Former Germany striker Rudi Voeller has criticised Argentina's style of play, insisting he would not want a team to emulate the reigning world champions despite their recent success.

Speaking at the International Congress of the German Football Coaches Association, Voeller dismissed comparisons between Germany and Lionel Scaloni's side, saying Argentina's approach "had nothing to do with football."

"I said that in Germany we need to defend better. Many people held up the Argentinians as a model, and I thought that was a bad example. Suddenly, the Argentinians became the benchmark. I found the discussion somewhat hypocritical," Voeller said, as quoted by TyC Sports.

"I don't want a team that plays like Argentina. What they did had nothing to do with football. Yes, they are world champions and this time they are runners-up, but I really don't understand all the praise they're getting from so many people," he added.

Voeller instead hailed Spain and England for their defensive displays, arguing they deserved greater recognition.

"Spain deserves the praise, and the English also defended very well," he said.

Image

Spain defeated Argentina 1-0 after extra time in the World Cup final to lift their second World Cup title, with Argentina finishing as runners-up.

Reflecting on Germany's own shortcomings, Rudi Voeller stressed the need for improvement at the defensive end.

"Well, I didn't say we don't know how to defend. We can and must defend better, that's a fact, and it starts from the front or in midfield," he said.

Voeller has a long history with Argentina, having scored in West Germany's 3-2 defeat to the Albiceleste in the 1986 World Cup final before gaining revenge four years later, when the Germans beat Argentina 1-0 to lift the trophy.

The former striker had also been critical after Argentina's 2022 World Cup triumph, insisting that despite their title-winning campaign, "apart from Lionel Messi, who is extraordinary and whom everyone wanted to see win the World Cup, nobody should tell me that the Argentinians are better than us."