Former Germany stars Lukas Podolski and Michael Ballack have hammered Joachim Low’s side after they crashed out of Euro 2020 with defeat to England.
Germany were beaten 2-0 at Wembley Stadium on Tuesday, exiting the tournament at the last-16 stage.
Ballack and Podolski, who between them boast over 200 senior caps for Germany, were working as pundits on the game and did not hold back with their criticism.
“There was a lack of ambition, a lack of fighting spirit,” Podolski told BILD’s podcast.
“It all seems so bleak when you see the faces of the players; there’s nothing that moves.
“A fire could break out in the stadium, and they would stay on the pitch. We’re missing the absolute will to score a goal.”
Ballack was just as scathing of Germany’s performance, criticising their style of play as goals from Harry Kane and Raheem Sterling consigned them to a painful defeat.
“[It was] sobering, unconscious,” Ballack stated on MagentaTV.
“The first half showed that we had no answers, that we had withdrawn unnecessarily. I don’t understand why he waited so long to make his substitutions.”
