Italy, England, Hungary!

Freshly returned from his inspection trip to Qatar, Hansi Flick was given lots of real hits for the important World Cup countdown in 2022.

The national soccer team will face European champions Italy and the again and again uncomfortable Hungarians in the Nations League a few months before the big tournament showdown in the Persian Gulf.

The highlight in Group 3 of League A, however, is the quick European Championship revenge against England.

In his home office, national coach Flick was able to follow the digital ceremony in the UEFA headquarters in Nyon with satisfaction. “It's great, ideal, an attractive lot. We measure ourselves against the best, ”said the coach. “It's about measuring yourself. The fans are thrilled. These are classics, we want to perform well. ”Italy’s European championship coach Roberto Mancini also spoke of a“ world football classic ”with a view to the games against old rival Germany.

The Spanish ex-professional Gaizka Mendieta lost the DFB-Elf to England and Hungary, the French ex-world champion Robert Pires added Italy with a grin. The hammer group was perfect. The well-known opponents will certainly provide Flick with important World Cup insights during preparation. “Of course we also use these games to get used to the game,” said the national coach before the draw.

The third edition of the once unpopular UEFA competition begins with four international matches from June 2 to 14, 2022. Almost three weeks after the Bundesliga final, Flick can then subject its World Cup candidates to an intensive test run with a competitive nature.

The other two games will take place between September 22nd and 27th, just two months before the World Cup kick-off.

It will be the last international matches before the nomination of the tournament squad for the finals from November 21 to December 18 in the emirate on the Persian Gulf.

Intensive preparation for the World Cup

Since the beginning of the week, Flick had been looking for a World Cup location that met all requirements, together with DFB director Oliver Bierhoff and an association delegation.

The hotel must be in a quiet location, close to the training grounds and in any case beyond any doubt about human rights standards, as Bierhoff and Flick had made clear.

The national coach wants to be able to concentrate as intensively as possible on the sporting issues in the World Cup year.

The three opponents offer all possibilities for this.

The competition will definitely become a European Championship deja vu.

England (0: 2) was the last stop in the last sixteen at this summer's tournament, Hungary (2: 2) in the group stage almost stumbling block.

Germany won the last competitive game against Italy in the quarter-finals on penalties at the 2016 European Championship.

The international season begins for the DFB-Elf with two test games, one of them on March 26th in Sinsheim probably against an African opponent and a few days later away in the Netherlands. Corresponding plans for the Oranje classic were confirmed by Flick shortly after the draw. England is now eliminated as a preferred candidate for the March test.

The Nations League winner will be chosen from among the four group winners on June 18, 2023.

Flick has a lot to make up for with captain Manuel Neuer and his colleagues from the era of his predecessor Joachim Löw.

So far, the DFB selection in the competition has not been particularly successful.

In 2018, in the aftermath of the failure of the World Cup as the bottom of the group, the shameful relegation to the B-League was only avoided by a later reform of the UEFA mode.

In 2020 it was possible to win the group - but then at the end in Seville there was the historic 0: 6 in Spain.