AEven without this very last point of an unforgettable evening, Jan Olschowsky would have started the weekend and this early winter break full of happy hormones. But there are those moments when life bestows people with abundance of well-being. The 20-year-old Olschowsky, who was the fifth goalkeeper at Borussia Mönchengladbach a few weeks ago, had become the hero of a rather spectacular Bundesliga game.
Then the man he later described as his “great idol” had turned up to offer a solemn praise. Without prior notice, live and in the flesh. Marc-André ter Stegen, the national goalkeeper who was born, grew up and was trained in Mönchengladbach and who plays for FC Barcelona, visited his hometown shortly before leaving for the World Cup and came to his former team’s dressing room with his little son in his arms .
“Marc congratulated me”
“I was a bit surprised to see him here,” said Olschowsky later and recounted what had happened in the locker room: “Marc congratulated me, that means a lot to me. Because he is perhaps the only keeper who has managed to go from youth to number one and thus have a world career.
The new face on the goalkeeper stage is far from that far. But his performances last Tuesday in Bochum and on Friday evening against BVB will have aroused the curiosity of many sporting directors. Especially in the game against Dortmund, Olschowsky fended off several balls that could hardly be held; one of his actions must have seemed like the work of the devil to the opposing attacker Donyell Malen.
The Dutchman shot low on goal from five yards out, whereupon the Gladbach keeper managed the magical feat of maneuvering the ball over the crossbar with his arm lying on the ground. This action was later hardly noticed, it didn’t even appear in some TV summaries, it could be the most spectacular goalkeeping action of the Bundesliga season so far. In any case, Lilian Thuram had seen exactly who his special thanks had to go to that evening.
“He did an excellent job”
After victories, the Frenchman likes to put the jersey of the strongest player from Gladbach over a corner flag and wave it in front of his own fans. That evening, of course, he opted for Olschowsky’s violet shirt. “The boy can be extremely proud of himself, he did an outstanding job,” said coach Daniel Farke. Captain Lars Stindl explained: “Jan exuded calmness and saved us in crucial situations. Great.”
Olschowsky’s Bundesliga career had started anything but happy. On his debut on Tuesday in Bochum, he conceded two goals after just eleven minutes, seemed a bit nervous and only stabilized as the game progressed. Precisely because this performance “didn’t go so well”, he was now “overjoyed”, said Olschowsky: “It’s very important for my self-confidence, my standing in general.” Because actually he only started the season as goalkeeper number five. That makes his way to becoming the Bundesliga hero of this 15th match day an almost wondrous story.
In addition to regular keeper Yann Sommer and substitute Tobias Sippel, goalkeepers Moritz Nicolas and Jonas Kersken are also under contract with Borussia. Nicolas was loaned to Kerkrade for a year in the summer, Kersken to SV Meppen.
After Sommer then tore a ligament in his ankle and Sippel was out due to muscular problems, Olschowsky was suddenly number one. Such quick rises are rare, especially in the goalkeeper position, because there is hardly any rotation and goalkeepers almost never end up on the bench to be rested.
So Olschowsky, who played for Borussia at the age of seven, initially played for the U23s in the fourth division, where he will probably return after the winter break to gain match practice and develop further. It is possible that he will remain a one-hit wonder on the dazzling professional stage. But it is also conceivable that this evening opened the door to a permanent commitment in the first or second division.
