On Friday, LASK caused a transfer sensation: The Linz team signed world champion Jérôme Boateng.
The 35-year-old central defender signs for two years in Linz, the media response is of course huge, Boateng is by far the number one topic in the domestic sports press.
Jérôme Boateng’s career and life are characterized by a lot of light. But where there is a lot of light, there is often a lot of shadow. In recent years, these have overshadowed his undoubtedly impressive sporting achievements.
LAOLA1 looks back at the 35-year-old’s career so far and also sheds light on why his life outside of sport has been so much in the public eye in recent times.
From the small cage to the large Olympic Stadium
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The son of a German mother and a Ghanaian father, he took his first steps as a footballer in Berlin. At first he only played in the backyard and in a cage with friends, and it was only at the age of ten that he joined a club for the first time.
This was Tennis Borussia Berlin, which at the time was even playing in the 2nd Bundesliga under cult coach Winfried Schäfer. His talent was quickly noticed and so, at the age of just 14, he moved to the big Hertha BSC, where his half-brother Kevin-Prince (both have the same father) had been playing since he was seven.
There, both worked their way up to the professional ranks, side by side, and on the 25th matchday of the 2006/07 season, they played together for the first time in a Bundesliga match against Borussia Mönchengladbach.
Shortly before, Jerome was able to experience the first highlight of his career: He celebrated his first victory as a professional against HSV, and showed a strong performance in the 2-1 home victory at the Olympic Stadium.
Once together at Hertha: The Boateng brothers (last row left)
Foto: © getty
After that, their paths separated. Kevin-Prince had his best time at AC Milan, and also played for Tottenham and Barcelona. Jerome joined HSV, became a key player there and reached the semi-finals of the Europa League with the Hanseatic club.
He also made his debut for the DFB national team in 2009, but it was not an easy one. The game ended prematurely after 69 minutes following a yellow-red card. It was the first time a debutant was excluded in DFB history. But that was hardly enough to slow down his rise.
Unsuccessful at City, “Golden Years” at Bayern
His strong performances earned him a well-paid contract with Manchester City in the early summer of 2010, where he was to be groomed as the new partner of the now Bayern coach Vincent Kompany.
The team already worked very well together at HSV, and coach Roberto Mancini was delighted at the time about “an excellent signing. He is a young player who already has a very high level.”
But nothing came of it, and Boateng only fulfilled one of his five-year contract. He was unable to establish himself, partly due to injuries, and sought a way back to Germany, where Bayern Munich gratefully accepted him.
His time with the German record champions was to be a ten-year sporting high point for him. He ended up with nine championship titles, two Champions League victories and five cup triumphs. Crowned by the award of Germany’s Footballer of the Year 2016.
Always at his side during the ten years: ÖFB star David Alaba, with whom he shared the pitch 274 times.
Top duo at Bayern: Alaba and Boateng
Foto: © getty
However, his time there could have ended earlier. When Boateng became increasingly inconsistent in the 2018/19 season, Uli Hoeneß, in his incomparable manner, publicly advised him to move. “I think it would be better for him if he could enjoy a different atmosphere. […] He seems like a foreign body,” Hoeneß said at the time.
Under Hansi Flick, however, Boateng celebrated a renaissance alongside Alaba, who had been converted into a central defender. In the 2019/2020 season, Bayern won the quadruple and lost only one game in which Boateng and Alaba formed the central defense.
Visiting Gina-Lisa Lohfink
By this time, Boateng had long since become an indispensable player in the DFB team, and alongside BVB star Mats Hummels he was the terror of all strikers. On the way to the 2014 World Cup title, the duo was virtually insurmountable, especially from the knockout phase onwards.
His 7-1 victory over Brazil in the semi-final in front of 60,000 stunned Selecao fans remains legendary. His crowning achievement came in the final, which Germany beat Argentina 1-0 and which he took Lionel Messi out of the game for 90 minutes.
The then 26-year-old had become a leading player during the World Cup triumph, and it seemed as if he had left the escapades of earlier years behind him – such as in 2012, when he was publicly reprimanded by team boss Jogi Löw. Boateng had met model Gina-Lisa Lohfink in a hotel immediately before the start of the European Championship.
