German star Julian Brandt cops heat for taking a selfie

GERMAN star Julian Brandt decided to take a selfie after a World Cup match in Russia — but not everyone was amused.

Julian Brandt came under fire for this act of kindness.

GERMAN football star Julian Brandt has come under fire for taking a grinning selfie after his nation’s 1-0 defeat to Mexico on Monday.

The loss shocked the planet with Die Mannschaft entering the World Cup among the favourites, The Sun reports.

Mexico valiantly held on to their lead after Hirving Lozano’s 35th minute strike at the Luzhniki Stadium.

There were tears of joy from Juan Carlos Osorio’s men while the Germans stood stunned.

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But a picture of Bayer Leverkusen winger Brandt — looking perfectly happy — has emerged, sparking fury in Germany, with newspaper Bild publishing it and taking aim at the young gun.

The 22-year-old can be seen smiling while he takes a selfie with a group of young fans in the stands following his World Cup debut.

Meanwhile, Julian Brandt took a selfie with a child after the match, which has annoyed Bild.

'Germany spoils the start of the 2018 World Cup - and Julian Brandt (22) has nothing better to do than grinning at a fan-camera...'

This is so English. pic.twitter.com/EjwYmKuOlF

— Sport Witness (@Sport_Witness) June 18, 2018

There are actually people (including German media) that give Julian #Brandt a hard time for taking a selfie with a fan and smiling into the camera after our defeat against Mexico yesterday. As if we didn’t have other problems 🙄 #GERMEX

— Katrin Figge (@katrinfigge) June 18, 2018

Brandt, who replaced Timo Werner in the 86th minute, insists he only put on a happy face for the supporter who asked him for a photo.

He said: “I wanted to go down the player’s tunnel, then came the little boy and screamed.

“In the second you do not think about it. You do the kid a favour or not. I took the phone and took the selfie.

“I did not think anything of it.”

Former German captain Lothar Matthaus defended Brandt in the face of criticism.

“Julian Brandt was criticised for taking a selfie with a fan after the game. He did a small favour to a kid, so what?” he said. “I could understand criticism if he was caught drunk at a party in Moscow, but that was a human gesture.”

Germany now needs results against Sweden and South Korea to get out of Group F.

Mats Hummels laid into his side’s effort after the Mexico attack annihilated Germany’s defence.

He said: “Mexico deserved the win. Our cover was often not good and we were left many times with Jerome (Boateng) and myself at the back.

“We were warned days ago (in the warm-up games). We played exactly like we did against Saudi Arabia (when Germany won 2-1), only against a better opponent.

“That’s why the first half was like it was, and Mexico obviously deserved to win it.

“A wake-up call is too late. We now must win two games, otherwise that is that with the World Cup. I don’t really understand why we played like we played because, really, we already had our wake-up call.”

This story first appeared on The Sun and was republished with permission

Originally published as German star Julian Brandt cops heat for taking a selfie