Germany coach Joachim Low has defended the country's youngsters following their 1-0 friendly defeat to Denmark.
Low gave no less than six players their full international debuts on Wednesday, a game decided by Nicklas Bendtner's late winner.
His decision to field a second-string side has brought criticism, but Low believes such outings are important for the future of the nation.
"Such games are vital for the development of the young players," he explained.
"We can't claim that we want to support our young professionals and then be bitterly disappointed if we get defeated.
"The team worked hard and fought well, but it became obvious that we lacked experience.
"We could have equalised towards the end, but all in all the result is correct.
"I have always said that the record doesn't mean anything to me as we had agreed to give our young guard a chance.
"We have to take care of them and that's why the game was important."
Low reserved special praise for keeper Robert Enke along with second division striker Patrick Helmes for his late run-out.
"Enke showed a very strong performance and I am absolutely happy with him, while I was also pleased by Helmes," he continued.
"He impressed me during the game as well as in previous training sessions."
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