Ex-professional in an interview
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When you think about the recent history of Borussia Mönchengladbach and especially about the players who have had a lasting impact on the club, one name cannot be missed: that of Patrick Herrmann. He served the Foals for over 14 years, played 420 games and is one of the record players. At Transfermarkt, the 34-year-old looks back on his career and talks, among other things, about his craziest and best teammates.
Take a deep breath, gather strength – the winter break is virtually a sanctuary for the Bundesliga professionals. Herrmann also felt the same way during his playing days. “Both the summer and winter breaks are sacred for every professional, regardless of the league. However, whether you can really switch off depends on the respective table situation. There were and are many players who spent Christmas dinner thinking about what would happen next in terms of sport and couldn’t just put the stress aside,” says the ex-professional, who ended his career in 2024.
Afterwards, like many others, he didn’t fall into the ominous mental hole. “First of all, I can and have been able to look back on an incredibly great career. Of course, a lot has changed and the rhythm of the week and weekend was suddenly completely different, but I was grateful that I now had more time for my family. I have already made good use of the free time. I went to the hardware store, worked on our house or went to the garden center and thought about how I could design the garden,” he says with a laugh and adds what he doesn’t miss in his new life. “I hated fitness training sessions. During every summer preparation I told myself: Soon the horror will be over, soon the horror will be over. At the very beginning of my career we even had running training camps, which were the worst. Then the team always said: We’re going back to the pain camp in Herzlake. Almost every day was structured the same way, we had to complete several running sessions with almost no ball. It was sickening.”
Herrmann about roommate ter Stegen and his Bundesliga debut
After the turn of the year, many clubs traditionally say goodbye to the south to better prepare. For talented people, this is the chance to show themselves at the top. Herrmann also used this at one time. During the conversation, many images and emotions come to mind from the winter training camp under head coach Michael Frontzeck. “I remember that Michael Bradley really reprimanded me in English during training, that was basically my debut. I had to, or rather was allowed to, quickly learn how important focus is. With the A-youth you could approach a unit in a relaxed manner. With the professionals you have to be 100 percent there, otherwise you’ll fall off and a competitor will pass you by.”
In addition to him, another talent from the foal stable was also allowed to train with the professionals: Marc-André ter Stegen. “With Marc, you saw pretty quickly that he was an absolute mega-talent. When you watched him in training, you often asked yourself why the coach hadn’t already used him with the professionals. He was definitely better than the professional goalkeepers of the time,” says Herrmann, who also remembers the keeper as his roommate with a smile. “I shared a room with Marc on away trips for years. Marc, for example, had the habit that if someone touched his gloves, he stopped wearing them. We also spent a lot of time learning Spanish. For a while I thought he was learning another language because he wanted to. I was one of the last to hear the rumors about FC Barcelona.”
He remembers his Bundesliga debut very clearly when he was just 18 years old, after all, despite the later 1-2 defeat against VfL Bochum, he was able to distinguish himself as an assist provider. “When I came on, Michael Frontzeck told me: ‘Patrick, you play on the left side and cover the whole lane.’ That confused me a bit because it meant I had to think and play both offensively and defensively. The confusion became even greater because Filip Daems gave me the captain’s armband and was supposed to hand it to Tobias Levels. But he was on the other side and the referee had already started the game again. So I sprinted down the wing with the captain’s armband in my hand and passed the ball straight to Fabian Bäcker, who scored the goal. I still say to this day that I was captain in my first game and prepared a goal,” says Herrmann with a laugh.
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At that time he also met the teammate who would impress him the most in terms of sport. “Juan Arango had a gifted left foot. When Marco Reus later joined us and the three of us practiced free kicks, it was just amazing. The way Juan and Marco gradually welded the free kicks into the corner was worth seeing. For me, Marco and Juan were the best teammates of my career.”
Herrmann practiced his signature – highlight game against FC Bayern
For every footballer there is a specific moment when they realized that they had achieved what they dreamed of as a child. “When I was allowed to hold autograph cards in my hand for the first time, I was able to realize that I was really a professional footballer. I just didn’t know how to sign an autograph card. So I practiced at home for hours until I had the perfect signature. The moment when I was allowed to play myself in FIFA was also brilliant. Although at the beginning I gave up on myself because I wanted to win and my player rating was bad,” reports the 34-year-old, whose highest market value, with amusement 12 million euros was.
