• Manager absolved of blame for 2-1 defeat by Italy
• 'You have done a superb job; we are happy to have you'
Germany's football association has given the manager Joachim Löw a vote of confidence despite the nation's 2-1 semi-final defeat by Italy on Thursday night.
Wolfgang Niersbach, the DFB president, addressed Löw on Friday morning, telling him that he should not reproach himself after a run of 15 successive victories came to an end.
"Joachim, you have done a superb job and we are extremely happy to have you as our coach," said Niersbach at the German team hotel. "The path of this team is long from over … it is a young team overflowing with talent."
Löw said his side will learn from their experiences in Poland and Ukraine and will grow stronger in tournaments to come. "There is absolutely no reason to question everything now," said Löw. "We were the youngest team in the tournament. We won all our games in a tough group. The team will stomach this defeat as well and continue to develop.
The 52-year-old added: "Clearly we are all disappointed but the team has showed soul and for us, overall, it was a good tournament."
The Italy forward Mario Balotelli scored twice to shelve German hopes of a tournament win for at least another two years until the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.
"There were several young players who came into the team at the Euro like Marco Reus. Others like Mario Götze also have great prospects. There will be no major personnel overhaul. We have after all a very young team," said Löw. "Sure there is disappointment but everyone will rediscover their motivation and will set new goals." Read More
انسخ الكود التالى و ضعه فى موقعك او مدونتك.
