Germany star Kai Havertz has hit back at Gary Lineker after the England legend brutally criticised his side.
Germany face Paraguay in their World Cup round of 32 match this evening after topping Group E.
However, although they beat minnows Curacao 7-1, they only defeated Ivory Coast with an injury-time winner and were then beaten 2-1 by Ecuador, with Julian Nagelsmann’s side having struggled to convince so far.
And Lineker, who is out at the tournament hosting The Rest is Football podcast show on Netflix, was withering in his assessment of Germany.
In an interview with French outlet L’Equipe, Lineker said: ‘I think this is one of the weakest Germany sides I have ever seen.
‘Germany are living off their past. Just remember that they didn’t even make it out of the group stage at the last two World Cups.’
Gary Lineker described Germany as ‘one of the weakest Germany sides I have ever seen’
Germany star Kai Havertz hit back and insisted he is not bothered by outside criticism
If Germany do beat Paraguay and France defeat Sweden in their own round of 32 match on Tuesday, the two nations will meet in the last-16.
Speaking about that potential tie, Lineker added: ‘France should reach the quarter-finals without any trouble. So I think you can all sleep easy.’
When pressed on these comments at Germany’s pre-match press conference, Havertz insisted he was not bothered by Lineker’s words.
‘Everyone is entitled to their opinion,’ Havertz said. ‘I didn’t even notice it myself. Of course, during a tournament like this, a lot of people start talking about you.
‘But I don’t think anyone in the squad pays much attention to it. We already have plenty of experts in our own country – if people in other countries start as well, then at some point enough is enough.
‘It’s always easy to criticise us from the outside. But it honestly doesn’t interest me at all.’
Julian Nagelsmann’s side have failed to convince at the World Cup despite topping their group
Lineker’s comments are in sharp contrast to his famous words after England lost to West Germany in the 1990 World Cup semi-final.
Lineker had played that day, but the Three Lions were defeated on penalties, after which he said: ‘Football is a simple game. 22 men chase a ball for 90 minutes, and in the end, the Germans always win.’
Meanwhile, Lineker made a one-off guest appearance on ITV’s World Cup coverage earlier this month, but has otherwise been hosting daily editions of The Rest Is Football.
However, despite Netflix paying £14million for the rights to broadcast the podcast, it is only averaging a peak audience of around 140,000, much lower than the BBC’s Football Daily show, which attracts up to 250,000 streams.
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