Ilkay Gündogan has had an excellent European Championship so far. The German captain is not only a true leader of his team, he was also very involved in the two opening victories against Scotland and Hungary with three assists and one goal. Now the last group match is against Switzerland.
Ask: Mr. Gündogan, what kind of feeling does it feel to inspire an entire nation and unite it behind you?
Ilkay Gundogan: The atmosphere in the stadiums was truly amazing. And then to see cheering videos from the public viewings on social media hours later – that was really special.
Ask: Did you expect this?
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Gundogan: You could already tell from the international matches before the European Championship that the anticipation among the fans was huge. Not only us, but every single fan was really excited about the start of the European Championship. We are also very pleased with the strong viewing figures so far. We are feeling the full support of the country at the moment.
Ask: The start with two wins was fine.
Gundogan: We are extremely happy that we were able to play the first two games successfully. But no more and no less. Things will tend to get more difficult from now on and we need to improve in some areas.
Gündogan’s 2-0 against Hungary. He was then named “Man Of The Match”
Quelle: Getty Images/Shaun Botterill
Ask: At the 2022 World Cup, the German substitutes’ bench reacted rather cautiously after their own goals. Now all the reserves are enthusiastic. What does that say about the new German wave in the team?
Gundogan: Pushing each other and treating each other is incredibly important in a tournament like this. I think we have the right team spirit at the moment. It will now be very important to maintain it.
Ask: What do you think is the biggest difference between the current team and the previous tournaments, which didn’t go so well?
Gundogan: It’s not always 100 percent bad if you don’t get as far as you hoped in a tournament. It’s often just the little things in the game that decide whether you’re eliminated or progress – I personally think that sometimes too much is read into it. The really tough stuff is still to come for us.
Ask: First we play against Switzerland.
Gundogan: Switzerland is now our strongest opponent in the group, at least individually. When we look at how difficult the other top favorites are having, we certainly have reasons to be proud of our results. But again: From now on, it will get harder from round to round, and we definitely have to improve even more if we don’t want to leave the tournament early.
Germany’s goal fireworks against Scotland in video
The German national team impressed at the start of the European Championship. The DFB team achieved a well-deserved victory against Scotland. Youngsters Wirtz and Musiala opened the scoring. Watch the highlights of the match in the video here.
Ask: You are said to have had a one-on-one conversation with Julian Nagelsmann before the European Championships. How does he manage to make you even stronger there?
Gundogan: We had very, very good and open communication from day one. He confirmed me as captain very quickly, then informed me in advance of the Toni Kroos decision, asked for my opinion and explained my new role on the field. I really appreciate all of that and am glad that I was able to give something back in the end.
Ask: Before the tournament, you said that you had never had such an exhausting season as the one you had in Spain with FC Barcelona, with so many appearances. Did you also speak to Nagelsmann about this beforehand?
Gundogan: Yes, he was also always informed about my fitness level. At the end of March I felt extremely tired, as the program at Barca was very intensive at the time, almost always 90 minutes. He then decided that I would not play the full international matches at that time – and before the European Championships I was given a break and only played some of the games. Shortly before the start of the tournament, a certain freshness returned in time.
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Ask: Your wife Sara and your son Kais were at the opening match in the stadium. How do you manage to balance family and job at a tournament like this?
Gundogan: It is not that easy. I was after our Greece game (last warm-up game one week before the start of the European Championship; ed.) two more days in Barcelona. The little one shouldn’t have to sit on a plane every week or stay in hotels. Luckily, these days there are things like Facetime – of course, that doesn’t even come close to replacing personal closeness, but I can still talk to my wife every day and see the little one. I’m sure they’ll come to see me again at a game soon. After the tournament, we’ll also have our big summer vacation.
Germany secures its ticket to the round of 16 – The 2-0 victory over Hungary in video
Germany also wins its second group match, defeating Hungary 2-0. Jamal Musiala and Ilkay Gündogan shoot Germany into the round of 16. Neuer keeps a clean sheet with several saves. All highlights in the video.
Ask: Your son was born in March 2023. Do you speak German or Turkish at home? Will your son grow up bilingual?
Gundogan: To be honest, neither. We speak a lot of English among ourselves. My wife’s native language is French, but she also speaks Italian, as she lived and worked in Italy for years. And I come from a German-Turkish household. In Barcelona, almost everyone speaks only Spanish. The compromise between all of this is usually English. (laughs) When speaking to Kais, we both try to focus on English.
Ask: Are your parents also coming to the stadium for a European Championship game?
Gundogan: They were already at the opening game in Munich. Depending on how the tournament goes, they will probably come again.
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The interview wwas conducted for the Sports Competence Center (WELT, SPORT BILD, BILD) and first published in BILD AM SONNTAG.
