The German U17 national team is aiming for the title at the World Cup in Indonesia on Saturday (from 1:00 p.m.). The team of national coach Christian Wück will face France in the final at the Manahan Stadium in Surakarta. Before the big U17 final, national player and World Cup hero Mario Götze addressed the German youngsters in emotional words.
The midfielder from Bundesliga club Eintracht Frankfurt was once able to win a major tournament with the German U17 team as a teenager, becoming European champions with the DFB team in May 2009.
Alongside later star players such as Marc-André ter Stegen and Shkodran Mustafi, Götze achieved a 2-1 win after extra time in the home European Championship final against the Netherlands.
“I was 17 years old at the time, a big deal,” recalled the now 31-year-old in a letter that he wrote to the U17 youngsters and was published by “Sky”.
The former BVB and FC Bayern player used emotional words to describe what will be important in a final game as important as the U17 World Cup final on Saturday.
“Shortly before the final, I would like to say to you: I believe in you. You can do it! Reward yourself,” said the midfielder, who himself has 66 senior international matches to his name.
“Use every minute you’re given. Every moment can change everything. Before the 2014 final, I was sad that I wasn’t one of those Jogi Löw trusted from the start. But look at my face and how I beamed after the 113th minute “, Götze remembered the greatest moment of his career, his golden goal in the 2014 World Cup final against Argentina.
Götze appealed to the fighting spirit of coach Christian Wück’s team: “Trust each other. Fight for each other. Run for each other. And help each other. If the person next to you makes a mistake, then take it out on him. That’s how you do it, as a team. And then it will work out .”
Mario Götze’s letter to the German U17 national team verbatim (published by “Sky”):
Dear U17,
I’m not a good storyteller. Mainly because, unfortunately, I’m not someone who remembers events from the past particularly well. This is simply not a core competency of mine, so later on my children will probably go to Ann-Kathrin if they want to be told about the past. Unlike mine, my wife’s memory hard drive is full to the brim.
That’s why I have to admit that unfortunately I can’t set off fireworks of anecdotes when it comes to the 2009 European Championships. At that time I was 17 years old, a big ass. Our coach was Marco Pezzaiuoli. Marc-André ter Stegen was in goal. Reinhold Yabo played behind me in defensive midfield. And Marvin Plattenhardt and Shkodran Mustafi in defense.
We all had crazy hairstyles back then. I slapped my hair over my face with gel, I have no idea why they used to do that. We were a crazy bunch – and I know that friendships were formed back then – for me, for example, with Marc-André – that still last today. And that had nothing to do with the performance at the tournament.
The tournament, a European Championship in our own country, was something, at least that much remains, great. For the first time the football got really loud.
In the A-Youth Bundesliga, when we played against Aachen or Schalke, there were a few hundred spectators there. Suddenly there were more than five thousand fans in the stadium at our opening game in Erfurt against Turkey. It was as if someone had turned the volume control on the television up to maximum.
Suddenly you no longer just heard mom and dad, grandma and grandpa and a few other familiar voices, but a crowd singing together and cheering us on.
For the first time, our names were mentioned nationally, pictures were printed and we were described in more than two sentences. Marco Pezzaiuoli described me as a “delicate technician and a real rascal”. It wasn’t long before I was referred to as “Captain Future.”
There was no social media back then. Being in the newspaper was the greatest good. And of course it made you proud. We also talked intensively at home about the fact that public praise also creates an expectation, a height of fall that can also lead to other headlines.
We beat Turkey, then England, Holland and Italy until we beat the Netherlands again in the final.
When you now see what our U17s are doing in Indonesia, I have to think back to that time more often and I’m a bit annoyed that I don’t have more memories. But what I also know: the victory was good for my self-confidence. It triggered a greed to want to feel that moment of joy again and again. This title left me wanting more.
I hope our boys just enjoy their final against France on Saturday. I hope that their ears are ringing because there is such an exuberant and happy atmosphere in the stadium. I hope that they play with joy and desire. Just like they would do in any game on the football field, because football, no matter when and where, is simply outstanding.
It’s the beginning and I’m convinced that many of the boys in our U17 have a great future ahead of them. But only if they understand that this tournament is the beginning. It is a reward for sacrifice and passion, for hard work. Above all, it is an incentive. Enjoy the moment, realize what it takes to celebrate success. And then stay tuned.
But now there are enough words of warning. Now, shortly before the final, I would like to say to you: I believe in you. You can do that! Reward yourself.
And, because I’m speaking from experience: Use every minute you’re given. Every moment can change everything. Before the 2014 final, I was sad that I wasn’t one of those Jogi Löw trusted from the start. But look at my face, how beaming I was after the 113th minute.
Everyone on the team is important. Everyone makes their contribution. We were an incredibly good team in 2009, always there for each other. And that’s exactly how it was in 2014, with the really big title in Brazil. Trust each other. Fight for each other. Run for each other. And help each other. If the person next to you makes a mistake, pay it forward. That’s how you do it, as a team. And then it will work. I will follow your game, we only play in Augsburg on Sunday.
Best regards,
Your Mario