It's the game of Patrick Herrmann. Borussia Mönchengladbach welcomes Bayern Munich.
It is January 20, 2012, when Herrmann becomes the biggest promise of Borussia. Two goals scored the only 20 -year-old in the 3-1 success of Borussia against goalkeeper Manuel Neuer, next to Marco Reus, he is the outstanding offensive man on the field, after the victory, the Gladbach even the championship is credited. And Herrmann a great career. The SPIEGEL writes about him: "The Reus successor is ready."
It did not become the championship after all, and Herrmann's career was rather changeful. Meanwhile, he is 28 years old, he has completed 255 Bundesliga games for Borussia, so he is in the ranking of the club's history in 13th place before Rainer Bonhof, Günter Netzer, Ewald Lienen, Uwe Rahn. If things continue as well this season as he has been with him, he will finish in the top ten at the end of the season. In a row with Jupp Heynckes, Hansjorg Criens, Wolfgang Kleff, Hacki Wimmer. At the top are Berti Vogts and Uwe Kamps. These are the club legends.
Under Hecking only supplementary player
Nevertheless: It could have been far more games now, Herrmann was injured again and again. Under coach Dieter Hecking he was at best a supplementary player, sometimes came on, sometimes replaced. No more than part-time, which has brought him close to the record. Herrmann is not only the most changed player in the Borussia history, he is also about to set the exchange record of the entire league: Herrmann was dismissed 139 times, only Halil Altintop, the former Schalke and Lauterer, has a substitution more.
For weeks, the statisticians have been waiting to announce the 140th substitution. But Herrmann does not do them the favor right now: Most recently, he played in the league four times in succession, he has not experienced for years. Just as Borussia is currently experiencing something with the championship lead, something the club has not experienced for a long time. It is no coincidence that the two coincide.
"My previous eleven years at Borussia are almost congruent with the development that the club has taken", Herrmann recently said in an interview with the "Editorial Network Germany". Ups and downs met both, the club and the player, when Borussia was doing well, Herrmann was fine too. It is just time again.
"Not brought to heart to leave Borussia"
In May, Herrmann extended his contract in Mönchengladbach once again, at a time when it was already clear that Dieter Hecking left the club, but Herrmann was anything but sure that this would improve his position in the team. He had offers from other clubs, but he says he "did not have the heart to leave Borussia". These are sentences that fans in every club in the world like to hear.
The new coach Marco Rose had initially placed on other players, Herrmann came only on the fourth matchday in the team. Of course, as a substitute and only for the last three minutes. But then injured players, the European Cup games Borussia also made rotations necessary, Herrmann got his chance and was there. Now he has collected eight scorer points in 13 league games, the same amount as in the past three years.
In Roses offensive concept, he now plays an important role, he has statistically completed most sprints in the team, he recorded the most running paths, the speed was always his trump card. As a 20-year-old against Bayern already, and at 28 that is still true for the, who is called by all "Flaco". To German: the slight.
Down to earth as a Saarlander
Almost ten years ago, in January 2010, he made his first Bundesliga fixture for Borussia, you almost do not have to mention that he came on as a substitute: in the 79th minute, he came into the match in Bochum for defender Filip Daems, the Borussia was 0: 1 behind. Seconds later he had prepared the equalizer by Fabian Baker.
Herrmann is Saarlander. It tells the people from there a certain down-to-earthness. The Saarland Jonas Hector went as a national player with the 1: FC Cologne in the second league, because he feels connected to the club. Herrmann joined the Borussia boarding school in 2008 as a teenager and remained in the club until today. He says that back home in Saarland, his grandfather once built the house where the whole family lived under one roof, children, grandchildren. Now Herrmann belongs to the Borussia family. A change abroad? It would be great to meet other countries, but "I just am not."
His career would probably have used to go to an even bigger club. A change to BVB was several times in the room, but then did not materialize. Maybe the DFB people would have been more attentive to him if he had played elsewhere. So it remained in two international appearances in 2015. Patrick Herrmann has also remained true to it: The first time he was a substitute, the second time he was substituted.
On Saturday it will again be against Bayern (15.30 clock Sky, Liveticker SPIEGEL), again against Manuel Neuer, again it is a top game. Nothing is predictable, but things have happened in football.