'The door is certainly not closed!' – Jurgen Klopp reveals why he snubbed Nick Woltemade for Niclas Fullkrug

Germany head coach Jurgen Klopp has explained the reasoning behind recalling Bundesliga top scorer Niclas Fullkrug while omitting Juventus loanee Nick Woltemade. Klopp pointed to Fullkrug's clinical goalscoring threat while reassuring Woltemade that his international career remains well on track.

Germany head coach Jurgen Klopp has detailed his selection choices after streamlining his squad to 24 players for upcoming UEFA Nations League fixtures against Serbia and the Netherlands. Werder Bremen forward Niclas Fullkrug returns to the national setup, while striker Nick Woltemade misses out.

Fullkrug earns his recall after scoring nine goals in eight games on loan from West Ham United to lead the Bundesliga scoring charts.

Borussia Monchengladbach midfielder Wael Mohya also earned his first senior call-up, but the headline debate centered on Klopp's attacking hierarchy.

Speaking to DFB.TV, Klopp revealed that Fullkrug's spectacular goals and leadership made his inclusion a straightforward choice. "Good form and scoring goals is never a bad thing. Fulle has performed throughout this time and scored various, almost all spectacular, goals," Klopp stated.

"Werder Bremen has an unbelievable influence on the game through him, not just through his goals, but also through the way he performs."

"The experience he brings totally helps. Under that aspect, the nomination was relatively easy. It was a pleasure to make the decision and a pleasure to tell him," the manager added.

Addressing Woltemade's omission, Klopp insisted the forward—currently on loan at Juventus from Newcastle United—remains in his long-term plans despite lacking a sharp finishing edge recently. "For goodness' sake, we would be crazy to close the doors. These are all great footballers. We are making decisions at the highest level," Klopp explained.

"We have of course also spoken with Nick. And Nick, to be honest, is having a rather good phase at Juve. A lot of things are coming back. He didn't have an easy time after the move to Newcastle. That is a different kind of football."

"Nick is on a good path and there too we are in talks. At the moment, absolute goal threat is lacking a bit. But game development, continuation of play, and so on are all there. That's why no door is closed there," the head coach noted.

Klopp emphasized that pure clinical edge in front of goal was the ultimate deciding factor when picking his forwards for this window. "When such decisions are up, sometimes pure threat in front of goal simply beats everything else. And that's why we decided on the boys who are in the squad now," Klopp concluded.

The squad will gather at adidas headquarters in Herzogenaurach on Monday before travelling to Belgrade to face Serbia on Friday, 13 November.

Germany will then return home to host group leaders the Netherlands at Berlin's Olympiastadion on Monday, 16 November, aiming to climb from their current total of four points in the group.