Little by little, Herrmann established himself with the professionals. The former right winger was able to leave his mark on the 2011/12 season in particular. He collected a total of 15 scorer points. His two goals in the 3-1 win against FC Bayern Munich will never be forgotten. “That was the absolute highlight game of my career. The entire supporting program was perfect. It was the start of the second half of the season, it was an evening game with a live broadcast. We had an absolute self-image within the team at the time. We saw each other on equal terms with every team and went into the games accordingly. The victory gave us extreme attention and charisma throughout Europe. A few days after the game, Lucien Favre came to me with a newspaper article from Italy. My name was in the newspaper in the European matchday team.”
14 years of professional football also meant a multitude of coaches. Whether Favre, Dieter Hecking or Marco Rose, he gained experience under eight coaches during his time in Gladbach. Two in particular remain memorable to him. “Lucien Favre was very meticulous. He really wanted to make every player better every day. Everyone had great respect for him. His favorite line in a French accent was: ‘Patrick, do so and so.’ I was also able to learn a lot and have fun under Marco Rose. On my birthday he said in front of the entire team: ‘Patrick, we on the coaching team would like to see you score another goal soon.’ I then replied: ‘Coach, then you have to let me play more often.’ Luckily he understood the joke and everyone laughed together.”
The craziest person was by far Mo Idrissou.
At the same time, he also thought about the funniest teammate with a smile. “In general, we had great guys in the squad during my career, and from a human perspective it always felt right. But the most positively crazy person was by far Mo Idrissou. Whether before bed or right in the morning before a training session, Mo always needed Red Bull. It didn’t just stop at one can. It had to be two or three cans. If an athlete would have been a good testimonial for Red Bull, it would have been Mo Idrissou.”
While Idrissou and Herrmann got along well off the pitch, the two differ significantly when it comes to their club careers. Idrissou signed with well over ten different clubs; for Herrmann there was only one club in professional football. He played 420 games for the Foals and is fifth in the rankings of record players.
Every person has an individual value scale, which consists of fundamental beliefs and acts as a corresponding inner compass. He describes Herrmann’s as follows: “Loyalty and trust are a ten out of ten for me. Of course, there were loose inquiries during my playing days and a change would probably have been possible. However, I always asked myself whether it was worth giving up everything. I had so much fun every season at Borussia, so going somewhere else was never an option for me. I had everything I needed in Gladbach. Nevertheless, of course, I never thought that I would wear the Borussia jersey for over 14 years may wear.”
Herrmann on being called a club icon: “There’s nothing better for me”
He gets a slight stomach ache when he is called a club icon or legend. “I really appreciate these labels, but I’m no better just because I played a few professional games for Borussia Mönchengladbach. People always ask me why I’m not so arrogant, I have every reason to be. I always say, what must I have done wrong in life to become arrogant. I’m still the same Patrick that I was when I was allowed to play in the Bundesliga for the first time.”
Nowadays, only a few players remain loyal to their club until the end of their career. Herrmann has an explanation for this: “Football has changed. Today, players no longer build such strong relationships with their club. They see the club more as a pure employer. I am also a football romantic and would like players to play for the same club for four or five years, but times have changed. If a player signs a four-year contract with an exit clause, then both parties know that the cooperation will not be over after one year. We have to recognize that that is the case Rules of the game are.”
Herrmann about serious injuries and the video assistant
As much as Herrmann raves about his active career, he also speaks openly about the fact that there were dark moments. He was particularly influenced by the loneliness following serious injuries. Due to a torn cruciate ligament and other injuries, he missed a number of games over the years. “The more serious the injury, the more mental strength you need. When I tore my posterior cruciate ligament, I had to decide on my own whether to have surgery or conservative treatment. This decision created such immense pressure that I started to cry because, of course, I didn’t know whether or how I would return to professional football. The lonely moments in rehab shape you. You sit on an exercise ball, do some old man’s exercises and stand up of uncertainty. If you can’t motivate yourself, you will fail.”
If you, like Herrmann, were active in professional football for over 14 years, you experience the changes first hand and so today he looks at the sport with different eyes. “I’m grateful for every single moment that I was able to collect and enjoy. What makes me think, however, is the fact that football is losing more and more emotions, especially when it comes to the topic of video assistants. In the past, the stadium would completely go crazy after a goal. Today, this atmosphere is taken away because it feels like you have to check five times whether the goal counts. I would like to see people backtrack a little.”
Text and interview by Henrik Stadnischenko