National team: Manuel Neuer’s World Cup announcements – football

Mr. Neuer, at the beginning of the international match trip in Hamburg on Monday there was fan anger because the national team left their supporters behind. The turning point on Wednesday after training: you signed autographs with some of your fellow players and took selfies. Why did the insight come so late?

Manuel Neuer (35): This has nothing to do with later insight, it is just not an easy topic. If we have our own pen, we and the fans wear a mask and the selfies can be taken from a distance, that works well. But it is more difficult to sign at a distance. We try to implement what we can do according to the Corona rules. It was very difficult for us to show closeness to the fans during the time when we lived isolated in the bubble. All we could do was wave or, now that the spectators are back in the stadium, applaud on a lap of honor. We want to show closeness, but often find ourselves in a conflict.

You have had racing bikes delivered to the team hotel. Is there enough time for your passion in a DFB week?

The organization team of the national team is doing everything to make life in the bubble as comfortable as possible, because we are still here in a kind of corona bubble. You have to get out in the fresh air. I personally like to be in nature. This is a compensation for me. For me, cycling is a feeling of freedom. Especially in the Corona period it is a great feeling to be outside on your bike or while hiking.

For you, is cycling a good supplement to exercise or just a leisure time?

You have to see how it fits into the training, but for me it’s definitely a kind of regeneration. We have gravel bikes here, so no racing bikes for the asphalt, but you can also ride them over hill and dale or forest paths in the Volkspark. In Stuttgart I went to the international matches at the beginning of October with a physio and our doctor.

You crossed the Alps in summer. What was the strangest encounter on your way?

I was also partly on foot. Then came animals you don’t expect – marmots, chamois. For the residents there, these animals are like cats or dogs for us, but for people like me from the Ruhrpott and now the Alpine foothills that is something special. In the first few days after the European Championship, I was able to switch off very well. It was wonderful for the head!

Robert Lewandowski recently had a body check done. He says his biological age is 26 years. How old are you really?

(laughs) A little older than Lewy. After what I’ve experienced (including four metatarsal fractures; editor’s note), I already know how old I am. But my bones are fine, physically I feel fine. I would say: in the late twenties.

The Italian goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon is still active at Parma at the age of 43. How long do you want to play?

That depends on certain factors: on my fitness, that I’m physically well, that I don’t drag myself into training. I don’t want to exercise on pain medication. I have to be able to perform. I have to be needed by the team. And I have to have fun and really feel like it. Living consciously, eating healthily and sleeping well are important to me. But there is no age requirement for me. I’m not saying that it’s over at 40.

You have been number 1 at the DFB and Bayern for over a decade and want to play every game. What do you think of the constellation in Paris, where goalkeepers Donnarumma and Navas have to take turns?

It’s a difficult situation. In Barcelona it was the same with Marc (ter Stegen; d. Red.) And Claudio Bravo. One of them played in the cup, the other in the league and in the Champions League. For me it is important to have rhythm – also for defending against you. Sometimes you have a left foot and sometimes a right foot, the passes come differently and you have to play them differently.

Felix Magath claimed in the “Bayern-Insider” program on BILD LIVE: “As long as Neuer plays, Bayern will always be champions.” What do you think of that?

(laughs) You should never contradict an ex-trainer. These are great words from him. But that’s not set in stone. We don’t get the championship for free. This is hard work!

At the beginning of October in Stuttgart, when Hansi Flick started as national coach, you said: “I want to become world champion.” How realistic is your goal?

First of all, we have to consider that other teams also have the goal. But the world title is realistic! We have a chance. We want to be at the top of the world again. For us, it’s about preparing ourselves so that we can play for the title. We want to become world champions! That is the goal of our team. We have already performed well. But we really have to take every game seriously. The first thing to do now is to be the first in the group to qualify as quickly as possible. We have to be a team that is well-rehearsed to become world champions.

Flick is Bavaria’s sextuple trainer. Is he also a world champion trainer?

Definitely! He knows how it works from 2014 – he was at the side with Jogi Löw. Together we can do it.

There is often talk of a talent shortage in German football. How do you feel about that with regard to players like Musiala, Wirtz and Adeyemi?

I have absolutely no concerns with the boys on the offensive. These are players who can already help us with their qualities. But they are all offensive players. One or two young players may still be missing on the defensive. But that’s not surprising either: you have to have a little more experience in defense to become a national player.

Jérôme Boateng has experience. Hansi Flick is in contact with him. Will he make his comeback at the DFB?

Hansi Flick does not copy anyone. The performance principle applies. We have a very good team, but Jérôme has always done very well in the past. In the end, it is up to each player and his performance whether he is there.

Was the last time you talked to Jogi Löw?

Of course I was in contact with him. Jogi is a footballer through and through. He follows everything.

What exactly has changed at the DFB under Flick?

In the beginning there are a lot of conversations. Then there are a lot of team meetings because he brings us closer to his philosophy. When it comes to standards, one or the other is discussed – we also have the new standard trainer (Mads Buttgereit; d. Ed.). Then there are meetings before the training units, you have time to activate – there are changes in the details. But also many parallels, the two of them worked together here too.

Would you understand if other players in the DFB team fear a Bayern bonus?

Sure, maybe that’s human. But if that is the case, anyone can come to me. As the captain, I have an open ear. I would also speak to Hansi Flick and also advise the player to speak to the coach. Basically, however, the fact is that there are hardly any secrets left in football today. His game philosophy has been analyzed by so many professionals and TV experts. That’s why I see it more as a media issue. Hansi Flick will always put together the best team and wants to have maximum success.

How do you feel about the Winter World Cup in Qatar?

I am aware that we will have little time together before the tournament. The length of our preparation depends on how the Bundesliga, the other leagues and Uefa do the game plan. Then the question is how the courses will take place in September and October. Whether you can do it differently. It’s going to be strange – no question about it, because we don’t know a tournament in the winter months yet.