“You either die a hero, or you live long enough to see yourself become the villain,” One wonders how many times a day Joachim Löw plays the infamous Harvey Dent line from The Dark Knight inside his head.
Löw’s decline as the German national team coach wasn’t as sharp as Dent’s descent into madness in the movie. Yet, like the tragic Dent, Löw finds his public image split into two.
The White Knight who led Germany in their finest hour this century. The chaotic mess, who decided the futures of his best players as if through the toss of a coin.
Now, what does that make Hansi Flick?
Just the man Germany needs, perhaps. Flick’s popularity has grown tenfold within the last two years.
He arrives in the national team camp, not as Löw’s former assistant, brought in to provide a sense of continuity, but as a Champions League and two-times Bundesliga winner, and one of the most well-regarded coaches in Europe.
Germany’s Euro exit wasn’t surprising. Slowly and steadily, Die Mannschaft had declined to a state where it no longer resembled the team that won the World Cup in 2014.
Flick comes into the fold when Germany is in transition, and yet, has the talent to potentially win the highest honors in the coming years. What lies ahead for them?