for playing the kids; in his time managing Barcelona, Xavi gave senior debuts to Lamine Yamal and Pau Cubarsí, both of whom helped Spain win the World Cup as teenagers this summer.
Nobody expects the Dutch or the Germans to play like the world champions on Thursday night. But as the old rivals start a new era, both Klopp and Xavi will hope clothing young players in traditional playing styles will help their teams fit back into Europe’s top ranks.
