PSG defender Kehrer: You shout "Thilo", he passes the ball to you

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Thilo Kehrer in the Ligue 1 game against Dijon

If Thilo Kehrer gets the ball at PSG, he can't keep it for long. "Thilo" shouted his teammates when he should play. In the Champions League semi-final against RB Leipzig you could hear them again and again over the external microphones. No sooner was Kehrer on the ball than they roared. When that happens, he usually obeys and quickly pushes the ball on. Kehrer doesn't want to go wrong. But sometimes he also fits the wrong man, like in the 31st minute when he played the ball directly into the opponent's forward movement in the Leipzig penalty area.

If you had to name the best right-backs in the world, the name of Liverpool's Trent Alexander-Arnold, maybe Joshua Kimmich, would come up. It has to be doubted that Thilo Kehrer from Paris Saint-Germain would also be at the forefront.

The 23-year-old is a trained sixth player and made his breakthrough in the Bundesliga as a central defender at Schalke 04. In this position, Kehrer was so impressed that PSG spent 37 million euros on him two years ago; After Shkodran Mustafi (41 million euros transfer fee), he is the second most expensive German defender in history. Kehrer has strengths in the development game, he belongs in the heart of a defense. But in Paris it is currently needed more urgently elsewhere.

Appreciated for its versatility

In the evening, when the Champions League final between FC Bayern and PSG kicks off (9 p.m., live ticker SPIEGEL.de; TV: ZDF / Sky; Stream: DAZN), Kehrer defends the French champions on the right. As in the quarter-finals against Bergamo (2: 1) and most recently against Leipzig (3: 0). Kehrer may not be one of the very best right-backs, he plays less offensively than a Kimmich, does not dribble as hard, which is noticeable in a team with many dribblers. Kehrer doesn't go as fast either.

That's why the teammates always call: "Thilo", translated: Ball here and let's do the offensive work.

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Stop, look, pass

Michael Baucher / imago images

However, Kehrer has qualities that every coach appreciates - he is game-intelligent, can quickly adapt to different positions, and is incredibly versatile. In his young career, Kehrer already acted in the left and right midfield, as a sixth, left and right defender. Mostly, however, he played as a central defender, initially also at PSG.

But because the Parisian top talent Presnel Kimpembe got better and better over the years and Thiago Silva is already there, Kehrer - who had been absent for a long time due to a foot injury - had to move to the right. Actually, today's BVB professional Thomas Meunier would have been there, but PSG could not or did not want to agree with him on a contract extension for the Champions League tournament. In the past, Nélson Semedo from FC Barcelona was considered a dream player for the position, but there has not yet been a transfer.

Kehrer's regular position as PSG right-back was born out of necessity. But in Paris they trust him to play this role too.

Because there may still be a lot of room for improvement on the offensive, but on the defensive it is a stability factor. Kehrer doesn't grip much, he usually knows where the balls are going, he anticipates well. With Benjamin Pavard Bayern Munich have a comparable type of player on the right side of the defense. Conscientious at the back, expandable at the front.

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On the left, however, the Munich team are extremely dangerous and that's why the hardest task so far awaits Kehrer in the evening: He will meet Alphonso Davies, you don't have to say another word about the Canadian's speed since Barcelona at least. In addition, Ivan Perišić is currently flourishing.

Kehrer will have to rely on the support of his teammates. So far, the defensive network has worked well, even Kylian Mbappé or Neymar recently had an astonishingly high proportion of counter-pressing. Fittingly, Kehrer said after the success against Leipzig: "We have grown together as a team this year." And Kehrer also grew into this team from game to game.

But the question is: how sustainable is that? And will Kehrer find his way back into central defense? Where is it strongest? At Schalke 04, Kehrer would still be the clear number one in the defense center. In this position he would have long been a regular candidate for the national team. On the other hand, it is clear that his move to Paris was the right decision.

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Parisian teammates: Like Draxler (left), Kehrer was once trained in the Schalke Knappenschmiede

Schalke is in a serious crisis, is losing test games against Verl and Uerdingen these days, in such a team Kehrer would go under. The DFB team has a supporting role during the Covid-19 pandemic. But Kehrer plays for the Champions League victory in the evening, every further good performance by him is a letter of application for a permanent place. Maybe even in the center?

Bayern's Jérôme Boateng also once had to go the detour via the right side of defense, only had to prove himself there at Hamburger SV, Manchester City, FC Bayern and the national team before he was entrusted with the headquarters. Today Boateng is a Champions League winner, world champion and world star.

With Thomas Tuchel, Kehrer also has a trainer who appreciates him extremely. It was he who convinced Kehrer to move to Paris, and it was also Tuchel who instructed sports director Leonardo to transfer the 37 million euros for Kehrer. Such a sponsor is not a disadvantage. And with the departure of Thiago Silva in September, a place will be available in the headquarters.

But does it go to Kehrer?

It is easy to imagine that the investors from Qatar will sign a successor for Thiago Silva in the autumn. And after the departure of Meunier also a new right-back. It remains to be seen whether they are better than Kehrer.