FAZ Q&A: Beier names his favourite player and BVB's underrated man | OneFootball

Maximilian Beier has been at Borussia Dortmund for almost two years now. Signed from TSG Hoffenheim in 2024, the Brandenburg-born forward received most of his football education at Energie Cottbus. In the questionnaire by the FAZ, the BVB striker gives insight into his preferences – in football and beyond – as well as his values and goals in life.

Because of his time in Cottbus, Beier also names youth coach Patrick Schrade there as the most important coach in his still fairly short career. But Schrade, he says, paved the way for the path Beier is now “allowed to take,” one that led him into the squad of regular Champions League participants BVB.

One thing that may count among his strengths becomes clear from his answer to the question of what he fears in a football match. “Said with full confidence: Nothing!” Fear, he says, is a bad companion in football; with it, you cannot play freely, and Beier apparently does not know that feeling on the pitch.

That is also because he simply enjoys football. He says it is a great privilege to be able to do every day what he enjoys most – a privilege Beier also knows how to appreciate accordingly. On top of that, he has learned more and more how to switch off after bad matches while still drawing the right conclusions.

Photo: IMAGO

Beier: Waldemar Anton often underestimated at BVB

A big misconception about professional footballers, he says, is that they have a lot of free time. That may be true on a normal training day. But then there are also the many trips to away matches, which always require a lot of time and often mean being separated from your girlfriend and family.

For Maximilian Beier, the most important quality in a teammate, besides all footballing ability, is the personal side. If that relationship is healthy, he says, you can push each other much better.

During his playing days, Maximilian Beier admired Fernando Torres, who for him was an “unbelievable player.” To Beier, the Spaniard had “really everything you need as a top striker: finishing, ball control, game intelligence, instinct.” From the current BVB squad, meanwhile, Waldemar Anton is underrated, Beier believes. In his view, Anton sometimes “flies a bit under the radar” in the media and does not get the recognition he actually deserves. He says something similar about his former teammate Grischa Prömel.

Beier’s favorite pastime in his free time is darts, which is why he also attended the World Championship in London around last New Year’s. But he also likes spending time with his girlfriend just as much, he adds, because “she’ll probably read this too.”

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇩🇪 here.