Klose blends goalscoring lessons with youth development at Nuremberg

Miroslav Klose is building FC Nuremberg’s promotion challenge around a young squad, while teaching his forwards the value of getting into the penalty area.

The former Germany striker says nearly all of the more than 300 goals he scored in his playing career came inside the box. Now Nuremberg’s manager, he stresses practising the final pass and helping players understand one another’s strengths and movement.

“You need someone in the box because that’s where you’re closest to the goal,” Klose says. He believes a reliable scorer still matters even when goals are the result of a team effort.

Developing young players

Klose also points to Harry Kane as an example for his players, praising the England captain’s work and development. He says young footballers need to keep learning rather than assume praise alone will make them better.

Nuremberg have the youngest average age in the 2. Bundesliga, at 23.3 years, according to Transfermarkt. Seven of the 11 players with the most minutes this season are 22 or younger. Among them are top scorer Mohamed Ali Zoma and 17-year-old midfielder Marc Kornwachs.

Klose says the club’s youth coaches and first-team staff work together to assess prospects and identify what they need to improve. He says the coaching team is willing to give young players opportunities when they believe they can compete at that level.

The 48-year-old joined Nuremberg in 2024, after coaching Bayern Munich’s under-17s and managing Austria’s Rheindorf Altach. Nuremberg finished 10th and eighth in his first two seasons. They are now second in the league, behind Hertha BSC, and joint-top scorers as they seek a return to the Bundesliga for the first time since 2019.

Klose, Germany’s all-time leading scorer, won the 2014 World Cup and finished his international career with 16 goals across four tournaments. He says he has improved as a manager through experience and remains keen to learn.