Why Hansi Flick was given a second chance by Germany

According to Hans-Joachim Watzke, the outcome of talks between Hansi Flick and German FA (DFB) bosses was settled well before the national team manager presented the reasons for Germany's World Cup failure on Wednesday afternoon.

“There was no question of going separate ways with Hansi Flick being on the agenda, we didn't think about that for one second,” DFB vice president Watzke told reporters the next day.

That wasn't the whole truth. The federation had braced themselves for the possibility that Flick might walk out of his own volition after the 57-year-old had released a remarkably emotional statement about the departure of national team director Oliver Bierhoff, his biggest ally.

Oliver Bierhoff (left, with Bernd Neuendorf, DFB president), was a close ally of Hansi Flick (Photo: Alexander Hassenstein/Getty Images)

“At this moment, my coaching staff and I find it hard to imagine how the void left by Oliver's exit can be filled on a professional and human level,” Flick had said, setting off alarm bells. The former Bayern Munich midfielder has a history of stepping down from positions if he doesn't feel sufficiently backed. Only last spring, he left the German champions after falling out with sporting director Hasan Salihamidzic.

As it turned out, Flick's statement was more of a love letter to the man who had been made the scapegoat for the group exit in Qatar than an expression of real anger. Any initial frustrations he might have harboured over the DFB board's role in Bierhoff's demission were tempered by the realisation that the Euro 96 hero had offered up his own resignation before anyone had seriously pushed him. Bierhoff did his friend one last favour in that respect. By making himself the sacrificial lamb the public had demanded, he vastly reduced the pressure on Flick to walk as well.

The DFB was not sure how Flick felt until Wednesday, however, which is why Thomas Tuchel was sounded out as a contingency (sources say neither side was particularly enthusiastic about the prospect). Jurgen Klopp's representatives were not contacted because German FA officials knew the answer would have been negative. If Liverpool's coach had been available, Watzke and DFB president Bernd Neuendorf might have pushed Flick a lot harder.

But for all the mistakes he made in Qatar, the German FA was, from the outset, prepared to give him the benefit of the doubt. He is still seen as the best man for the job at this point. Large sections of the squad continue to back him and there is a belief at the DFB headquarters in Frankfurt that Germany's troubles came down to details rather than wholesale deficiencies which warranted a huge overhaul of methods.

While there have been some misgivings about the relaxed atmosphere at the team's remote Zulal base camp, where wives, girlfriends and families visited a few times, as well as the unproductive training camp in Oman, Flick made a convincing argument that these issues were ultimately less important than Germany creating (and missing) enough chances to win at least two if not all three games comfortably.

There are other considerations, of course, namely the side's defensive problems and chronic lack of control, but these are seen as not insurmountable to a successful Euro 2024 campaign.

Flick will have to learn some coaching lessons, too. His over-reliance on Bayern Munich players and loyalty to Thomas Muller, in particular, hampered the team and brought his judgment into question.

Hansi Flick was too reliant on players such as Thomas Muller (left) (Photo: Stuart Franklin/Getty Images

Unlike a club manager, who needs to keep the dressing room happy over the course of a season, he should be a lot more decisive; much more Flick than Hansi, if you will. He understands now that there are no second chances in a big competition.

Just as importantly, he will have to learn to function in a less harmonious environment. Whoever the DFB installs as Bierhoff's successor, Flick can expect more scrutiny and criticism from close quarters than ever before. The federation hopes that a set-up offering more challenges and constructive discourse will bring out the best in the national coach and the team but Flick, as mentioned before, has often walked away from confrontation. The next man alongside him will therefore have to work out carefully how much input Flick will accept before feeling undermined.

Whether the new leadership team will get that balance right will be just as relevant as him finding more tactical cohesion on the pitch. The last thing German football needs heading towards a tournament that urgently needs to rekindle public enthusiasm for the national team is internal disagreements and bad vibes behind the scenes.