Injuries have plagued him. He barely had time to find his rhythm. Practices have been few and far between. But nothing and nobody can stop Mario Gomez these days, whose string of goals for Bundesliga champions VfB Stuttgart have led to him suddenly being a potential acquisition for such a top club as the AC Milano. “His productivity is unbelievable. A lot of people will watch his EURO performance very closely”, says Oliver Bierhoff, the manager of the German national team.
The 22-year old forward has scored 15 goals in 19 international matches. In 2008 alone, he has already scored eight goals. Despite nagging injuries, Gomez is red hot. Still, whether coach Joachim Löw gives him the nod to play in Wednesday’s friendly game against Switzerland in Basel (kickoff 8.45 P.M., live on ZDF) will be a game-time decision.
Gomez, son of a Spanish father and a German mother, competes with Kevin Kuranyi of Schalke 04 for the second forward position next to Miroslav Klose on the German team. He respects the procedure: “You won’t catch me demanding a starting position through the media. I wait like everybody else for Löw’s decision. We have a great chemistry on the team, which is reallly no surprise, as we know each other for an eternity. Obviously, we all would like to play, but that does not create animosities.”
It’s been a year since his debut for the Mannschaft, the oppenent on February 7. 2007, also had been Switzerland. In his first international appearance – a 3-1 win – Gomez scored his very first goal for Germany. Within a year, he has grown into a credible alternative to such outstanding young players as Lukas Podolski and Kevin Kuranyi. FIFA had honoured Podolski as the best young talent at the 2006 World Cup.
“I truly enjoy my time here at the national team. It’s been quite a year, now I’m looking forward to the European championships”, says Gomez, who’s not nostalgic about the World Cup in Germany. “When I joined the team, we were already focused on the next tournament. For me, there’s never been any other thing but the EURO. The tournament will be a stiff challenge for us, much tougher than the World Cup. Even during the group stage, you cannot allow yourself any off-day.”
Playing for VfB Stuttgart, the reigning German champions in the Bundesliga, Gomez rarely has an off-day. Throughout last week, he only practiced for 20 minutes, due to injury-related problems. Still, he totalled one goal, two assists…and an own-goal in a 4-1 win over Hansa Rostock. “I blame it on my long hair. I’ll definetly get a haircut before the Switzland game”, said Gomez jokingly.
Gomez’ football future is no joking matter around Stuttgart. Coach Armin Veh has resigned himself to the fact that he won’t be able to keep Gomez beyond 2009, even though the contract expires in 2012. “I have no illusion about his future with us”, said Veh. “He’ll soon play for one of the major teams in Europe.” Gomez himself would love to play for his favourite club FC Barcelona in the distant future, but fends off the discussion: “I have not spoken with any other club yet, and currently I don’t think about moving to any other team either.”
