Mertesacker’s Italy jab meets ‘karma’ as Germany exits World Cup

Former Arsenal and Werder Bremen defender Per Mertesacker attracted ire in Italy after stating the Azzurri “don’t deserve to be talked about” and are no longer world‑class. The backlash arrived just days after Germany’s surprise elimination from the 2026 World Cup, where they fell to Paraguay on penalties in the round of 32.

Mertesacker made the remarks during a ZDF broadcast alongside former teammate Christoph Kramer. When asked about Italy’s absence from the upcoming tournament, Mertesacker replied, “Absolutely not, they don’t deserve to be talked about,” before adding that the current squad requires “searching long and hard to find a world‑class player.”

Italian journalist Luigi Garlando of La dello Sport labelled the comments “poor” and “naive” in a column following Germany’s exit. He recalled 2006 German newspaper headlines that described Italy as “parasites” and “slimy,” even publishing mock photos of the Italians training on slices of pizza.

The controversy resurfaces as the 20th anniversary of Italy’s 2‑0 extra‑time win over Germany in the 2006 World Cup semi‑final approaches on July 4. That match was decided by Fabio Grosso in the 199th minute and Alessandro Del Piero in the 121st minute.

Germany’s 2026 World Cup campaign ended with a penalty shoot‑out defeat to Paraguay in the round of 32. The defeat was described as a surprise elimination.

Garlando proposed a joint pizza party for Germans and Italians to mark the July 4 anniversary. He noted that the same date also hosts the Paraguay‑France round of 16 clash, a match Germany would have reached had they not lost in the previous round.

Earlier, photographs captured Mertesacker and Kramer reacting before Germany’s Euro 2024 group match against Hungary in Stuttgart on June 19, 2024. Another image showed Mertesacker on the sidelines of the October 14, 2024 Nations League fixture against the Netherlands in Munich.