In Bastian Schweinsteiger’s opinion, Alexander Nübel should initially be in goal for the German national football team in the absence of the injured Marc-André ter Stegen. “Thank God we have some good goalkeepers. Personally, I find Nübel very interesting – if you looked at Stuttgart last season, how he played there, and also if you look into the future, he certainly has the best cards there,” said the 2014 world champion in a “Sportschau” interview. “I would give him my confidence until Marc gets back.”

Next international matches in mid-October

After Manuel Neuer’s resignation from the DFB team after the home European Championship in the summer, Ter Stegen became Germany’s number one after many years of waiting. Just over a week ago, the FC Barcelona goalkeeper suffered a serious knee injury. The 32-year-old tore his patellar tendon, had surgery and was out for months. Since then, there has been a lot of speculation about who will replace him in the national team.

Nübel, who is on loan from FC Bayern Munich to VfB Stuttgart until 2026, is one of several potential candidates. The next games in the Nations League are on October 11th in Bosnia-Herzegovina and three days later against the Netherlands.

Vain hope for something new

Schweinsteiger would also have welcomed Neuer’s return. “He expressed himself clearly, but as a fan you always have a small hope that a call will come to Manu and he will say “yes” because he simply has an aura in goal that influences the opponent,” said the 40 year old.

The Bayern keeper is “an incredibly good goalkeeper and a leader, so it would be a safe bet to have him at the back of the net,” said Schweinsteiger, who himself played with Neuer for many years. “But I don’t think that will happen and I assume that Nübel will be in goal.”