Quoted in the Bayern Yearbook, Andreas Ottl lists his personal qualities as honest, ambitious and dependable. Germany’s leading club clearly values these attributes too, after agreeing a three-year contract extension with the 22-year-old midfielder on Friday. The player, who joined the club as an Under-12 in 1996 but whose current deal expires at the end of the season, will now stay at FCB until 30 June 2011.
“I’m delighted things have worked out,” declared Munich-born Ottl, who switched to Bayern from local outfit SV Nord-Lerchenau at the age of eleven. “I’ve been at the club for so long already,” continued the Germany U-21 international, a member of Bayern’s double-winning senior squad in 2006. As a youth, Andreas also collected national U-17 championship honours in 2001 and the U-19 national title in 2002 and 2004.
Willing to learn
Ottl has made 39 Bundesliga appearances for Bayern so far, 24 of them last term. However, after Zé Roberto’s return as a holding midfielder at the start of the 2007-8 campaign, Ottl has turned out just seven times in the league, with three UEFA Cup outings and one in the DFB German Cup.
“I know it’ll be very competitive for me, but I’m determined to make the breakthrough here,” declared Ottl, unfazed by the signing of Germany midfield ace Tim Borowski from Werder Bremen for next season. “I’ve proved my worth at the highest levels and I reckon I have a chance here. Also, I’m only 22, so I still have time to develop. I can easily improve by a few percent, and that’s to my advantage.“
Long-term perspective
In any case, and given that fellow defensive midfielders Zé Roberto and Mark van Bommel are 33 and 30 years old respectively, Andreas regards his new deal as a long-term rather than short-term matter. "I'd like to become one of the players capable of filling the holding role for Bayern Munich. I have good vision, I can open up a game, and I can bring the necessary stability to our defence," he told respected weekly journal kicker.
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