Julian Nagelsmann wants to keep German train on the move after big win

HOUSTON – Julian Nagelsmann said Germany’s 7-1 win against World Cup debutants Curacao on June 14 will grow his charges’ self-belief as they seek a fifth title.

Since lifting the World Cup for the fourth time in their history 12 years ago in Brazil, Germany have struggled on football’s biggest stage and failed to progress beyond the group stage at the last two editions.

“We really need this self-confidence. I think it grew, it was definitely there but it grew,” Nagelsmann said after Germany thrashed Curacao in Houston to record their first opening-match win at a World Cup since 2014.

Stiffer tests against Ecuador and Ivory Coast lie in wait for the Germans in Group E, but the coach said that his side’s “intensity” against Curacao boded well for the rest of the competition.

“I’m very satisfied with us scoring seven goals and our performance for the most part,” the 38-year-old said. “A winning start is always important and we’re glad we managed it.

“We played with the right intensity. I think we can have a good tournament.”

In Houston, an early German goal by Felix Nmecha was cancelled out by a deflected strike from Livano Comenencia for the team from the tiny Caribbean nation.

However, Nico Schlotterbeck, Kai Havertz with a double, Jamal Musiala, Nathaniel Brown and Deniz Undav scored to put to bed any possibility of one of the greatest upsets in World Cup history.

Nagelsmann added that his side dealt well with the pressure of being overwhelming favourites against Curacao.

“The team was not nervous,” he said. “When you write it down Curacao had easier conditions, I think we do have high quality, one team has high expectation and the other does not. And that is a bit tricky.

“After the game, there was a song (from the German fans) called ‘the train has no brakes’. We will try to do that, to keep going and going in this tournament,” he added.

Curacao’s World Cup debut may have ended in a reality check but it “is nothing to be ashamed of”, said their coach Dick Advocaat.

“It is not embarrassing to lose like that against such a team,” said the Dutchman at the post-match press conference. “This team (Germany) is worth 850 million and Curacao, 25.”

Curacao, the smallest nation by population ever to qualify for the tournament, had hoped to pull off a giant-killing exploit “but it was not to be”, said the coach.

“They were simply too strong and we gave away too many easy goals,” lamented Advocaat, who was also present at the previous World Cup hosted in the US, 32 years ago, when he was in charge of the Netherlands.

In the other Group E match, coach Emerse Fae said Ivory Coast’s 1-0 victory over Ecuador showed his young side’s World Cup ambitions are genuine, after substitute Amad Diallo’s 90th-minute winner secured a winning start to their campaign.

The Ivorians have impressed since booking their place at the Finals in the United States, Canada and Mexico, following comfortable warmup wins over South Korea and Scotland in March and a 2-1 victory away to France last week.

Fae’s youthful attack, including highly rated 19-year-old winger Yan Diomande, was tested by an experienced Ecuadorean defence featuring Paris Saint-Germain’s Willian Pacho and Arsenal’s Piero Hincapie, shielded by Chelsea midfielder Moises Caicedo.

“We came here with ambitions, with high hopes,” Fae told reporters. “We don’t want to just have visited the US and have to go back, so everything is going well for now.” AFP, REUTERS