Almost every football team has its Müller. His name doesn’t have to be Müller, but he should represent a type that coaches don’t like. As did Thomas Müller, whose feeling for his own team, for the opponent’s goal and space for maneuver was so appreciated by Dutch coach Louis van Gaal that he made a legendary promise at FC Bayern: “Müller always plays!”
The current Cologne mill is called Jakub Kaminski. The Pole is always playing, and unlike the Bayern veteran now working in Vancouver, he plays wherever FC coach Lukas Kwasniok puts him. Of the thirty professional footballers who were on the pitch from the first to the last minute on the first ten matchdays of the Bundesliga, Kaminski was the only offensive player.
Other perennial favorites are 14 goalkeepers and 15 defensemen. In other words, players who don’t go far and are challenged in their national teams like the all-rounder from Cologne. “I have the quality to carry out my performance for ninety minutes,” is Kaminski’s self-description.
“Our best player”
The twenty-three year old knows how to use his qualities to the newcomer’s advantage. Kaminski seems best suited on the left offensive side, where he prefers to play. But Kwasniok also used him as a rail player on the left and right, right front and center and as an “eighth man”. “Sometimes I curse myself. You think too much about wanting to achieve the best,” said the FC coach before this Saturday’s home game (18.30 on the FAZ live ticker for the Bundesliga and on Sky) against Eintracht Frankfurt about the constant repositioning.
In the 3-1 defeat at Mönchengladbach, the versatile Kaminski had to plow through the right fence to allow specialist El Mala to attack from the left from the start. “I would prefer him to play up front rather than on the rail. But that’s not always possible,” complained Kwasniok. Against Eintracht, the agony of position selection will be even greater as long-time FC favorite Jan Thielmann has overcome his injury and returns to the right side with his commitment and power. It’s very likely that Kaminski will start at left forward – before El Mala comes in and takes over there.
In Wolfsburg, the market value was halved
Kwasniok has sung several eulogies for Kaminski, who is on loan from VfL Wolfsburg. “Our best player” and “eager to learn,” praised the coach again recently after Kaminski’s big win in the 4-1 win against HSV. The Polish player is not only creative and passionate, he has also scored four goals and provided one assist; This means he is only one point behind El Mala.
Kaminski previously struggled at Wolfsburg for two years. His market value halved to five million euros before Cologne loaned him out in the summer and secured a purchase option. It is also due to Kaminski’s development that Effzeh occupies a much better place in the table than his squad values would suggest – and Wolfsburg are much worse.
In the national team, Kaminski usually plays behind Robert Lewandowski, and is quite successful. The FC professional scored the opening goal in their 1-1 World Cup qualifying draw against the Netherlands a week ago. As happened three days later in a 3–2 win in Malta, Kaminski was only substituted in stoppage time.
He faced a similar workload at club and national team again in the spring when he had to qualify for the World Cup play-offs against Poland. “I am happy and will continue like this,” Kaminski promised recently in Cologne.
