Leroy Sané has become a political issue surrounding the German national team. Now he can prove himself again for the first time against Luxembourg. A gesture made it clear that he had understood Julian Nagelsmann’s message.
Leroy Sané has a mission. He has to show himself, he has to prove himself. He must show that Julian Nagelsmann’s confidence is justified.
The national team coach received a lot of criticism for these beliefs after his DFB squad was nominated. Criticism that he uses to put pressure on his players, and especially on Sané. The tone was harsh, which earned Nagelsmann further criticism. Sané as an unintentional source of trouble.
First chance: Luxembourg.
David versus Goliath, with clear expectations from the German point of view. Not only domination is needed here, but also goals. Sane View.
Sané knows “how I think about it and also knows how much I think about it,” Nagelsmann continued. The national coach took a risk with Sané. If the star winger was disappointed, Nagelsmann fell too. If the coup is successful, he will have a type of player in his repertoire heading into the World Cup that has never been seen in this form in Germany.
This is a disgusting and unpleasant game. So: no Sané game. But the thing about Sané is: he is unpredictable. That’s what makes it so interesting, and that’s what drives all its observers crazy.
In the first 45 minutes he looked like he was trying, working hard in defence, occasionally providing a little highlight, several times looking for deep passes, but was ignored by his teammates.
So in the second half, disaster would befall the DFB team and Nagelsmann – and also for Sané, who would of course be their face in the event of an embarrassing situation. The fate of a football provocateur.
Suddenly Sané started a fire
But Sané understood and internalized the message. Shortly after the break, he went deep, got the ball and then placed it straight at the feet of Nick Woltemade. 1:0, safety! Sané as a support provider.
The blow did not provide the necessary stability, but the decision was made 20 minutes later. And involved again: Leroy Sané.
As with the first goal, he received the ball on the right wing. This time he passed back to the inserted Ridle Baku, who passed Woltemade. 2-0!
A gesture showing how much Sané understood Nagelsmann’s message
Anyone who watches Sané in this scene will see a passionate and emotional man. The pass was originally aimed at Woltemade, whose position was behind Baku.
So he was frustrated for a moment, but a moment later that despondent attitude turned into tears of joy. A moment that shows how important this match is to him. He was rarely so emotional.
In the 79th minute he almost got his own goal back, but his shot only hit the crossbar. It ends immediately after that scene. As he sat on the bench, he was still worried about missed opportunities, but he smiled.
Nagelsmann is happy, Sané is happy
After the 2–0 win, Nagelsmann was satisfied with his protégé’s performance: “He did very well with the first goal. He played a good game and made two decisive moves – in the end that’s what matters.”
And Sane? He also answered journalists’ curious questions. He was happy to provide assists and he was able to “repay Julian’s trust to a certain extent,” said Sané on RTL.
His relationship with his coach is very good, they have a lot of good conversations, he explained. “Julian knows exactly what makes me tick. He gives me a lot of love, in difficult times. That’s a good thing.”
He also considered the heavy announcement at the beginning of this week as a sign for the entire team. “We just have to step on the gas, the World Cup is just around the corner. And there aren’t many games left until then, so we have to give everything,” said the 29-year-old player.
“That’s football,” said Sané and smiled mischievously
He could even understand the unrest and criticism that surrounded him, but he wasn’t angry about it. “That’s football,” he said with a mischievous smile and added: “That’s part of football, I can’t complain about that. I just have to do what I can and try to put the performance into practice.”
In Luxembourg he was one of the few players who was aware of his appearance do his job. In doing so, he justified his candidacy and proved it to his critics. Most importantly, it proved to his coach that he could rely on him.
