Julian Brandt opens up about his first steps into the world of football

Borussia Dortmund’s Julian Brandt gave an interview for the club where he described his very first steps towards establishing his career in football.

When one thinks of Borussia Dortmund’s season to date, one can’t help but notice the immense impact that Julian Brandt has had on how it has gone so far. For many years since his arrival at the club, Brandt wads unable to find a level of consistency at the club which would allow him to stamp his influence on the pitch for Die Schwarzgelben, and yet this season, he has been by and far one of the most influential, making him one of the central figures in BVB’s current unbeaten run in the league and top spot in the table.

Despite currently being one of the players in focus at Borussia Dortmund right now, Brandt has remained a relatively quiet and reserved character, something the German international is keenly aware of. In an interview released by the club this past week, Brandt spoke about being relatively introverted and how this has impacted his career.

Brandt grew up in the town of Borgfeld, a place which remains a haven for him to get away to whenever he can to escape the “hustle and bustle” of city life, and the life of a professional footballer.

"“I mostly grew up in Borgfeld, so I remember the house where I lived, the school and the kindergarten I went to, and the field where I practiced my hobby everyday. For me, those are the roots everything has grown from.”"

Those first days with a football at his feet were far from what you would expect, however. Brandt, at least initially, didn’t exhibit an immense interest in football. Whilst playing in the youth ranks of his first club, SC Borgfeld, it seemed like he would oftentimes want to be on the sidelines rather than on the pitch.

"“It’s always hard for anyone to talk about things when they were four or five years old…I went along to the football club when I was five or six, probably because my parents thought a sport or hobby would be good…There was a training session and I wasn’t interested in football at all. The boys were playing football and I was on the sideline, picking blades of grass and so on.”"

His disinterest was so evident that, according to Brandt, that his parents thought about taking him out of the club he played for. His first coach, Fred Wirth, was able to cultivate Brandt’s involvement and coax him out onto the pitch and out of his shell. He often made it a point to have Brandt speak up and say what was on his mind. Wirth doesn’t claim to be responsible for Brandt’s career however, and merely believes he’s the reason Brandt kept going in the first place:

"“All I did was make sure Julian didn’t stop playing football after the first month. My contribution was to keep him there. Other people gave him the technical skills and so on – I’d never claim credit for that.”"

Brandt echoes this sentiment when he talks about his first coach, pointing to the fact that Wirth helped him and other young players enjoy the sport:

"“The key thing was that he managed, probably together with me as I wanted it too, to develop that passion for football. Kids don’t always have that from the start – it grows.”"

Despite being a relatively introverted and shy individual, Julian Brandt, with the help of those around him was able to develop an interest in football that has blossomed into a successful career; a career that has found the player wearing the black and yellow of Borussia Dortmund. One can only hope that he remains at the club for many years to come and continues to perform at the level that he has this season.