Götze reflects on his past: 'I was a Judas, then a hero, then a disappointment'
Mario Götze has written an article in which he reflects on his turbulent career.
| Mario Götze scoring the winning goal in the World Cup final in 2014. | Photo: Danilo Borges/copa2014.gov.br/CC-by-SA 3.0 |
In an article for The Players' Tribune, Götze reflects on his controversial decision to join Bayern and his struggle to live up to the expectations at Allianz Arena, his match-winning goal in the World Cup final in 2014, his huge fitness problems in recent years and his return to Dortmund in 2016.
"One thing that I have learned in life is that you cannot predict what's coming. Some of the greatest moments I've lived in football have come directly after some of the darkest. And the same is true for the reverse. If you listened to the media, I was a Judas, then a hero, then a disappointment, then almost out of football. All this in just four years," Götze states in the article.
Götze will always be remembered for his goal in the World Cup final in 2014 that ensured Germany a 1-0 victory over Argentina. But the 26-year-old reveals he actually felt depressed before playing in the final.
"Life is strange. People talk about that World Cup, and my goal in the final, and I think they forget how shit that tournament was for me until the very end. Now, everyone forgets that I was subbed off at halftime against Algeria in the round of 16. But I don’t forget. I didn’t start in the quarterfinals against France. I didn’t play at all in the semifinal against Brazil," Götze writes.
"I wish I could say that I was mature about it, but I was probably the saddest I've ever been in my life. There were no positives I could find. Before the final, I was really depressed."
Götze score seven goals and made seven assists in 34 games for Dortmund during the 2018/19 campaign.
