'Typical Jurgen' - Germany legend reiterates Klopp criticism despite ex-Liverpool coach's public apology

Matthaus has expressed his surprise and disappointment at the timing of comments made by Klopp and Thomas Muller just 48 hours before Germany’s World Cup opener. The pair faced criticism from Matthaus last week when they suggested Deniz Undav should start ahead of Jamal Musiala against Curacao on Sunday.

The legendary former captain suggested that both men would have been furious had they been subjected to similar external pressure during their own careers.

Writing in his column for Sky Germany, Matthaus said: "I was surprised by the statements made by Jurgen Klopp and Thomas Muller two days before the Curacao game. Jurgen has been a coach long enough and might come back one day; Thomas is still an active player. Neither of them would have liked it if someone had intervened from the outside. It was not the right time, and they were the wrong words."

Musiala got the nod to start in Germany's World Cup campaign, but the controversy went further during MagentaTV’s build-up to the game when pundit Klopp remarked alongside Muller: “Luckily, Julian Nagelsmann is still picking the team.”

However, given the persistent links between Klopp and the national team job, viewers and German legend Matthaus slammed the "still" comment as unprofessional pressure on Nagelsmann. Muller further fuelled the fire by teasing Klopp about forgetting it was only June – subtly referencing September, the month analysts predict Klopp could actually take the reins.

Following Germany’s emphatic 7-1 victory, Klopp quickly took to the airwaves to defuse the tension and address Nagelsmann directly. "I’ve already found the most hated word of the year: 'Still'," Klopp explained, admitting he wanted to punch himself in the face for the casual slip of the tongue.

Despite Klopp's live-on-air apology to Nagelsmann, Matthaus was not entirely moved by the gesture, suggesting that such a seasoned professional should have known better.

"Klopp apologised to Nagelsmann on Sunday after the game and said even at 59, I'm still stupid. That's typical Jurgen, that he throws out such phrases because he sees that he made a mistake," Matthaus noted. "He apologised; that was the minimum. But something like that shouldn't have happened to him in the first place; it was very unthinking. There is a lot of laughing and joking at MagentaTV, so we may have to prepare ourselves for more sayings from Jurgen and Thomas."

The legendary midfielder warned that the upcoming fixtures in North America will provide a much sterner test for Nagelsmann’s side. With Ivory Coast looming, Matthaus pointed out that tactical flexibility will be key to maintaining the momentum built in the opening fixture.

“Ivory Coast is a different calibre than Curacao," he said. "Yan Diomande played on the right in the 1-0 win against Ecuador, but he can also play on the left. There he would have speed advantages against Joshua Kimmich that he wouldn't have on the right against Brown. We can cite criticism when a player plays badly, but we should think about how we can play our part in supporting the team so that we stand together as football Germany.”

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