HERZOGENAURACH, Germany -- Jürgen Klopp is having an effect on Germany's players even before his first game as coach. The former Liverpool manager has called up 16 uncapped players in a supersized first roster of 44 for his first four Nations League games as he tried to reboot Germany following another disappointing World Cup.

Some newcomers said having Klopp in charge gives them a boost. Forward Younes Ebnoutalib credited Klopp with helping persuade him to pick Germany over Morocco. "When he calls, you can't say no," the Eintracht Frankfurt striker said.

Defender Philipp Treu is one of four Freiburg players, all on track to make a national team debut after reaching the Europa League final last season. They could get their chance in Nations League games against the Netherlands on Thursday and Greece on Sunday.

Klopp's taken the unusual approach of rotating between two different squads, with a second batch of players set to come in against Serbia on Oct. 1 and Greece on Oct. 4. Treu's fellow Freiburg defender Max Rosenfelder said he felt a connection with Klopp straight away. "I believe that he is simply a very, very special person," he said.

Last week, Klopp explained his rationale for calling in such a big group of players for his first games as coach of Germany. "I want to get to know as many players as possible," Klopp said on Thursday. "There is no A or B team."