Nagelsmann explains Germany World Cup omissions of El Mala, Bischof and Ginter | OneFootball

Despite some reports suggesting he would be nominated for the World Cup, 1. FC Köln's Said El Mala was left out of the 26-man squad announced by head coach Julian Nagelsmann on Thursday.

Explaining the decision, Julian Nagelsmann said the 19-year-old’s “future will come”, but that he ultimately opted for Borussia Dortmund's Maximilian Beier instead.

“Said reacted very well and played a strong second half of the season. He fits very well into Köln's style of play. We have to see whether he fits into our tactical approach. If you look at his heat map, he operates very close to the goal,” Nagelsmann explained.

“For counter-attacks, we have Maximilian Beier, who has had a great season – with a huge amount of hard work and an excellent mentality.”'

Freiburg centre-back Matthias Ginter and Bayern Munich midfielder Tom Bischof were also in contention, but ultimately missed out on selection.

“Freiburg’s Europa League season is highly commendable, even more so the 4-1 win against Leipzig (on Matchday 34),” Nagelsmann said regarding Ginter.

“Of course, it’s not an easy conversation. From a sporting point of view, he has little to reproach himself for. He has never been part of my squads over the past three years. You can criticise me for that. But we always had our reasons.

“Regarding Tom (Bischof), there is strong competition in his position. I think the appearances he had were good, but he didn’t play in many key matches. I told him that he was very close to being selected. I have a high opinion of him," the Germany coach added.