Long-distance duel in the Champions League: two Nati goalkeepers in different emotional worlds

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One is 1.83 meters tall, the other 13 centimeters taller. One has nine club titles at professional level, the other has none. One is called Yann Sommer (35), the other is Gregor Kobel (26).

The numbers 1 and 2 of the Swiss national team will duel in the Champions League on Tuesday evening (from 9 p.m.). Not immediately, because Sommers Inter welcomes Atlético Madrid at home, Borussia Dortmund with Kobel visits Eindhoven. And yet the Nati fans – and probably also coach Murat Yakin (49) – look attentively at the performances of both goalkeepers.

Summer is in the clouds at Inter

The hierarchy in the national team is actually clear, Yakin said on Blue’s ‘Home Game’ program in December: “We communicated that Yann Sommer is No. 1 – and it will remain that way.” Ex-BVB goalkeeper Roman Weidenfeller (43) was “surprised” by the choice and thought Kobel was the better goalkeeper. Kobel’s advisor Philipp Degen (41) became clearer: “This decision at this time practically ignores the performance principle.”

The debate over who should be the national team’s regular goalkeeper has been raging for months – and both have been doing a lot of self-promotion lately. Yann Sommer and Inter are running smoothly. There was only one defeat in 24 games (1:2 against Sassuolo), the Nerazzurri are the undisputed leaders, Sommer played strongly fifteen times against zero and only had to fall behind ten times – a record.

Kobel as safe support for Stolper-BVB

So in Milan there is peace, joy and pancakes. Not necessarily in the Ruhr area. BVB stumbles a bit there, shows convincing performances at times, but then stumbles again against supposedly easy opponents. If Gregor Kobel wasn’t in goal, who knows if Dortmund would currently be in 4th place in the Bundesliga.

The Zurich player played twenty games in the competition and did not concede a goal in six of them. Because Dortmund’s defense is a bit full of holes at times, Kobel has a lot to do. According to statistics portal fbref.com, the BVB keeper has had 94 shots on target this season – 30 more than in the summer in Italy. On behalf of many, teammate Julian Brandt summed it up at the start of the season: “I am very grateful to him after every match. If we are really in trouble, he will help us.”

Dortmund have sold themselves dearly in the Champions League so far. In the hammer group with PSG, Milan and Newcastle, BVB emerged as group winner. Inter had to make way for Real Sociedad in the group. It should be possible for both Nati goalkeepers to continue against Eindhoven and Atletico respectively.

Source : Blick