Sami Khedira wants Joachim Low to continue as head coach of Germany, insisting responsibility for the team's World Cup failure rests "100 per cent" on the shoulders of the players.
The Juventus midfielder credited Low with bringing through a generation of talented young players after Germany's World Cup success in 2014 and said the current squad is determined to make amends for a poor performance in Russia.
Germany suffered defeats to Mexico and South Korea on its way to being knocked out of the World Cup in the opening round for the first time since 1938, leaving Low – who is contracted until 2022 – facing an uncertain future.
Khedira was quick to defend the 58-year-old when asked whether he should continue to lead the team, saying: "Definitely, he can and should!
Taking responsibility
"Whether he wants it is his decision, but he has done a great job for years, bringing young players to the team. I wish Jogi would continue."
Khedira told Bild: "We players take 100 per cent of this embarrassment and ambition to make it right.
"After such defeats one returns stronger and more purposeful."
The 31-year-old admitted a media storm around Mesut Ozil and Ilkay Gundogan's public appearance with Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan undermined Germany's preparations for the tournament.
"That was a huge topic and was underestimated," he said.
"I'm not a crisis manager who says how to deal with it exactly, but the topic was not kept quiet.
"But I do not want that to be an excuse for our departure."
Khedira added that he was contemplating his own future at international level, saying: "I do not want to make such a decision out of emotion, nor do I want to be dependent on the two [World Cup defeats].
"It is not that after two games suddenly everything is bad, if four weeks ago, everything was still good.
"I will speak with confidants, also with Jogi Low. And then we will continue watching."
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