German said O’Neill’s approach ‘isn’t easy on the eyes’
Three teams in Group A level on six points
The Germany manager, Julian Nagelsmann, has said he is “sorry” if Northern Ireland felt his comments about their style of play were disrespectful.
Nagelsmann caused a stir after Germany’s 3-1 World Cup qualifying win over Northern Ireland in Cologne last month when he said Michael O’Neill’s side play “a lot of long balls” with an approach that “isn’t particularly easy on the eyes”.
The topic has returned to the fore ahead of Monday’s Group A rematch in Belfast, with O’Neill responding by pointing to the number of times Germany pumped the ball long themselves in Cologne and saying it was not his job to worry about what his opponents may think.
