On the media stand in the upper tier of Mönchengladbach’s Borussia Park, collective uncertainty grew on Sunday evening with every save by Gladbach goalkeeper Yann Sommer. How do you grade a footballer that you want to give something better than an A? Can you use the clumsy pun of “summer fairy tale”? And is a dull gag that thwarts the cliché of alleged Swiss complacency legitimate?
The Swiss goalie Sommer, 33, didn’t even keep his goal clean in the game against Mainz. In the 73rd minute he had to let a shot by Karim Onisiwo pass, which equalized Gladbach’s 1-0 lead through Breel Embolo (33rd) to make it 1-1. However, there were two scenes that raised the question of whether Sommer was made of flesh and blood or whether it was more “extraterrestrial”, as his trainer Adi Hütter speculated.
Does he now get offers from the circus or rather from top European clubs?
In the 48th minute, Sommer unsuccessfully flew after a powerful shot from Mainz’s Leandro Barreiro, who smacked the post, rebounded and was slammed back in the direction of the goal by Mainz’s Jonathan Burkardt from six meters and at full speed. Sommer just pulled himself together and steered the ball over the goal with his right hand – with a reflex that had nothing human about it, because you can’t make any conscious movement so quickly. In the 89th minute, the second scene: Sommer, who is rather small for a goalkeeper at 1.83 meters, initially flew spectacularly with a Burkardt shot before he was on his feet again with a direct rebound header from Jae Sung Lee and the ball steered towards the crossbar in an artistic jump.
Because the parades immediately went viral on the Internet, Borussia now has to reckon with the fact that their goalkeeper will receive an offer from the Chinese national circus or from Cirque du Soleil, or at least from some top European clubs. Sommer’s contract expires at the end of next season. After eight years in Gladbach, he could soon be taking on a new challenge. But he has no time for such thoughts now, he emphasized, “I have to put all my energy into the work here.” When asked about his saves, the Swiss was downright humble. He said of the rescue action against Burkardt: “Fortunately, he hit my hand.”