Before and after that, Boateng was involved in several traffic offenses, crashing his sports cars in 2014 and 2020, but fortunately neither he nor others were seriously injured.
In terms of sport, however, there was little to criticize him for; he even gave the classic image of a model professional who had to work hard for everything, hardened in the Berlin football cages. In interviews, he seemed modest, reserved, almost shy – characteristics that he did not always seem to display in his private life.
Gauland polemicizes at Boateng’s expense
The name Jérôme Boateng first caused a stir outside of the football pitch in 2016, which only added to the image of the “model student”.
The then AfD vice-chairman Alexander Gauland said behind closed doors: “People like him as a football player, but they don’t want to have a Boateng as a neighbour,” which resulted in a wave of solidarity with the national player.
For several years now, Boateng has also had to stand up for himself in court
Foto: © getty
Until a few years ago, Boateng was considered the epitome of diligence, hard work and an example of what is possible with the right amount of it. His earlier slip-ups off the pitch were forgiven, after all, he didn’t always have it easy in his youth either.
Boateng’s legal gauntlet
But his image suffered at the latest with the accusations made by Sherin S., mother of his two daughters. She described Boateng as quick-tempered, aggressive – and apparently with a penchant for physical violence.
The case went to court, the charges were assault and insult, he was accused of having “hit Sherin S., punched her, bitten her in the head, thrown her to the ground and violently insulted her,” as quoted by Der Spiegel. The presumption of innocence applies.
In September 2021, he was found guilty by the Munich District Court in the Sherin S. case and sentenced to a fine of 1.8 million euros. However, Boateng’s lawyers, the public prosecutor’s office and the civil party appealed against the verdict.
It was the second big shadow that loomed over Boateng this year, because even at the beginning of the year, his name was on everyone’s lips. On February 9, 2021, his ex-girlfriend, model Kasia Lenhardt, took her own life at the age of just 25. A week earlier, Boateng had announced his separation from her.
Ex-girlfriend found dead
Numerous German media outlets reported extensively on the end of the relationship. Lenhardt, who had made a name for herself as an influencer in addition to her modeling career, was subsequently faced with a shitstorm on social media.
Reports about Boateng’s allegations continued, but Lenhardt did not react, which was perceived by many in public as a tacit admission by the model.
One week after the Boateng interview, she was found dead in her apartment. On her son’s sixth birthday. As “correctiv.org” and the “Süddeutsche Zeitung” revealed, Lenhardt had signed a confidentiality agreement around two weeks before her death, which made it impossible for her to make a public rebuttal.
An investigation had already been initiated against Boateng in December 2019 for intentional bodily harm towards Lenhardt, but it was discontinued in June 2020.
The reason? “On the one hand, because the victim, Kasia L., had initially decided not to make any more incriminating statements. On the other hand, because the outcome of the proceedings that had already been brought should be awaited,” a spokeswoman for the public prosecutor’s office told “Bild”.
In the meantime, even half-brother Kevin-Prince publicly distanced himself from Jerome in an interview with “Bild”.
Boateng wants to try again at LASK
Photo: © LASK
The appeal hearing in the case of Sherin S. started in October 2022, the appeal court convicted Boateng of assault in two cases and imposed a fine totaling 1.2 million euros.
But it was not to stop there. In October of last year, the verdict was overturned because procedural errors were found. The case is now to be reopened from June 14th.
Lyon, Salerno, Linz, Court
In the midst of this time, Boateng continued his career, moving to Olympique Lyon after leaving Bayern in the summer of 2021, before his contract there was not renewed in the summer of last year.
In the winter he joined the Serie A club US Salernitana, which was threatened with relegation, but he did not play a major role there and has also been out injured since mid-April. In total he only played 238 minutes and Salernitana were ultimately relegated.
Now he apparently wants to give it another go at LASK, has signed for two years and has big goals with the Linz team. We wish him much success in his sporting career and a successful conclusion to it.
The match on the legal stage away from the football arena could last for him beyond the end of his career. In two weeks he will have to answer again in the Sherin S. case.
LASK is guaranteed a lot of media attention. But only time will tell whether they have done themselves a favor by signing Boateng, both inside and outside the Raiffeisen Arena.
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2024-05-31 16:10:48
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