He can wave his flag with his 58 matches without having conceded a goal in C1 (a record), see the Real Madrid jersey again, this Tuesday in the semi-final first leg of the Champions League at the Allianz Arena (9 p.m.), may have given him some night terrors. Because the last time Manuel Neuer faced the White House, in 2016-2017, the Bayern Munich goalkeeper left for Bavaria with four goals in his bag and an elimination in the quarter-finals of the C1.
Since then, Ronaldo and Benzema have left Real, the “Robbery” has hung up its boots and Ancelotti has moved to the evening rival. At 38, Manuel Neuer continues to keep the Munich cages. Of course, the years go by, the body begins to squeak, but no goalkeeper has come to upset the established order since 2011 at Bayern. It’s true that it’s not easy to come and shake up the one who reshaped the role of the goalkeeper.
“A new standard for goalkeepers”
Just ask Christian Früchtl, who worked alongside Manuel Neuer at Bayern for five seasons. The current goalkeeper of Austria Vienna (24 years old) was on the verge of launching into a hagiography of his elder trained at Schalke 04:
“ He is not an ordinary goalkeeper. He is the best goalkeeper in the world and has had a great influence on the goalkeeping position. Training with him every day shaped me as a goalkeeper and allowed me to find my style. Thanks to Manu, I learned what it means to be a goalkeeper and the impact you can have outside the penalty area. With his style of play, he set a whole new standard for goalkeepers and greatly influenced the way young goalkeepers train and are used today. »
It is therefore no longer rare to see goalkeepers, ambidextrous, playing like a libero, participating in the game and attempting exits 30 meters from their goals. Add to that an above-average capacity for anticipation, incredible reading of the game and a leadership role that suits him perfectly and you have the complete portrait of the end-of-game boss.
For Christophe Lollichon, former Chelsea goalkeeper coach currently at Dunkirk, in L2, the climax of Neuer’s career, beyond a few spectacular saves, like this titanium arm on an overpowering CR7 strike in 2017 or the crazy reflex on a header from Walcott in 2016, is his match against Algeria, during the 2014 World Cup.
The masterclass against Algeria
The Munich wall had made it possible to relieve a Hummels-Boateng defense as red as peonies when it came to sprinting, with exits far from its penalty area. “We were really surprised, we had never seen a goalkeeper come out so far and so far from his goal,” remembers Saphir Taider, starter on the right help of the DZ during this round of 16. If it wasn’t Neuer in goal, we could have led. That day, and even that year, he was truly the best goalkeeper in the world. »
“ In 2014, that’s when Guardiola was coach of Bayern, continues Lollichon. For me, it was Pep who revolutionized the goalkeeper position. He highlighted everything that a goalkeeper could bring. Neuer has never been more successful, and innovative in his style, than during the Guardiola era at Bayern. When the two met, it clicked and it became extremely interesting. But he’s not the only one to have done this. If I tell you that in Nantes we were already doing this with the goalkeepers in the early 1990s, you will laugh in my face. It was already true, but it won’t speak to people. »
Indeed, not sure that Ederson, who was notably recruited to Manchester City by Guardiola for his kicking game and making him the English version of Neuer, Allison and all modern goalkeepers were inspired by Dominique Casagrande. “Manu has set a new standard,” assures Christian Früchtl. And if you want to be one of the best goalkeepers in the world, you have to try to reach that level. »
The Austria Vienna goalkeeper even believes that the influence of his former partner goes beyond professional football: “I also see in children from a very young age that the concept of goalkeeping has changed, with methods training for this position which is evolving. We owe a lot of that to Manuel Neuer. » Like this technique, in a cross, to occupy the maximum space in a face-to-face encounter.
“There are a lot of young people who imitate him and I find that this technique is poorly used, even if Neuer regularly does it very well, raises, fussy, Lollichon. There is this sometimes screen gesture of the body which is sometimes disconnected from the reality of the game. We think that we are going to take up as much space as possible whereas if we are standing very stable, with the speed of intervention that can have a Neuer, we can get the ball out more efficiently. »
“We will understand it in twenty years”
That will be the task of the next guardian cyborg. Because, at the end of his contract in 2025, the German should no longer bother the attackers for too long. We will then be able, at the bottom of our sofa, with a verbena in our hand, to observe the imprint left by Neuer.
“ I don’t even know if we are all aware that we live with a goalkeeper who revolutionized the whole sport, mentioned his former partner Mario Gomez in the Phrasenmäher podcast. We will all understand it only in twenty years. I would put Manuel on the same level as Messi when it comes to importance in the history of the game. »
Except that, like 99.9% of goalkeepers, Manuel Neuer has never been awarded a Ballon d’Or. However, like Lev Yachine (the only goalkeeper to have won the trophy), the German is the only one to have succeeded in reinventing the function. And not sure that associating his name with the trophy of the same name, which rewards the best goalkeeper of the season, can really live up to the character. Especially when the last winner is called Emiliano Martinez.