Eternal Neuer vs. top ter Stegen
The unequal battle between the goalkeeper luminaries at the DFB
March 20, 2024, 10:07 a.m
Julian Nagelsmann has to solve tricky tasks before the home European Championships start. One of them: Who is in the goal? There can only be one, but the DFB team has two world-class goalkeepers in the squad: Manuel Neuer and Marc-André ter Stegen. One goes into the duel with a lead.
Manuel Neuer stood a few meters next to the goal and looked closely at Marc-André ter Stegen’s brilliant saves during training. Then the Bayern goalkeeper switched between the posts and simply copied his opponent during the exercise with sharp shots from close range.
Julian Nagelsmann could be sure of one thing during the German national soccer team’s first practice session of the European Championship year. He has no problem at all in the goalkeeper position. Or is it? The national coach has to decide on a number one for the home tournament and thus snub a world-class goalkeeper – and the decision could be made soon, even before the upcoming test matches against France and the Netherlands.
“We’ll have a conversation with both of them, I’m not making any predictions. First and foremost are the players, then the media. I have a goalkeeping coach who has his opinion, has his arguments, and has a much better overview of it than I do. We will have the discussions and then decide what approach we should take in the two games,” said Nagelsmann before the test games in Lyon on Saturday (9 p.m./ZDF and in the ntv.de live ticker) and three days later in Frankfurt (8.45 p.m./RTL and in the ntv.de live ticker). It is clear that Nagelsmann will also apply his principle of role distribution for all positions with a regular and a backup to the goalkeepers.
So far there has been no question of Neuer
Neuer against Ter Stegen, this duel has been running through the national team’s history for years. And there was always no questioning Neuer’s status when it became important. He was in the DFB goal at four World Cups and three European Championships. Only when the then national coach Joachim Löw traveled to Russia with a promising squad for the 2017 Confederations Cup was the eternal deputy ter Stegen allowed to appear as number one at a tournament – and hold up the winner’s trophy.
The overwhelming majority of experts are now also certain: Neuer will be number one in the DFB goal in the opening game of the European Championship against Scotland in Munich on June 14th. And that would be particularly bitter for Ter Stegen, who is a leader at FC Barcelona and has been playing at the top level for years. When Neuer took a break from the entire 2023 international season because of his broken leg, he finally felt like Germany’s number one.
“I enjoy that I have this support from the team and from the coach. I believe that I absolutely repay that. That’s what I focus on the most: playing good games and always being in absolute balance with myself.” said ter Stegen. However, the 31-year-old should know that good performances can be a waste in the absence of his opponent. Even before the 2018 World Cup, Neuer returned from a foot injury just in time and was in goal at the tournament in Russia.
Less than one goal conceded per game
The Bayern goalkeeper, who will be celebrating his 38th birthday one day after the duel with arch-rivals Netherlands next week, has a real statistical impact in his international match quota after his successful club comeback: 77 wins, 21 draws and There are only 19 defeats with less than one goal conceded per game in his DFB record. He has kept a clean sheet 47 times since 2009 with the eagle on his chest. And ter Stegen: 20 wins, 8 draws and ten defeats with 50 goals conceded. Nagelsmann also likes to be guided by numbers.
During training on the DFB campus, both goalkeepers performed at the top level and put in a lot of effort. Did they both want to make another impression? “A role discussion will take place when we have the players available. That hasn’t happened yet, it won’t be until Monday or Tuesday,” said the national coach when he announced his squad last week. Today is Wednesday.