Bayern Munich midfielder Leon Goretzka is finding he has to prove himself a lot these days. To the fans, to his club coach, and even to his national team coach — whoever that will end up being.
After a rough preseason, Goretzka was excluded from Hansi Flick’s Germany call-ups for the September international break — despite his strong start to the actual Bundesliga season.
Flick, however, has since been sacked, and former Bayern coach Julian Nagelsmann is one of the hottest names to replace him with the men’s national team.
Goretzka took some time to answer questions about the national team situation after Friday’s 2-2 draw with Bayer Leverkusen.
“The dismissal [of Hansi Flick] is always a sign that you haven’t done your job well,” Goretzka said in comments captured by t-online reporter Julian Buhl. “I was sad and annoyed that it had come to this.”
While Goretzka had similar sentiments last spring when Nagelsmann himself was dismissed by Bayern, he would look forward to seeing his former coach again.
“Julian is a great coach. If he becomes one, we would have a great coach,” Goretzka added.
For now, Goretzka just has to keep his strong run going with Bayern, who have a short week coming up with a Champions League match against Manchester United on Wednesday.
His performance against Leverkusen was another step in that direction — earning a well-taken goal that nearly proved to be the winner in the 86th minute. Goretzka ghosted behind national team teammate Jonas Hofmann to pop up unmarked in the box and latch on to the end of Mathys Tel’s cross. It was a superb demonstration of his qualities as a box-to-box midfielder with an added goal threat.
Looking for more takes and analysis on the Bayern Munich vs. Bayer Leverkusen match? Check out our Postgame Show on Spotify or below:
As always, we appreciate all the support!
