Germany head coach Joachim Loew has said that he is focused on qualifying for the 2020 European Championship after the former World Cup champions’ failure to impress in the newly-formed Nations League. Germany are already out of contention for the playoffs after experiencing three winless games in their group and they are facing the prospect of being relegated to League B with a two-point deficit to the Netherlands.

Speaking in a news conference, Loew admitted that the team remain keen on avoiding relegation but the result no longer lies on their hands. He added that the focus should hereafter lie on building a team for Euro 2020 where he is likely to make notable changes to the current squad, he said: “Obviously we want to do all we can to stay in League A, but it’s not in our hands anymore. We’re looking at more than just the Nations League. EURO 2020 is our next main aim. Until then, we want to have a powerful team on the pitch once again.

“To this end, the qualifying games for EURO 2020 are obviously important for us, whether we’re playing in League A or League B. I’m quite sure that they’ll be a lot of changes before 2020, but they’ll be well-planned and we won’t do anything hasty. There’s no reason to do that. Not everyone who is playing currently will be on the pitch at EURO 2020 in two years’ time.”

Germany endured a difficult World Cup where they managed just one win before their disappointing group stage exit and they have since experienced a downslide without a single competitive victory. They have however managed a single triumph in the friendly matches after edging out Peru by a close 2-1 scoreline in September.

Loew’s team are scheduled to face Russia in an international friendly on Thursday and shortly after, they are set to entertain Holland in a game which may potentially decide their relegation fate with respect to the Nations League. Holland currently have a two-point advantage in the pursuit of the second position and they could seal Germany’s relegation before facing them, should they get the better of France.