A thinker in Kauferinger Tor: Michael Wölfl

Created: 10/25/2022, 8:00 p.m

By: Thomas Ernstberger

The captain in goal: Michael Wölfl from Denklingen has developed into a promotion specialist at VfL Kaufering.

© Ernstberger

Kaufering – A long-established Denklinger is in the VfL goal.

That would not be remarkable in itself - if it were not the "wrong" VfL box.

Because we're not talking about the Denklingen goalkeeper Manuel Seifert (also lives in Denklingen), but about his colleague Michael Wölfl.

Although he comes from Denklingen, he guards the goal of the state football league club VfL Kaufering.

"And that since the B youth," says the 24-year-old Hilti sales representative, who has been leading his team since the 2021/22 season as the successor to Martin Krimshandl and then Philipp Bauer as captain.

For the "Reds from childhood" (die-hard Bayern fan) the motto applies: once a goalkeeper, always a goalkeeper.

Wölfl started "in the classic way at the Bambini school" in Denklingen, trained by Papa Roland, currently technical director in Kaufering, who used to be a goalkeeper himself: at VfL Denklingen and SV Fuchstal.

Then two years at TSV Landsberg - and then at 16 - "poached away" by Spezl Dominik Pittrich - the move to Kaufering: Trial training and accepted immediately.

At VfL, the keeper became a promotion specialist: Wölfl in the box made it four times into the next higher league: with B and A youth (together with players like Felix Mailänder, Marcel Lex and Flo Bucher, today all top performers in the first), where he played simultaneously in one season,

Here "Käpt'n Michi" is a "safe support that is constantly evolving", as trainer Ben Enthart (he already had in the B youth) praises it.

"He's incredibly ambitious, always in training and takes care of all sorts of organizational things for the team and the club."

The number 1 of VfL never conceded more than two goals except for the collective slip at 0: 6 in Sonthofen.

“Sonthofen was really annoying.

Before that, he only conceded twelve goals in 14 games and then six in one game.” He then had to listen to the consolation “Better once 0:6 instead of six times 0:1” countless times.

By the way, the man who makes Wölfl strong is called Dietmar Stettner and is a goalkeeping coach in Kaufering.

"We've been working together for eight years, he was my coach in Landsberg and then went with me from the youth to the adult area.

He is extremely fond of goalkeeper training and works meticulously," says his protégé.

Wölfl's great role model is in goal at his favorite club (and in the German national team): "That's clearly Manuel Neuer.

Our whole family are red.

We even have three annual tickets, so I used to stand in the southern stand when I was a little boy and admired Neuer from an early age.

His charisma, his athleticism, his presence, the whole process of warming up - that's impressive," says the 1.84 meter tall Kaufering "colleague".

Speaking of which: 1.84 is not necessarily huge for a keeper.

But Wölfl has no problem with that at all, he looks to Mönchengladbach: "Yann Sommer is the smallest goalkeeper in the Bundesliga - at 1.83 he is still an inch shorter than me."

Kaufering had a great preliminary round as a promoted team.

"I was sure that we wouldn't be relegated," reveals Wölfl.

“But no one believed that it would work the way it has until now.

You couldn't have expected that, it's a big surprise.” The goalkeeper knows: “We were certainly underestimated at times – it's similar to Denklingen last season.

But we showed that we can keep up and at the end of a great football year we are riding a cool wave.”

Is there even more in store for VfL in 2023 than "just" the state league (the club has never played so high before)?

"I think the state league is the highest of emotions for Kaufering - at least for the time being," says the captain.

“Other teams have been here for a long time and really want to get promoted.

This can be an advantage for them.

It's not a must for us to be up there - we have a great squad, a great coach and we don't have to hide from anyone.

That also fits.”

And what if a higher-class club would lure the Kauferinger keeper?

There comes a very clear message from bachelor Wölfl (girlfriend Alina lives in Schwabbruck), who is currently renovating his grandmother's old house in Denklingen: "There's nothing urging me to join an external club.

I'll go with you every step of the way in Kaufering - even if things go downhill." But at VfL Kaufering, at the end of the most successful year in the club's history, nobody thinks of that anyway...