Sunday, June 6th, 2021
It’s complicated in the DFB team
Who can make sense of Leroy Sané?
By Tobias Nordmann
This time Leroy Sané doesn’t have to fear the announcement of the final tournament squad. Before the 2018 World Cup, Joachim Löw sorted him out. Now he is one of his European hopefuls. The Bayern professional loves the risky game, but is still too often “an artist on standby”.
The thing with Leroy Sané, Joshua Kimmich did not want to be too high. That he had called out loud to his buddy in the test match of the German national team against Denmark on Wednesday evening that he should finally stop “whining” would not be such a big deal, he told “Bild”. The argument was evidently about different views in a pressing situation. You just have to push yourself, says Kimmich. Pushing To Be Successful. In the test game. And even more important at the European Championship, which starts on Friday evening. It is a tournament that should become that of Sané. He formulated it himself. The FC Bayern winger finally wants to prove how good he is. The role of the protagonist is definitely intended for him.
He would like to finally show a complete picture of himself – which he has so far only been wearing as a tattoo on his back. He no longer wants to just offer pieces of his own puzzle. Indicate what outstanding skills he has. For Germany he finally wants to be what Serge Gnabry, his counterpart on the right-wing offensive track already is: a player that makes a difference. One to bet on when it really matters. So far, he has not earned such a reputation. So far, the status at Sané is “waiting”. Waiting for the breakthrough.
In fact, his career for the DFB-Elf has been rather unfortunate to this day. At the Confederations Cup 2017 he was supposed to play an important role in the perspective team that was successfully led to the title by Julian Draxler, who was no longer considered. But Sané waived. An operation on his nose was more important to him. There were later discussions about whether this intervention was really that relevant and could not have been postponed. Before the World Cup in Russia 2018, he was removed from the final line-up by Löw. At that time, Sané had a furious season in the Premier League behind him. His removal from the boat was probably not a national matter because his two DFB colleagues Mesut Özil and Illay Gündogan had themselves photographed in the weeks before with the internationally highly controversial Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Including flattering words for the head of state.
So far more solid than outstanding
The decision of the national coach at that time, said Sané in an interview with the Sportschau, “was the hardest” thing he had experienced in his career – even worse than the cruciate ligament rupture in August 2019. “It is a dream for everyone to play at the World Cup , at the biggest tournament. Of course it was a hard setback for me – and also the biggest. ” The native of Essen withdrew disappointed. Time off is his way of processing things, of making things out with himself. Both timeouts would have let him grow mentally, says Sané. He has also grown in the favor of Löw.
The 25-year-old now has 29 games for the senior national team, six goals and four assists. That is a solid record. But not anymore. But Sané’s talent is made for so much more. Actually. If he fools his opponents in a confined space, passes by and closes with the left, then it is world class. “What Leroy can do with the ball is incredible. It’s a gift for every team,” enthused Robin Gosens. Fortunately, as the man behind the winger, he rarely gets embarrassed by humiliation.
But there is not only this Sané. All too often there is the one who played against Denmark in Innsbruck on Wednesday. That is viewed critically. Because of the way he behaves on the pitch. Because of his not always euphoric and bilious charisma. Some media already see parallels to Özil in the assessment of the Bayern game, whose body language was probably more of an issue than his ingenuity. In our individual review of the test match on Wednesday evening, it was said about the 25-year-old: He always has two or three actions in which he suggests that he makes the difference. For the rest of the game, however, you think to yourself: where is Sané now?
“Just want to show what I’m capable of”
Geographically, it’s very easy to locate. Sané is still in Seefeld. With the national team. Last day in training camp. That it will be his last before the tournament can clearly be ruled out. Löw plans to take all 26 players he has nominated on his final mission as national coach. Uefa allows three more players due to the special conditions of the pandemic. Where Sané is athletic, however, this question is much more difficult to answer. His season at Bayern was good, not outstanding. In March, his coach Hansi Flick, who will be his national coach in the future, said: “He is partly an artist who is on standby one time or the other.”
Switching from stand-by to full operation, that is the stated goal of Sané for the coming weeks. “I’m really excited about the European Championship,” he said in Seefeld. For highlight games like the preliminary round duels with world champions France and European champions Portugal “you wait all your life, you want to prove yourself.” And he believes that “now is the best time to do it. I just want to show what I’m capable of.” Dribbling, fast movements, strong degrees, everything Sané can do, what he himself calls “risky”, what is surprising and creative, that is what Germany urgently needs. And all of this sets him apart from Jonas Hofmann, from Kai Havertz and Timo Werner, who would take over on the left in an emergency.
Buddy Kimmich says: “With his skills he can carry us alone in big and decisive games. We hope for that.” The team. And the fans “We have only disappointed people in the last few years. We can’t always hide and say that we have a lot of quality. Now we are in demand,” says Kimmich in a ZDF documentary about him and added: “My goal is to become European champion. ” Incidentally, Sanés too. The fact that he of all people might give Löw the spectacular graduation after 15 years as national coach would be the cheesiest end to a long, extremely complicated relationship.
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