Winter celebrated his national debut with Sommer in 2012: “Yann was just as nervous as I was then”

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It is May 30, 2012. Four days after the spectacular 5:3 victory against Germany (three goalscorer Derdiyok) in St.-Jakob-Park, the Nati test against Romania. After the spectacle in Basel, a 0:1 bankruptcy follows.

A tired staircase, long forgotten. Not with Adrian Winter (36) and Michel Morganella (34), who both celebrate their national premiere. Morganella also has an international match against Greece under Ottmar Hitzfeld a few months later, for Winter it remains the only one of his career. “The Lucerne fans enthusiastically celebrated every ball contact I made, I may even remember a bicycle kick I unpacked at the time.” Winter said he wasn’t disappointed that this was the only mission. “It was a huge honor that I could even be there.”

Permanent keeper only two and a half years after debut

In addition to Winter, Yann Sommer (34) also celebrates his premiere in this game. And summer time in the national team is much longer than winter time. The Bayern goalkeeper will make his 83rd appearance on Monday. Ironically in the same place and against the same opponent as in his baptism of fire. “Yann was very nervous at the time, as was I,” Winter says of Summer and laughs. “It will look a little different now.”

Sommer, who still played for FCB at the age of 23, shows no sign of nervousness against Romania, he remains impeccable. However, he only became a regular goalkeeper after the 2014 World Cup and Diego Benaglio (39) retired.

Now Sommer is back where his national career started eleven years ago. At the Swissporarena in Lucerne. As a clear number one, although his replacement Gregor Kobel should now play more often. Goalkeeper coach Patrick Foletti: “The fact that we have now decided to give number two more playing time does not change the hierarchy. The boys know that.”

By the way: Sommer has other memories of Romania, probably even better than the premiere. In Romania’s capital Bucharest, he guided Switzerland to the quarter-finals at Euro 2021 with a great save against superstar Mbappé in a penalty shootout. The great France was eliminated in the round of 16 – certainly the biggest highlight in modern Nati times.

Source : Blick