The German national football team has been criticized for lacking the fighting spirit necessary to compete at the highest levels, following their shocking exit from the current World Cup after losing to Paraguay in the Round of 32.

Former German coach Berti Vogts wrote in an article in the newspaper "Rheinische Post" on Wednesday: "We currently have no players capable of competing at the highest level."

He added: "That's where we have to start: Why are our players no longer world-class? Why have we regressed in areas that were our strengths? Others are faster, physically stronger, and better in tackles. We have fallen behind in important developments in international football, and this is becoming increasingly clear."

Former German international Thomas Helmer accused the national team players of not putting in enough effort during the match against Paraguay.

Helmer, who won the European Championship with Germany in 1996, told the newspaper "Augsburger Allgemeine": "If every player in the current national team had given their maximum, I am convinced Germany would still be in the tournament."

Helmer, 61, called for adding a member of the German national team that won the 2014 World Cup to the current team's coaching or administrative staff.

He added: "Whether it's in the coaching staff or the support team does not matter. For example, Bastian Schweinsteiger could explain to the players what it means to represent Germany and what it means to give everything you have." Helmer, like Vogts, was part of the German team at the 1994 World Cup when they suffered a disappointing exit against Bulgaria in the quarterfinals.

Vogts called on the German national team to learn from the experiences of other teams.

He said: "The national team coach should travel to England, France, and South America to see what others are doing differently, and perhaps better, and how we can benefit from that."

Vogts also called for regular meetings between the German national team coach and coaches of Bundesliga clubs and foreign national team coaches, in order to "conduct a modern and comprehensive analysis of international football."