Goalkeeper Ulreich basking in the spotlight
BERLIN: With Manuel Neuer still sidelined, Sven Ulreich is relishing his time in the spotlight as Bayern Munich’s goalkeeper as he prepares for tonight’s Champions League quarter-final return leg.
Ulreich found himself suddenly elevated to the club’s first-choice role in September when World Cup winner Neuer fractured his foot in training.
The 29-year-old will once more be between the posts against Sevilla at Munich’s sold-out Allianz Arena with the Germans on the verge of another Champions League semi-final. Bayern hold a 2-1 advantage and are bidding to reach the last four for the seventh time in nine seasons.
While the likes of Thomas Mueller and Robert Lewandowski are used to playing regularly in the knockout stages of European competition, it is a novelty for Ulreich.
“Seville was a super experience, it was a good match. I was really happy to be able to play a quarter-final of the Champions League,” he said. With Ulreich in goal, Bayern wrapped up the Bundesliga title last Saturday with a 4-1 win at Augsburg and their focus is now firmly on Europe.
However for Ulreich, his current situation was almost unimaginable before Neuer succumbed to injury early in the season.
The former keeper at his home town club Stuttgart was facing another campaign as Neuer’s understudy until the Germany star suffered a recurrence of the broken foot he originally hurt last April.
Ulreich joined Bayern in 2015 from Stuttgart and 24 of his 47 Bundesliga appearances for the Bavarians have come this season, as a result of Neuer’s absence.
He was thrust into the starting side as Bayern’s only non-international player, but Ulreich has seized his chance with consistent performances to help fill the void left by Neuer. “The expectations were enormous, if I had let a few in, people would have quickly said ‘Manu would have kept that out!’” Ulreich told Kicker magazine.
“People are used to seeing a world class player in that position and, of course, you want to match that.
“It used to bother me, now I’ve found a way to not let myself be affected by all that — the important thing is the coach’s opinion.”