BERLIN: Germany’s World Cup hero Mario Goetze said he did not have time to think about what he was doing when he controlled the ball with his chest before sweeping a sweet volley past Argentina’s Sergio Romero in the final.
“You don`t really think very much when you’re in a situation like that,” Goetze, 22, said in the Bild newspaper on Wednesday in his first interview since scoring the winning goal.
“I could try to describe what happened to you but only after taking a look at the replay myself. In the match it all happens intuitively,” added Goetze whose extra-time strike gave Germany a 1-0 victory.
The Bayern Munich forward dismissed suggestions he had had a mediocre World Cup until coming on before extra-time in the final after staying on the bench for most of the knockout round.
He started Germany’s first four matches but was replaced at halftime in the round of 16 match against Algeria.
“Everyone wants to play as much as possible in the World Cup,” said Goetze. “I think that I made a contribution to our winning the World Cup. Whenever I got my chances, my performance values were alright. I kept training hard (after being benched) and kept believing in myself.”
Goetze said he did not want to give any interviews after the World Cup because he wanted to digest it all himself first.
“To be honest I had to let it all sink in first,” he said when asked why he had declined to give any interviews.
“I wanted to savour the moment. I also wanted to avoid saying something in a moment of euphoria that would stick forever. I`d rather stay down to earth. That`s why I wanted to get away from it all for a while.”
Goetze also took aim at the media for being unfairly critical of him for not wanting to comment at times.
He said he could not understand, for instance, the criticism leveled at him for not celebrating more when he scored twice in Germany`s 6-1 pre-tournament win in a friendly against Armenia.
“I`ve had unpleasant experiences with some journalists in the past, it sometimes went below the belt. It`s fascinating that there`s an expectation for me to always be absolutely perfect. That`s why I now think twice before saying anything.”
Germany' s World Cup winner Goetze breaks silence
Germany' s World Cup winner Goetze breaks silence
Man United climb to third, Fulham sink sorry Spurs
- Red Devils have taken their tally to 19 points from a possible 21
LONDON: Benjamin Sesko stretched his hot streak with the winning goal as Manchester United beat Crystal Palace 2-1 to go third in the Premier League, while Tottenham failed to dispel relegation fears after defeat at Fulham.
Sesko was handed his first start in seven games since Michael Carrick took charge at Old Trafford and rewarded his boss with another vital goal to edge United closer to a return to the Champions League.
Palace had taken an early lead at Old Trafford when Maxence Lacroix outmuscled Leny Yoro to guide in a header from Brennan Johnson’s corner.
But United hit back to remain unbeaten under Carrick and take their tally to 19 points from a possible 21.
The game swung on one incident as Lacroix was sent off and conceded a penalty for pulling back Matheus Cunha just before the hour mark.
Bruno Fernandes confidently stroked the resulting spot kick past former teammate Dean Henderson.
Fernandes was then the creator for the second as his curling cross was powered in by Sesko.
The Slovenian has now scored seven times in his last eight appearances to quieten critics of his £74 million ($100 million) price tag after a slow start to his career in England.
Tottenham remain perilously poised just four points above the relegation zone as interim boss Igor Tudor again failed to halt their alarming slide after a 2-1 defeat at Craven Cottage.
Harry Wilson and Alex Iwobi gave Fulham a deserved half-time lead as they moved up to ninth and back into contention for European football next season.
Richarlison headed in a late consolation for Tottenham, but they remain the only Premier League side without a win in 2026.
The one crumb of comfort for Spurs was defeat for relegation rivals Nottingham Forest, 2-1 at Brighton.
All three goals arrived in the first 15 minutes as Diego Gomez and Danny Welbeck netted for the Seagulls either side of Morgan Gibbs-White’s reply.
Forest sit two points above the drop zone ahead of a daunting trip to Manchester City on Wednesday.
