Jérôme Boateng (left) and David Alaba during training in Portugal
Photo: Matthias Balk / dpaWhile Jérôme Boateng sits waiting for the first question to be asked, he seems relaxed. Then his eyebrows shoot up and his lips are pursed. "What day parties?" He asks back.
A misunderstanding. The journalist at the FC Bayern media round on Sunday asked whether Boateng's "legendary barbecue parties" contributed to the strong team spirit.
You can't blame Boateng if he pricks up the word "parties". A few years ago, Bayern boss Karl-Heinz Rummenigge said publicly that the defender had to "relax a little more", "back to earth". It wasn't just about his athletic performance.
What happens off the pitch should actually remain a private matter even for football professionals. With Boateng, however, the private was often made an event, perhaps faster than with others. So Boateng quickly cleaned up the party thing. He arranged the barbecue with the team once, before the season. It is common for the team to spend time together.
Boateng will soon be 32 years old, he is by some distance the oldest part of Bayern's defense chain at the final tournament of the Champions League. A chain of defense that was not to be expected at the beginning of the season. Because no one had Alphonso Davies as a left-back on the slip. Because David Alaba wasn't a center-back. And because Jérôme Boateng was a discontinued model at FC Bayern.
"I never gave up"
Since 2017, the club has signed at least one player for his position in the center of the defense every summer, before this season it was even two, Benjamin Pavard and Lucas Hernández for a total of 115 million euros. Still, Boateng has been playing for months. And he plays amazingly fantastic.
Last summer, Uli Hoeneß, then president, suggested a change to Boateng. Public. That was something of an expulsion.
Boateng has been playing for FC Bayern since 2011, behind the home-grown Thomas Müller and Alaba he is one of the longest-serving professionals together with Manuel Neuer. He won the Champions League, championships, trophies, he rags his own body. If Boateng had defended himself publicly, he would hardly have been blamed. He could have already done that with regard to the removal from the national team.
But Boateng was silent about it, he still does that today. "That is a thing of the past," he said in Portugal on Sunday. He doesn't want to say anything about it, just this: "I've never given up on myself." He could no longer influence what happened, he could only do that with a view to the future.
A few years ago, Boateng was considered one of the most complete center-backs in football. A colossus, difficult to overcome in a duel, both on the ground and in the air. And yet he was so fast that hardly a striker ran away from him. Under coach Jupp Heynckes, Boateng's game had moves like a libero. When the team attacked the opponent's penalty area, he stayed behind as a cleaner. No matter where the opponent hit the long ball, Boateng got it - thanks to his pace and ability to anticipate.
When Pep Guardiola became a coach at Bayern, he improved Boateng's play structure, among other things. The defender hit passes that came sharp and precise, even over long distances. Boateng showed all of this on the largest possible stage. In the 2014 World Cup final, he defended world class against Argentina and Lionel Messi. His rescue act in the game against Ukraine made one of the pictures of the Euro 2016.
Full commitment: Boateng 2016 in the European Championship group game against Ukraine
Photo: Shawn Thew / dpaBoateng was traded as a candidate for captaincy in the national team. But even then it seemed as if Boateng was no longer improving; on the contrary. It was no longer the law at Bayern that he would play when he was healthy. And the latter was no longer the rule either. In 2017, the Munich team seemed to have found Boateng's successor in Niklas Süle, who came from Hoffenheim.
But now the present is called Jérôme Boateng again.
He also benefited from the fact that Süle tore a cruciate ligament at the beginning of the season. But Boateng took his chance. He's playing at a higher level than in years.
If you ask him how it can be that someone seems to be written off and is suddenly on the best way to the Champions League final, Boateng answers without hesitation. It's important to get trust from the coach, he says. To enjoy football, to feel good. All that is given now. "I'm having fun again."
It is considered one of Hansi Flick's great strengths to provide players with an environment in which they can perform at their best. "He pushes us," says Boateng.
Alaba as the ideal partner in the defense center
In addition, there are not only the circumstances away from the lawn, but also those on it. In Alaba, Boateng has found his ideal partner in the defense center.
Boateng himself seems quieter than others on the pitch. That can be a disadvantage. Because commands from the defense center are important, the defenders have the field in front of them, their colleagues in midfield do not. So they need announcements. Anyone who was in the stadium in the 8-2 win against Barcelona last Friday could see how Alaba compensated for that. He is one of the loudest players in Munich, yelling instructions across the square.
Alaba and Davies also bring the Bavarian defense chain high speed, which Boateng still achieves on long stretches, but misses the first few meters.
Defense colleagues: David Alaba (left) and Jérôme Boateng
Photo: M. Donato / dpaIt is precisely this speed of the people next to him that enables Boateng to hit more risky passes again. If they don't arrive, the risk of being countered promptly is manageable. Against Barcelona Boateng initiated two goals with diagonal balls.
While the new Alaba is fascinating, Boateng is the old man again. But: What that means for the future remains to be seen. Süle is fit again and recently made two short appearances. He looked amazingly sure that he had to take six months off. With Tanguy Nianzou, Bayern have signed one of the greatest defensive talents in Europe. And actually there is also Lucas Hernández, who is 80 million euros.
For the moment, however, Jérôme Boateng probably has his place. On Wednesday, in the semifinals against Olympique Lyon (9 p.m.; TV: Sky; live ticker SPIEGEL.de), he should play again, as almost always this year.
"I enjoy every second on the pitch," says Boateng: "And every second at Bayern." For the first time in years, it seems fairly certain that there will be many more of them after the end of the season.
Icon: The mirror