Munich (Germany) (AFP)

Modern but devilishly conservative, brilliant but stubborn, Joachim Löw, the German coach, leaves office after fifteen years on an elimination Tuesday in the eighth-finals of the Euro against England (2-0), leaving the image of 'a man who may not have known how to see his decline coming.

His strength, and his Achilles heel, were in a formula, launched by one of his close collaborators during the disastrous World Cup in Russia: "Jogi (pronounced" Yogi ") sees himself as a world champion trainer and lives in his own world ".

History will remember his 2014 world title in Brazil, which brought him to the pinnacle of fame in his country, but also the poor record of his end of reign, after the humiliating elimination in the first round in the 2018 World Cup. in Russia.

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He gives way to his former assistant Hansi Flick, who made a name for himself by winning a historic Champions League-Cup-Championship treble with Bayern Munich in 2020.

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For a long time, the 61-year-old coach was no longer unanimous in his country.

The old glories of German football, often hard-toothed, have repeatedly called for his resignation over the past three years.

In vain.

Convinced that he was on the right track, Löw held on.

In his defense, the experts will note that he managed to come out second in the most difficult group of this tournament - behind France and in front of Portugal - but that England at home in the round of 16 was not a gift.

- Germany in distress -

After a series of mediocre performances in the fall of 2020, and as public opinion raged against him, this Swabian - who always kept the strong accent of his province - had responded with a detachment that ended up resembling to arrogance: "I'm above it all."

An unfortunate sentence, which contributed to the disenchantment of the fans.

During this Euro, his star briefly shone.

Despite the defeat (1-0), the team showed an attractive face against France, and the 4-2 victory against Portugal made believe in a lasting revival.

But England, solid and diligent, won on two goals late in the match and brought it back to reality.

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The man, with immense ambitions hidden behind a discourse steeped in humanist values, has slowly reached the highest level.

Attacking fairly unspecified during his playing career, he opened his coaching record with a German Cup with Stuttgart (1997), then a Cup final lost the following year.

After a stint at Fenerbahçe, he became Austrian champion 2002 with Innsbrück.

It was then that Jürgen Klinsmann, met during training, thought of him in the summer of 2004 to become his assistant at the head of a German team in distress, after an elimination in the first round of the Euro -2004, two years from "his" World Cup.

- Glamorous icon -

Together, but well helped by the emergence of a golden generation, they will begin a historic change in the German game philosophy: the cult of physical power is followed by obsession with tactics, and the development of fine players. and intelligent.

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Appointed coach in 2006, after the World Cup in Germany, Löw will be a pioneer in the use of statistics and computers, both to manage the physical form of his players and to analyze the game.

He leads the team in the last four of the following five tournaments: from Euro-2008 to Euro-2016, culminating in the supreme title in 2014 in Brazil (1-0 victory in the final against the 'Argentina).

His masterpiece will forever be the 7-1 victory over Brazil in the semi-final on July 8, 2014.

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This was the time when Löw became a glamorous icon: he appeared in cosmetic advertisements, the celebrity press dissected his studied clothing, his blue V-neck sweater (Mondial-2010), then his fitted shirt ( Mondial-2014) are becoming so popular that stores are sold out.

But the World Cup-2014 will remain his only major title (the other being the Confederations Cup 2017).

Failing to have an XXL record, "Jogi" Löw, will still occupy a place in the book of records, for having led the Mannschaft for 198 matches.

A brand that is likely to last a very long time, at least fifteen years.

© 2021 AFP