Germany do battle at the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar desperate to redeem themselves.
The 2014 World Cup winners failed to get out of their group in Russia four years ago, losing two of their games to be sent home early.
Germany had previously made at least the semifinals of each World Cup since 2002, highlighting just how much they failed to live up to expectations last time around.
There was, eventually, a price to pay, too. Joachim Low had managed Germany at three straight World Cups but opted to step aside in 2021 when their form continued to slump.
That opened the door for his former assistant Hansi Flick to take charge, and the ex-Bayern Munich man now has the task of leading them to glory in the Middle East.
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Who is Hansi Flick?
Flick is a former German footballer, who played professionally as a midfielder for 17 years.
While he never represented Germany at senior level, he did play twice for their Under-18s and enjoyed plenty of club success, winning four Bundesliga titles with Bayern Munich.
Towards the end of his playing career, Flick became player-manager of Victoria Bammental, before hanging up his boots in 2000.
Flick then focused fully on coaching and was put in charge of current Bundesliga side Hoffenheim. The club were stranded in Germany’s fifth division at the time, which Flick won in his first season at the helm.
After failing to get them promoted again across four attempts, the former midfielder was sacked in 2005 and worked briefly as an assistant coach for Red Bull Salzburg.
The German national team then came calling after the 2006 World Cup, with Flick serving as an assistant to Low for eight years before becoming the sporting director of the German Football Association (DFB).
In July 2019, Flick got back into coaching and was appointed an assistant coach to Niko Kovac at Bayern Munich. Just a few months later, Flick became interim manager after Kovac’s departure.
Following a promising start, the club opted to keep Flick in charge for the remainder of that season before handing him a three-year deal in April 2020.
Flick won the Bundesliga and UEFA Champions League in his first season with Bayern, as he proved his credentials in the top job.
Despite achieving more league success in 2020/21, Flick opted to leave the club at the end of the season to become Germany’s new manager.
Hansi Flick tactics and style of play
Since becoming a manager, Flick has enjoyed enormous success by deploying a 4-2-3-1 formation.
He used that shape for most of his Bayern Munich reign, and has also stuck with the formation predominantly so far for Germany.
Pressing and counter-attacks are a big part of Flick’s style of play, with Bayern having been particularly ruthless in winning back the ball and quickly making their opponents pay in the final third during his tenure.
In possession, full-backs in Flick’s sides generally provide a real attacking outlet, with central midfielders providing defensive cover.
Defensively, Flick likes to use a high backline which does leave Germany vulnerable on the break but means they can trap opposition teams in their own half.
Flick’s sides in his career to date have averaged more than two goals per game, highlighting his attacking mindset.
Hansi Flick salary, contract with Germany
Flick signed a three-year deal with Germany when he was appointed manager in August 2021. His current contract with the national team runs until July 31, 2024 which will come just after Euro 2024 in Germany.
According to Finance Football, Flick will be the highest-paid manager at the 2022 World Cup and he earns an annual salary of €6.5 million ($6.38m).
Hansi Flick record as manager
Flick has enjoyed enormous success as a manager in recent years, but his early tenures weren’t quite so perfect.
Official stats for his time with Victoria Bammental are hard to come by, but it appears he won just over a third of games in charge of the club.
Flick achieved a better win-loss ratio with Hoffenhem, claiming victory in 88 of his 195 matches, before losing just eight times across 86 matches with Bayern Munich.
With Germany, Flick won his first eight games and suffered his first defeat with the team against Hungary in September’s last UEFA international window before the World Cup, as well as seeing his team come from behind to draw 3-3 with England.
| Club | Games | Wins | Draws | Losses |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hoffenheim | 195 | 88 | 46 | 61 |
| Bayern Munich | 86 | 70 | 8 | 8 |
| Germany | 16 | 10 | 5 | 1 |
Stats via Transfermarkt and correct as of win against Oman on November 16.
Hansi Flick trophies won
As a player:
- Bundesliga: 1985/86, 1986/87, 1988/89, 1989/90
- DFB-Pokal: 1985/86
- DFB-Supercup: 1987
As a manager:
- Bundesliga: 2019/20, 2020/21
- DFB-Pokal: 2019/20
- DFL-Supercup: 2020
- UEFA Champions League: 2019/20
- UEFA Super Cup: 2020
- FIFA Club World Cup: 2020
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