19 goals in 14 games for Mainz 05 U19s, 13 goals in 15 games for Germany U17s and one goal in three games for DFB U18s. If proof was needed at all that Nelson Weiper could do the Bundesliga, he did it against Mönchengladbach.
A place in the history of Mainz 05 is already certain. With his goal to make it 4-0 against Borussia, Weiper replaced André Schürrle as the youngest goalscorer at the age of 17 years and 344 days, who first scored in September 2009 at the age of 18 years and 317 days. “Nelly will probably never forget this goal,” said coach Bo Svensson with his team’s baby.
“It’s a step, a confirmation, but he doesn’t have a pass because his name is Nelson Weiper and he’s talented. He’s showing in training that he can do it, but he still has a long way to go. It’s not normal, To play in the Bundesliga so early, you have to have a special talent and he has that,” said Svensson.
Weiper’s U19 game was canceled due to the weather
“Keep working, quickly to bed and then to the U19s. Do the basics and do your homework,” was the spontaneous recommendation from sports director Martin Schmidt. The striker was actually supposed to play with the FSV youth team at SpVgg Unterhaching on Sunday, but the game fell victim to the weather conditions. “If Karim Onisiwo had been there with the pros (knee problems put him out of action, editor’s note), Nelly might not have gotten in. You have to take advantage of opportunities like this. If someone fails, you have to be ready,” added Schmidt .
The first Bundesliga goal documents that Weiper “wants to raise the quota that he has had in the youth field for years,” as the sports director explained and enthused about a “holiday for the Mainz NLZ”.
In November, the exceptional talent was awarded the Fritz Walter Gold Medal by the DFB. “He has good athleticism and speed. He has his qualities at the end, which you can also see in his odds. He can be a bit more flexible in his style of play, sometimes switch to the flanks or the tenth position so that he can replace the opposing team player isn’t that tangible, he’s not always consistent against the ball when it comes to starting up.
We’re happy to have a tall striker in Nelson who also has the prospect of being at Bundesliga level.
DFB-Trainer Christian Wörns
In terms of intensity, too, he can still improve. Conclusion: We’re happy to have a tall striker in Nelson, who has a lot of qualities and has the potential to be at Bundesliga level. We also have to continue to work on him together with the club, as we do on every player of his age,” said DFB coach Christian Wörns, outlining the top talent.
U-18 national coach Wörns has not had much from Weiper so far. Last summer, the 1.92 meter striker was out for a long time due to a foot injury suffered at the pros’ training camp. In winter, the man from Mainz had to step back because of the Abitur exams in football. Now that the written exams are over, he’s on his way to hit the ground running.
