North Carolina: Germany have flown in veteran groundskeeper Sebastian Breuning to water and maintain their World Cup training ground at North Carolina’s Wake Forest University amid high temperatures, German newspaper Bild said in a report.
Breuning, who has been the German soccer association’s (DFB) groundskeeping coordinator since 2022, was seen tending to the heavily watered pitch with local staff after Tuesday’s training session amid hot and humid weather.
FIFA has for the first time mandated three-minute hydration breaks in each half for all 104 matches of the World Cup starting Thursday in the U.S., Mexico and Canada, after soaring temperatures affected last year’s Club World Cup held in the U.S.
“Yes, it needs water. That’s the problem with these temperatures, for drinking and also on the pitch. And that’s being taken care of,” Germany’s national team director Rudi Voeller told Bild.
“The people here are going to incredible lengths. It’s great to see how much help is being given... of course, the pitch can be harder and drier. But the conditions are quite good. We’ve got nothing to complain about.”Germany will kick off their campaign with a Group E match against Curacao on Sunday.
In at the deep end: The World Cup managers short on preparationInternational managers often complain about limited preparation time, so spare a thought for the recently appointed coaches arriving at this World Cup, some mere weeks into the job and often without a single competitive game in charge of their side.
In a footballing world short on sentiment, leading a nation through qualification is no guarantee of being on the bench at the tournament itself, a reality that reshaped several teams’ World Cup preparations.
Carlos Queiroz comes in with the least amount of games with his team, but brings a wealth of experience to the Ghana role.Queiroz, who replaced Otto Addo on April 13, heads into his fifth concutive World Cup. The 73-year-old missed Ghana’s friendly defeat to Mexico in May due to personal reasons, and his sole game in charge was last week’s 1-1 draw with Wales.
Saudi Arabia manager Georgios Donis was appointed 10 days after Queiroz, replacing Herve Renard who took Saudi Arabia to the last World Cup where they beat eventual winners Argentina.
Donis has had three friendlies to gain familiarity with his side, the most recent a 0-0 draw with Senegal.Unlike Queiroz, 74-year-old Miroslav Koubek had zero international experience when his country came calling. Koubek was appointed Czech Republic manager in December following Ivan Hasek’s dismissal after defeat to the Faroe Islands.
Koubek faced a baptism of fire. His first games in charge came in the qualification playoffs, where the Czechs came through penalty shootouts against both Ireland and Denmark.He is unbeaten as Czech boss, winning two recent friendlies against Kosovo and Guatemala ahead of their first World Cup since 2006.
Another man who steered his side through the playoffs is Sweden boss Graham Potter.Potter took over in October and, despite failing to win either of their final qualifying games and finishing bottom of their group, Sweden made the playoffs thanks to the Nations League.
Sweden beat Ukraine and Poland, Potter’s only two wins in charge having lost to Norway and drawn with Greece in recent games.Sweden open against Tunisia who appointed Sabri Lamouchi in January. His four games have all been friendlies, winning the first with Haiti, but losing his most recent two against Austria and Belgium.
Morocco’s Mohamed Ouahbi, appointed in March, has enjoyed a smoother start, going unbeaten in five friendly matches as he prepares a squad with high expectations after reaching the semifinals four years ago.
