AFPNiclas Füllkrug cheers
NOS Voetbal•vandaag, 10:28
It is the 91st minute and Germany is still 1-0 down against Switzerland at the European Championship. But then Niclas Füllkrug is back. The pinch-hitter ensures that Germany goes undefeated to the round of 16.
But in the knockout phase tonight against Denmark (9 p.m.), the striker will probably be ‘just’ on the bench again.
While in the Netherlands the discussion broke out as to whether Memphis Depay should not be replaced by Wout Weghorst, in Germany they are having more or less the same discussion: Kai Havertz or ‘Fülle’.
Fülle’s average is extraordinary.
Rudi Völler
Even Rudi Völler, director of the German Football Association, is getting involved now that Füllkrug has already scored two European Championship goals as a substitute. The 31-year-old striker has already scored 13 goals in 19 international matches.
“The average of ‘Fülle’ is extraordinary. It’s unbelievable how many goals he scores in the playing time he has,” says the former striker.
“I wish him the best, I am really proud,” Charlison Benschop adds. Benschop, former AZ player and now Alemania Aachen, and Füllkrug are good friends, they played together at Hannover 96.
EPAniclas Füllkrug at Hannover 96
It was never really expected that Füllkrug is now so successful. “No, when I played with him I certainly didn’t have that idea,” says Benschop.
Füllkrug has a remarkable career. We can rightly say that the striker from Hannover is a late bloomer.
He went through Werder Bremen’s youth academy, but never broke through. Füllkrug therefore went on to play at the second level at Nürnberg and Hannover 96, where he regularly found the net. But he was certainly not the top striker he is now.
AFPCharlison Benschop (left) has scored for Hannover 96
Disaster then struck the attacker. He suffered a knee injury at Hannover 96 in the 2018/2019 season.
The following season, Füllkrug returned to Werder, but things immediately went wrong again. He tore one of his cruciate ligaments and missed almost the entire season. He had to watch his club get relegated.
The turnaround
Benschop still remembers the turnaround for Füllkrug well. “I played at Sandhausen against Werder Bremen in 2021. He came on and scored immediately, he was promoted to the Bundesliga with Werder and subsequently became a crowd favorite there.”
Germany-Denmark at NOS
The round of 16 between Germany and Denmark can be seen at 9 p.m. on NPO 1, via a livestream on NOS.nl, in the NOS app and on NPO Start and can be listened to on NPO Radio 1.
On the talk show Studio Football Presenter Sjoerd van Ramshorst will be closely following the European Championship, tonight with Youri Mulder, Rafael van der Vaart and Suzanne Huurman, doctor at Real Madrid, as guests.
You can stay up to date with all the European Championship news all day long via a live blog via the NOS app and on NOS.nl.
Benschop: “His timing is really good and he can also head the ball very well. Actually, pinch hitters Weghorst and Füllkrug have something in common. They can head the ball well and have a nose for the goal.”
In addition, the German striker has added an extra quality to his arsenal, thanks to Benschop. “As a striker, he was never really good with his back to the goal. He then asked me for advice because I did that a lot. He took those tips from me. He now plays like that all the time at Dortmund.”
Role as pinchitter
In Dortmund he is now a regular player, where the striker scored twelve goals last season. But in Germany he still has to tolerate Havertz ahead of him.
He doesn’t really mind that, he told NOS earlier this week. “Every player wants to play, but you have to be there when they need you. It’s great that it now works every time I’m on the field.”
Füllkrug has no problem with ‘joker’ role at Germany: ‘Want to be important’
Benschop: “I know him well enough to know that he is certainly disappointed with his reserve role. But I know that he can also fill this role well. He can score a goal from every small chance, it doesn’t matter whether he plays from the first minute or later. He always gets the most out of it.”
In addition, according to Benschop, the German pinch hitter is also a realist. “He knows what he has achieved after his knee injury. He is now enjoying this tournament even more, because so few people expected it from him.”
2024-06-29 08:28:15
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