Kimmich’s Germany place is safe, Klopp says amid midfield debate

Yurgen Klopp has rejected suggestions that Joshua Kimmich’s position in Germany’s midfield is under threat, calling the debate “absolute disrespect” following the player’s absence from Bayern Munich’s Champions League match against Arsenal.

Kimmich missed Wednesday’s 2-2 draw after the death of his father. Speaking during DAZN’s analysis of the game, Klopp defended the Bayern Munich midfielder while discussing the partnership between Aleksandar Pavlovic and Tom Bischof.

“Pavlovic and Bischof are wonderful partners and can play together extremely well,” said Klopp, who is Germany’s manager.

“But I think talking about this now is absolute disrespect. We cannot have this discussion without it also becoming a debate about Kimmich. Joshua has other things to deal with today.”

Klopp, who returned to the subject later in the programme, said Kimmich remained an important part of his plans for Germany.

“Joshua is an exceptional midfielder and he will always have a place in our team,” Klopp said. “This is a discussion that only happens in this country, where people say that if a key player does not start one match, they will never play again. It is really crazy.”

He added that successful teams needed depth in midfield rather than relying on a single preferred combination.

“A good team needs more than one good midfielder,” Klopp said. “Ideally, you have four, five or six good midfielders so that you can play football in a certain way.”

Bischof was also asked after Bayern Munich’s match against Arsenal whether he and Pavlovic could become the club’s long-term holding midfield partnership.

“I really enjoy playing with Pavlo,” Bischof said. “But we all know Jo’s [Kimmich’s] value. In the end, Vincent Kompany decides who plays.”

The young midfielder said his immediate priority was simply to take advantage of opportunities on the pitch.

“I am just happy whenever I am on the field and get playing time,” he added. “We will see what the future has in store for us.”