German national team starting goalkeeper Oliver Baumann knows that he cannot be Manuel Neuer — but the good thing for him is that he does not need to be for the Germans to be successful at the World Cup.
Baumann understands that and is just working on being the best version of himself as he explained in this excerpt from Yahoo:
There will be no comeback with the German national team. According to national coach Julian Nagelsmann’s plan, Oliver Baumann will play the World Cup this summer as the number
one goalkeeper. Will he seek a tip or two from Neuer? One thing is clear: Baumann has learned a lot from him throughout his career. Even more than that: as a young goalkeeper, he idolized Neuer. “But I realized it wasn’t possible,” Baumann told the “SZ”.
“I simply don’t have the skills he has,” admitted the 35-year-old, who plays for TSG Hoffenheim. “This combination of size, speed, and agility is certainly unique.” Neuer also has “a very distinctive style of positioning and anticipation.” Baumann can’t copy that.
Describing himself as the “best Oli Baumann there has ever been,” he feels his performances during the World Cup qualifying campaign have helped him earn that recognition.
“I believe I’ve already earned some respect during the World Cup qualifiers. By the time other teams do their opponent analysis at the World Cup, they’ll see that this Baumann isn’t too bad at all,” he said, noting that his experience is a major advantage.
“Basically, it’s about making as few mistakes as possible over a career, and when you do make them, learning from them. I’ve experienced nearly every situation and made almost every mistake by now.”
Overall, Baumann has been solid for Germany, but his performance against Switzerland during his squad’s 4-3 victory did have some folks wondering if there might be a better option. It might be too soon to make that call, but Baumann knows he will be judged every day.
In some respects, he would not have it any other way.
If you are looking for more Bayern Munich and German national team coverage, check out the latest episodes of Bavarian Podcast Works, which you can get on Acast, Spotify, Apple, or any leading podcast distributor…
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