In the summertime of 2006, Ilkay Gundogan was a 15-year-old boy, Germany was internet hosting the World Cup, the solar was shining and his on daily basis was about football.
He took in most matches at an official native fan park in his hometown of Gelsenkirchen, watching on a giant display with hundreds of different followers caught up in what’s now affectionately remembered as Germany’s ‘sommermarchen’ (summer season fairytale) — regardless of the workforce’s eventual defeat by Italy within the semi-finals.
Eighteen years later, Gundogan is Germany’s captain because the nation hosts one other main match. Already there have been loads of comparisons with that well-known summer season — even when a lot has modified.
Within the build-up to Germany’s last-16 match towards Denmark, The Athletic sat down with Gundogan at Germany’s coaching base in Herzogenaurach, not removed from Nuremberg. After securing prime spot in Group A, confidence was excessive. The 33-year-old arrived in good spirits.
“The primary two games have been fairly good, particularly the primary one (5-1 vs Scotland),” he says.
“However the resilience we confirmed within the final recreation towards Switzerland (Germany got here again to attract 1-1 in stoppage time), that’s a part of our course of as nicely — not giving up, regardless of difficulties. In a match like this, that’s essential to progress.”
Gundogan speaks extremely of Kroos’ impression on the Germany workforce (Christian Charisius/image alliance through Getty Pictures)
Gundogan talks of a “particular bond” and “optimistic vibes” inside Germany’s squad. There have actually been some standout performances — and from a wide-ranging solid. Florian Wirtz and Jamal Musiala are the faces of a powerful new technology. The returning Toni Kroos has barely missed a move. In Germany’s second match, a 2-0 win over Hungary, Gundogan grabbed the headlines with a objective and help.
“The extra typically we play, the extra I really feel it’s clicking,” he says.
“In spite of everything, this workforce has been put collectively previously few months. It’s not like we performed for years with this squad. We’ve made large steps in such a short while. The teaching workers dealt very nicely with the state of affairs once they began this journey final yr. They made good selections that paid off.”
Julian Nagelsmann took over as supervisor in September 2023 with Germany of their weakest place for a few years. They haven’t gained a knockout recreation at a serious match since Euro 2016, crashing out on the group stage of back-to-back World Cups and shedding to England within the spherical of 16 on the final Euros.
Latest performances have been encouraging. Past what we’ve seen at Euro 2024, Nagelsmann’s workforce beat France and the Netherlands in pleasant matches in March.
However there have additionally been off-field challenges to cope with.
Gundogan was made Germany captain in September 2023 (Alexander Scheuber – UEFA/UEFA through Getty Pictures)
In early June, Germany midfielder Joshua Kimmich was requested to touch upon the findings of a ballot carried out by German state broadcaster ARD asking whether or not the nationwide workforce ought to have extra white players. Twenty-one per cent of the 1,304 individuals surveyed responded sure.
Kimmich referred to as the survey “completely racist” and mentioned it was “insanity for a public broadcaster to ask such a query”. When requested to remark the next day, Nagelsmann counseled Kimmich’s assertion as “very clear and thought-out” earlier than including: “I see this in the identical means. This query is insane.”
Gundogan takes a deep breath earlier than making his personal response now, an ironic smile on his face. He isn’t new to this.
“The outcomes of that survey didn’t shock me a lot,” says Gundogan — the primary non-white player to completely captain Germany (Mesut Ozil additionally wore the armband, however was not the workforce’s official skipper).
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“It’s not solely Germany. We’ve got this type of tendency in the entire world proper now. It didn’t apply any further strain to me, to be trustworthy. However the timing of it, simply earlier than the match began, it felt somewhat bit like somebody, someplace, was attempting to create separation once more.”
Karl Valks, sport director at ARD, mentioned he was “dismayed” by the ballot outcomes, which he mentioned have been “an expression of the social state of affairs in Germany at present”. It adopted current elections for the European Parliament, the place the far-right get together AfD (Different for Germany) gained the second-largest share of votes within the nation.
Gundogan’s mother and father have been each born in Turkey. He was raised in Hessler, a small working-class district north west of Gelsenkirchen, the place coal mining was the key business. He began out at native workforce SV Hessler 06. There have been youngsters with Turkish, Polish, Croatian and Italian backgrounds amongst his team-mates.
“This squad at Euro 2024 represents Germany very nicely in my view,” he says. “There are gamers with immigration of their backgrounds.
“It’s what fashionable Germany is about. It really works so nicely in our workforce, and it could work so nicely for society — however it’s not all the time that straightforward.
