Bayern Munich teen sensation Lennart Karl caused quite a stir-up lately, with his comments about Real Madrid being a dream transfer for him, and has been receiving quite a lot of backlash from fans on the internet. Not everyone has the same opinion though, as some believe that Karl should be able to express his dreams as a young teenager, and not be expected to be a professional in PR. To prove just that, Bild recently spoke to former Real Madrid players who happen to be German, for their two cents.
Based on select quotes captured by @iMiaSanMia, the general opinion seems to be that Karl deserves the space to talk about his dreams, especially such long term ones. “I think it’s great that Lennart Karl has expressed this so clearly. You should follow your dreams – even as a footballer. It’s a good sign because it shows that he wants to reach the top of the world,” said Bernd Schuster, former midfielder for Bayer Leverkusen and Barcelona.
Another thing that fans seemed to be hooked on from Karl’s statement is the fact that at only 17-years-old, he is speaking of joining other teams, without having established himself at his home club first. Ex-Borussia Mönchengladbach player Günter Netzer had to disagree, however: “It’s not age that determines it, but the performance you’ve previously delivered at your club. A player has to earn his value to Real Madrid. He is a wonderful footballer and clearly possesses strong character…I see his statement at this event as positive. He didn’t talk about a quick transfer, but about a dream. I think that as a young player, it’s perfectly reasonable to have Real Madrid as a goal.”
On the other hand, Uli Stielike, who also played for Borussia Mönchengladbach and later Real Madrid, seemed to mirror the views of most Bayern fans: “I thought the statements were detrimental to the boy, because he’s not making any friends at Bayern, neither at the club nor among the fans. Furthermore, I think he should first mature into a regular starter over a longer period and make the leap into the national team. So he still has a long way to go.”
It’s hard to pick a side on this one, but at the end of the day, Lennart Karl is just 17-years-old, has his whole career ahead of him, and should be completely free to express his long-term aspirations, just to the right people.
