Three poles and an eternal dispute

Neuer and Ter Stegen.Getty Images

Ter Stegen avoided ostentatious photos on social networks during his mini-vacations, after Barça gave up in LaLiga against Madrid. It was no accident. While some of his teammates appeared on boats, luxury restaurants and beaches of the Balearic Islands and the Costa Brava (Arturo Vidal and his video in a state of intoxication), Ter Stegen understood that you had to be careful on the eve of a key match to the public image of the Catalans as it was a duel against Naples. Neuer is also a guy who protects his popularity. “He's smart, open and joking. He is charismatic, he is always ready to attend to the press and he is skilled at making statements ”, describe the Bayern goalkeeper in the German federation. There is something, however, that makes Ter Stegen, 28, and Neuer, 34, break all their public protocols: their rivalry.

The Mannschaft goal has a history of fights. The dispute between Fahrian and Tilkowski in the '62 World Cup ended with the second destroying the room of the Military School in Santiago. Stein called Beckenbauer a "soup puppet \ [the Kaiser had made a famous instant soup ad in the 1960s \]" after the technician opted for Schumacher in Mexico 86. "The wrong goalkeeper was trusted," he said. mocked Vogts after Illgner's mistake against Bulgaria in USA 94. And the duel between Lehmann and Kahn in 2006 - coach Klinsmann opted for Arsenal's goal - lasted until, precisely, the figure of Neuer emerged.

The Bayern goalkeeper represents the evolution of the goalkeeper in Germany. “We are the absolute number 1 in goalkeeping training. We are years ahead of other European powers. Here they train in a much more complex and selective way, ”Schumacher stressed a few years ago on the FIFA website. But, unlike in the previous processes, since Neuer took over the three posts of the Mannschaft, nobody disputed it. And he even handed out praise for Ter Stegen when he signed for Barça in 2014: “He has a great future, he's sensational. He is agile and knows how to solve the most complicated situations very well ”.

But if there is a step from love to hate, not to mention praise for criticism. Neuer forged his career without rivalries. Neither in Schalke, nor Bayern, nor in the German team did he find a goalkeeper who dared to overshadow him. Until Ter Stegen grew up in Barcelona and erased Claudio Bravo from the Camp Nou. The dispute with the Chilean was not the first in the career of the Mönchengladbach goalkeeper. In the youth teams in Germany, the rally between Ter Stegen and Leno (Arsenal) overcame the dialectical duel in 2009 when they shared a room in a sub-21 concentration. Coach Horst Hrubesch decided that goalkeepers sleeping together was over.

Nine years later, in the preview of the 2018 World Cup, Ter Stegen took his competitiveness to the senior team. The fuse, however, was lit by Kahn, who was never a touchy fellow. “If I were the coach of Germany I would certainly start Ter Stegen. He's in the prime of his career. Today he is the best in the world, ”said the Mannschaft's starting goalkeeper in Korea and Japan. With Neuer injured, Ter Stegen had started the 2017 Confederations Cup and, for the first time in years, Germany was recovering an old fetish: arguing about goal. Joachim Löw opted for Neuer's experience for Russia. “I can understand Ter Stegen's disappointment. We spoke in a training session, we had a normal dialogue ”, the Bayern captain limited himself to saying. Nothing was ever the same again.

New conflict

Ter Stegen wanted the goal of Germany and Neuer did not even think of resigning. "It is not easy to find an explanation," complained the Barça goal of his substitution in a FIFA qualifying day for Euro 2020, which will now be played in 2021. "I am a team player and I think about the good of the team. I don't know if it is necessary and if it helps the team ... There are many very good goalkeepers. The debate is not fair to Leno and Trapp, ”Neuer replied. Then, Bayern appeared. “The southern press does not defend Manuel as the western press does with Marc. If Neuer ceases to be Germany's goalkeeper, I will not send more Bayern players to the national team. Manuel is the best in the world ”, intervened Uli Hoeness, at that time president of the Bavarian club.

Neuer was uncomfortable. For the first time, Germany doubted him. It didn't help that a video leaked last summer showing the Bayern goalkeeper singing a neo-Nazi song. Özil, in 2018, resigned from the Mannschaft after the controversy that arose after he posed with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. "I have felt racism and lack of respect," complained the former Madrid player. But Neuer is not Özil.

On the eve of the duel against Barcelona, ​​with Neuer in one goal and Ter Stegen in the other, Bayern risked being morbid. "Ter Stegen is still on his way to being a world-class goalkeeper," said Rummenigge, honorary president of the Bavarian club. Bodo Illgner, on the other hand, is committed to common sense. “If I were the head of a club, I would bet on Ter Stegen, just because he is 28 and Neuer, 34. Manuel is present and Marc is future. In many respects I see his game at the same height. Neuer dominates the area game more and Ter Stegen is better to join the field game ”, analyzes the Madrid exporter.

Barça face Bayern in the Champions League, while the duel between Ter Stegen and Neuer transcends the fight in Lisbon. Two politically correct guys, caught in fierce competition. Nothing new in the goal of the Mannschaft.