“I don’t want to talk a lot about it anymore, however I skilled so many issues I needed to cope with in my profession and life that, generally, you need to shield your self a bit. It makes you unhappy.
“I’ve talked rather a lot with individuals about it. Household, pals and even team-mates. Some from right here, who went via comparable phases. This brings you nearer to somebody as nicely, to discuss it.”
Gundogan was made Germany captain 9 months in the past, simply earlier than former coach Hansi Flick (now his supervisor at Barcelona) was fired.
He additionally served as Manchester Metropolis’s captain underneath Pep Guardiola, main the workforce to the treble in 2022-23 earlier than leaving for Barca on a free switch. Final season, he stunned some in Spain with robust however trustworthy phrases on his personal workforce’s performances. He’s an outspoken persona and has by no means hidden his intention to turn out to be a supervisor.
“I prefer to be in entrance of the workforce and if the coach tells me, ‘Look, Gundo, you probably did this unsuitable’, I need to get higher so thanks for letting me know,” he says. “If it’s in entrance of my team-mates even higher, in order that they see what all of us must do.
“I see myself as very tolerant. Everyone seems to be so totally different and I adore it. I’m distant from saying everybody has to assume like me, as a result of I’m distant from being excellent as nicely. However if you happen to’re not trustworthy, your progress will get caught. It’s the one approach to maintain bettering.”
Musiala and Gundogan have a good time Germany’s opener towards Hungary (Tom Weller/image alliance through Getty Pictures)
Gundogan is exhibiting indicators of his greatest. Established as a box-crashing all-round attacking midfielder in Nagelsmann’s workforce, he’s the hinge between anchors Kroos and Robert Andrich and the flamboyant Musiala and Wirtz. He highlights Kroos’ affect particularly.
“For a very long time, I’ve been enjoying for Germany with out considering an excessive amount of,” Gundogan says. “I’m so snug on the pitch with my team-mates and in my place.
“At Manchester Metropolis, I performed rather a lot on this position. With Barcelona, I’ve performed wherever I’ve been wanted, so it has been a bit messy, with numerous adjustments of place. I’ve wanted to adapt continually. Typically enjoying nicely can also be realizing which place you play, who’s enjoying round you, and feeling snug with it.
“Particularly enjoying with Toni, I’ve the liberty to remain extra in entrance and wait as a result of you recognize the ball in some unspecified time in the future goes to return. Solely a handful of gamers in world soccer have his high quality and tranquility on the ball. He’s so constant and provides our workforce stability.
“He reads the sport, provides us steadiness with and with out the ball, and he provides different gamers like me extra freedom to get in harmful positions. With out Toni, you would possibly begin to get impatient, and perhaps you drop deeper to obtain the ball, which isn’t the aim of that place. Now I do know the ball will arrive — I simply must be prepared. That makes issues a lot simpler.”
Up to now so good for Germany, but when they beat Denmark on Saturday, it’s possible they are going to subsequent tackle Spain, who face Georgia.
Gundogan is filled with reward for the match’s 16-year-old sensation Lamine Yamal, his team-mate at Barcelona.
“He’s simply 16 however it’s loopy. Merely loopy,” he says. “The boldness he performs with makes it appear so regular… however to carry out at a prime degree all year long, and are available to the Euros being a key participant will not be regular at that age.
“He’s very humble, coming from a humble household. He’s a really good man. I couldn’t reward him extra. I want for him to remain wholesome and get to the very prime of world soccer, as a result of that’s his potential.”
Gundogan and Yamal, with Barca in March (David S Bustamante/Soccrates/Getty Pictures)
Gundogan’s seven-year spell at Metropolis means he has additionally been keeping track of England, who he refuses to write down off, regardless of their stuttering begin.
“By no means underestimate England,” he says. “They completed prime of the group and bought the outcomes. In these tournaments, that’s an enormous factor. Getting the outcomes provides you confidence and motivation to play higher. It’s nearly moving into the following spherical on a regular basis.
“Perhaps solely France have an identical squad when it comes to expertise and potential. England are nonetheless among the many favourites. Within the knockouts, they’re stuffed with expertise — however I can perceive the criticism saying they may play higher.
“In our case, you possibly can see how getting outcomes over the road could make the distinction. The temper round Germany is superb, however that’s as a result of we get outcomes.”
And so how does that temper examine with the particular summer season of 2006?
“We could be shut! Hopefully it’s going to maintain like that and the longer we keep within the match, the higher the ambiance will probably be,” Gundogan says.
“It makes us a lot happier to see individuals creating these reminiscences.”
(High photograph: Christina Pahnke – sampics/Getty Pictures)
