Borussia Dortmund captain Mats Hummels has hit back at criticism from the German media as the World Cup winner struggles for form – and says Bayern Munich's success is not helping his club's cause.
Hummels found himself on the bench for second-placed Dortmund on Sunday in their 4-1 win at home to Stuttgart, coming on for the last 10 minutes, after his mistakes led to the team conceding goals in their previous two games.
The 26-year-old has a contract until 2017 and has again been linked with a multi-million euros move to Manchester United at the end of the season.
Hummels says the German media are bored with watching leaders Bayern runaway with this season's Bundesliga title, which means they turned their attention to nearest rivals Dortmund – and him personally.
"Because it's hard to perhaps find anything negative to say about Bayern, perhaps they are looking at the next biggest team and personalities in football," Hummels told German daily Bild.
“Inevitably, you land at Borussia Dortmund and people like Marco Reus, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang or me.”
TV pundits have been quick to criticise Hummels, who has failed to capture the superb form he showed in Brazil which helped Germany win the 2014 World Cup.
He admitted returning from Brazil overweight last season and has failed to impress this campaign, particularly in the last fortnight.
He scored an own-goal in Dortmund’s shock 3-1 league defeat at Hamburg 10 days ago, then gave away a penalty in their 1-0 Europa League defeat at Russia’s FK Krasnodar last Thursday.
"I definitely feel under-valued and honestly see my performances as being better than you read in most of the media," Hummels complained to magazine Kicker.
“I don’t know anyone who is more self-critical than me.
“I watch all our games again at home and I know when I have made a mistake and when I haven’t.
“I have always addressed any mistakes I have made and will keep doing so.
“It’s nothing I duck away from.”
Dortmund coach Thomas Tuchel insists Hummels was not dropped for the Stuttgart game, but simply started the defender on the bench to rest him, as he has done for other Dortmund stars throughout the season.
Club CEO Hans-Joachim Watzke has said Hummels is not always easy to deal with, something the defender has no problem with.
“I’m a bit more direct, sometimes cynical and sarcastic, that’s why I find it perfectly fine that Hans-Joachim Watzke doesn’t consider me to be low-maintenance,” said Hummels.
Hummels also scoffed at suggestions there is a problem between him and Tuchel.
“We have no problems with each other, we discuss things openly and we will continue to do so,” he added.
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From Europe to the Middle East, economic success brings wealth - and lifestyle diseases
A rise in obesity figures and the need for more public spending is a familiar trend in the developing world as western lifestyles are adopted.
One in five deaths around the world is now caused by bad diet, with obesity the fastest growing global risk. A high body mass index is also the top cause of metabolic diseases relating to death and disability in Kuwait, Qatar and Oman – and second on the list in Bahrain.
In Britain, heart disease, lung cancer and Alzheimer’s remain among the leading causes of death, and people there are spending more time suffering from health problems.
The UK is expected to spend $421.4 billion on healthcare by 2040, up from $239.3 billion in 2014.
And development assistance for health is talking about the financial aid given to governments to support social, environmental development of developing countries.
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How to play the stock market recovery in 2021?
If you are looking to build your long-term wealth in 2021 and beyond, the stock market is still the best place to do it as equities powered on despite the pandemic.
Investing in individual stocks is not for everyone and most private investors should stick to mutual funds and ETFs, but there are some thrilling opportunities for those who understand the risks.
Peter Garnry, head of equity strategy at Saxo Bank, says the 20 best-performing US and European stocks have delivered an average return year-to-date of 148 per cent, measured in local currency terms.
Online marketplace Etsy was the best performer with a return of 330.6 per cent, followed by communications software company Sinch (315.4 per cent), online supermarket HelloFresh (232.8 per cent) and fuel cells specialist NEL (191.7 per cent).
Mr Garnry says digital companies benefited from the lockdown, while green energy firms flew as efforts to combat climate change were ramped up, helped in part by the European Union’s green deal.
Electric car company Tesla would be on the list if it had been part of the S&P 500 Index, but it only joined on December 21. “Tesla has become one of the most valuable companies in the world this year as demand for electric vehicles has grown dramatically,” Mr Garnry says.
By contrast, the 20 worst-performing European stocks fell 54 per cent on average, with European banks hit by the economic fallout from the pandemic, while cruise liners and airline stocks suffered due to travel restrictions.
As demand for energy fell, the oil and gas industry had a tough year, too.
Mr Garnry says the biggest story this year was the “absolute crunch” in so-called value stocks, companies that trade at low valuations compared to their earnings and growth potential.
He says they are “heavily tilted towards financials, miners, energy, utilities and industrials, which have all been hit hard by the Covid-19 pandemic”. “The last year saw these cheap stocks become cheaper and expensive stocks have become more expensive.”
This has triggered excited talk about the “great value rotation” but Mr Garnry remains sceptical. “We need to see a breakout of interest rates combined with higher inflation before we join the crowd.”
Always remember that past performance is not a guarantee of future returns. Last year’s winners often turn out to be this year’s losers, and vice-versa.
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Uefa Champions League, last-16, second leg (first-leg scores in brackets):
PSG (2) v Manchester United (0)
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