According to Sport, Klopp's first major decision after becoming Germany's national team coach concerns the goalkeeper position.

Klopp has made several public appearances during this World Cup, first as a commentator and then to confirm that he would replace Julian Nagelsmann as Germany's head coach. He has been out of work since leaving Liverpool at the end of the 2023-24 season and, after a brief stint as Red Bull Group's Global Head of Football, has now decided to return to coaching.

The Stuttgart-born coach has stated multiple times that he would only return for a truly attractive project. Coaching the German national team fits all the criteria. He is well aware that German football needs a complete overhaul, not only within the senior national team but also across youth development systems at all levels.

The next few years are crucial for the German team. The goal is to avoid wasting this generation of extremely talented players while also maximizing the final peak years of the existing top players. Klopp's first major test will be the 2028 European Championship, followed by the 2030 World Cup, but he must start making critical decisions now.

His first choice is the goalkeeper. Although Manuel Neuer had previously retired from the national team, he returned to participate in the 2026 World Cup. However, now that he is 40 years old, it is almost impossible for him to continue playing for Germany in the new cycle. Therefore, several candidate goalkeepers have come under consideration.

German football legend Lothar Matthäus believes Hoffenheim goalkeeper Oliver Baumann is a good choice because "he has almost never made a mistake in the national team." However, Baumann is already 36, and Matthäus also admitted that the German team's current situation is unusual.

"We haven't had an undisputed number one goalkeeper like we did for the past 40 to 50 years in a long time," Matthäus said during a show. He mentioned world-class goalkeepers such as Sepp Maier, Oliver Kahn, and Manuel Neuer, suggesting that now might be the time to bet on a young goalkeeper who can handle the pressure, especially if 34-year-old Marc-André Ter Stegen is also out of the running.

Urbig is currently one of the most promising young goalkeepers in German football. The Bayern goalkeeper is also considered a candidate to become the future starting goalkeeper at the Allianz Arena. "Urbig will play more minutes next season than last season," Matthäus stated.

But he also admitted his doubts: "I don't remember any top footballing nation having a national team's starting goalkeeper who was a club's second-choice keeper." There are many problems and many choices, and Klopp is well aware that the goalkeeper position is fundamental to competing for major championships.

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