Germany coach Julian Nagelsmann apologized to Stuttgart’s Denis Undav for his “unfortunate” comments about the Stuttgart star after Germany’s friendly against Ghana during the March international break.
Undav, who is enjoying the best season of his career, came on as a substitute against Ghana and scored the winning goal for Germany. Nagelsmann responded with controversial remarks about the player’s right to start.
The former Bayern Munich coach said at the time that Undav was effective as a substitute in the final minutes against tired defenses, but might find it difficult to maintain the same impact if he started the match.
These comments sparked a wave of criticism against the German coach, who indicated that his wife had urged him to contact the 29-year-old and apologize for his words.
Nagelsmann said, “I spoke to Undav on the phone and told him: ‘That wasn’t right of me. I acted foolishly. I’m sorry.'” He added, “Fortunately, the player accepted it, and everything is fine between us now. I was upset at the time because of the repeated questions about the same issue.”
He concluded, “My wife played a role in this. She’s a good role model and tells me when I’m not behaving well. She advised me to contact Undav and apologize.”
It’s worth noting that Undav has scored 18 goals in the Bundesliga this season, leading Stuttgart to third place and putting them on the verge of qualifying for the Champions League for the second time in the last decade next season.
