Karim Bellarabi knew that he would be starting yesterday’s qualifier against Poland on the day of the match. Head coach Joachim Löw took him to one side to let him know the good news. The 25-year-old may have been surprised, but it wasn’t a shock – he made his debut for the national team last October and has been a regular in the squad ever since.
Obviously Bellarabi was delighted to hear the news – he knows that his place in the team isn’t guaranteed. “I give it my all during training and I aim to make the most of every chance that I get,” he explained.
53 minutes, 7.2km, 19 sprints
He was on the pitch for 53 minutes of the qualifier and gave a good account of himself. He covered 7.2km, made 19 sprints and went on 40 intensive runs. There’s more to his game than running though – he’s technically good, which is just as important.
In the sixth minute he fired narrowly wide after fabulous play from Jerome Boateng and Jonas Hector and it was intelligent link-up play with the latter that resulted in Thomas Müller opening the scoring (12’). He was also part of the move that eventually saw Mario Götze double Germany’s lead.
The Leverkusen man was replaced shortly after the break but it wasn’t injury related as many believed, although he did take a heavy knock moments earlier. “It was a tactical decision,” stated Bellarabi, who will be available for Monday’s qualifier in Glasgow against Scotland (20:45 CEST).
Karim Bellarabi knew that he would be starting yesterday’s qualifier against Poland on the day of the match. Head coach Joachim Löw took him to one side to let him know the good news. The 25-year-old may have been surprised, but it wasn’t a shock – he made his debut for the national team last October and has been a regular in the squad ever since.
Obviously Bellarabi was delighted to hear the news – he knows that his place in the team isn’t guaranteed. “I give it my all during training and I aim to make the most of every chance that I get,” he explained.
53 minutes, 7.2km, 19 sprints
He was on the pitch for 53 minutes of the qualifier and gave a good account of himself. He covered 7.2km, made 19 sprints and went on 40 intensive runs. There’s more to his game than running though – he’s technically good, which is just as important.
In the sixth minute he fired narrowly wide after fabulous play from Jerome Boateng and Jonas Hector and it was intelligent link-up play with the latter that resulted in Thomas Müller opening the scoring (12’). He was also part of the move that eventually saw Mario Götze double Germany’s lead.
The Leverkusen man was replaced shortly after the break but it wasn’t injury related as many believed, although he did take a heavy knock moments earlier. “It was a tactical decision,” stated Bellarabi, who will be available for Monday’s qualifier in Glasgow against Scotland (20:45 CEST).
