** Germany boss fully focused on title defence

** "Holding the Trophy in my hands before the 2014 World Cup brought us luck"

“That night in Rio played out like a film, and memories of individual moments only came back to me later. What will always stay with me is the way our team became a unit and how much I enjoyed working with each and every one of our players.”

Germany coach Joachim Low reflected on their 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil™ triumph during his recent visit to the FIFA World Football Museum. Low made the visit to Zurich along with DFB President Reinhard Grindel to take a stroll through the history of the beautiful game.

Clad in one of his trademark black roll-neck sweaters, the Germany boss relived every goal in his team’s 7-1 semi-final victory over hosts Brazil before reacquainting himself with the World Cup Trophy. When asked whether getting this close to the ultimate footballing accolade so near to the next tournament could prove to be a bad omen, he replied: “Holding the Trophy in my hands before the 2014 World Cup brought us luck.”

With six months to go until the World Cup in Russia, Low seemed relaxed yet focused during his visit to the Museum. “I don’t feel stressed during the World Cup,” he explained. “These matches are special moments for me as a coach, so I look forward to them.” The 57-year-old only ever processes pressure after a tournament, and Brazil was no exception. “We spent eight weeks working towards one goal,” he said. “There was great euphoria at the end of it all, but after returning home I thought, ‘What do I do now?’ I was awake at night rerunning parts of the tournament in my head.”

Despite this period of soul searching, the architect of Germany’s 2014 triumph quickly began looking to the future again. He started working with his team towards the next success by giving a new crop of young players vital international experience at the FIFA Confederations Cup 2017. Although Low leaves nothing to chance when it comes to training and match preparation, using scientific data to ensure that Germany are physically and tactically prepared for every challenge, he is well aware that “at some stage we’ll reach our limits in these areas. The players’ cognitive skills and mental state will become increasingly important in the future, so that’s something we need to address at our youth development centres.”

Nevertheless, all that matters to Low right now is the defence of Germany’s title – although he preferred to phrase this objective a little differently by declaring: “We want to lift the Trophy again.” He believes the potential use of Video Assistant Referees (VARs) is a positive step and advocates the use of video evidence. “It’s important to give new technology a chance,” he said. “Video Assistant Referees are making football fairer.”

Low concluded his tour of the Museum by adding his name to the Wall of Champions. In about six months' time, world football will find out if his lucky charm works a second time around.