Under-17 World Cup: Light in German football darkness?

"I told the boys they'd make themselves immortal!" head coach Christian Wück told Sky immediately after Germany's U17 side clinched World Cup glory. "We are Europe and world champions! I'm so grateful to be able to coach this age group. And today was our last game together. Words fail me. It's just an incredible feeling of happiness."

Germany were forced to show a lot of resolve as they clinched a nervy penalty shootout win over France, after being pegged back in the final against their European counterparts having taken a 2-0 lead after 51 minutes.

When Winners Mark Osawe's was given a second yellow card on 69 minutes and Mathis Amougou’s then equalized for the French five minutes from time, it looked like a disappointing end was on the cards.

But, a second successive penalty shootout ended once again in victory for Germany and jubilation for Wück.

"If anyone got to know the character of the team, it was in this game today," he added. "To fight against such opposition, to be behind again in the penalty shoot-out, to always believe in yourself. That's incredible and so everything is perfect. We are absolutely delighted."

That Wück's team have reached this point is not a huge surprise. They had already secured the U17 European Championship title in June, winning the final, also against France, on penalties.

A ray of hope 

In view of the current crisis among Germany's front-line men's and women's senior teams, the youth team's success is a welcome change. The men's and women's national team and the U21 men's team have disappointed across the board recently, with both the men in 2022 and the women in 2023 exiting their respective World Cups at the group stages.

Though only recently appointed as men's coach, Julian Nagelsmann has already come under heavy criticism after recent friendly defeats against Turkey and Austria. The headlines from a long list of shortcomings were along the lines of no plan, no identity, too many tactical instructions for the players to take on board. A home Euros in 2024 means the pressure will not relent.

Semifinal heroes Heide and Brunner

Now the focus is shifting to the U17 players instead, particularly those who fit the hero narrative. Goalkeeper Konstantin Heide, for example, only played in the semifinal against Argentina because regular keeper Max Schmitt was ill.

Heide impressed made a number of strong saves during the game and then saved two penalties before pulling off the heroics again in the win over France, saving the decisive 12th spot kick to make Germany World Cup champions.

Paris Brunner, who scored two goals against Argentina and opening the scoring against France, is also in the spotlight — but not just because of his goals. The 17-year-old, who won the Fritz Walter Medal for outstanding sporting achievements this year, was suspended by his club Borussia Dortmund in October "for disciplinary reasons," and apparently not for the first time.

However, it remains unclear exactly what happened as the club and player have been silent on the matter. In the end, Brunner was pardoned and is now seemingly back on track.

Wück: No lack of young talent

For Wück, players like Brunner and Heide are representative of the fact that Germany — contrary to what is often claimed — does not have a problem developing young players. Talented youngsters are available, but are short of first-team opportunities.

"We have to trust more in German talent again," said Wück, who spoke from experience. He made his first Bundesliga appearance for Nuremberg in 1990, and was the third youngest Bundesliga player in history at the age of 17 years and 133 days.

Wück's players, all born in 2006, are now the same age he was back then. He hopes his proteges will continue their development and get their chance at club level. Perhaps the impression made in this tournament will help them make it to the very top.

However, they are far from the first successful youth team in the history of German football. Despite that, only a handful of players who have won an international title with a German men's youth team have gone on to have a great career in the senior national team, let alone win titles with the seniors. The glorious exception was 2009, when the U17s won a maiden European Championship title and then the U21s also became European champions.

Long road to the top

In addition to goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen, two future world champions — Shkodran Mustafi and Mario Götze — played in the U17s. The U21s, meanwhile, included five players — Manuel Neuer, Benedikt Höwedes, Mats Hummels, Sami Khedira and Mesut Özil — who won the 2014 World Cup title in Brazil alongside Mustafi and Götze. However, there were also many players among those squads who never won a senior international cap.

Furthermore, the U21s of 2009 can't really be compared with the current U17s. Once players reach the U21 setup, they often play in the senior squad of top division clubs. In 2009, for example, Manuel Neuer had already been No. 1 at Schalke for several years, and the other future world champions were also Bundesliga regulars when they won the Euros.

For the current crop, the path to the Bundesliga and the senior Germany team is still long and winding, even if they all play in the youth teams of German clubs in the top two divisions. The only exceptions are goalkeeper Konstantin Heide from SpVgg Unterhaching (third division) and captain Noah Darvich, who moved from SC Freiburg's youth setup to Barcelona's academy in August.

Unknown future

Some of them will likely develop into good Bundesliga professionals. Perhaps one or two of them will even make it into the senior national team. But they may also end up like the majority of their predecessors from 1985, the last time a German U17 team reached a World Cup final.

That team lost the final 2-0 to Nigeria and of the 13 players who played, only three — Marcel Witeczek (410 Bundesliga games), Martin Schneider (379) and Detlev Dammeier (248) — made a lasting impression in Germany's top flight, and none of them played for Germany's senior team.

This article was originally written in German.

Edited by: Jonathan Harding and Kalika Mehta