Football sometimes comes down to fractions of inches, and so it was with Mario Götze’s opener for FCB against Paderborn on Tuesday night: a gust of wind and the ball might well have hit the post, but instead the attacking midfielder’s shot found the corner of the net to perfection. Götze went on to cap a fine all-round display with a second goal 12 minutes from time. “If you count up all the chances I had, I could probably have had more goals,” the 22-year-old reflected afterwards.
Götze loosed off seven shots on the night, but unlike his eighth-minute opener was a little unlucky on several occasions. However, his record of four goals so far this term is very promising indeed. Coach Pep Guardiola is an avowed fan: “I enjoy working with him. Mario is one of the best players in Germany.”
Götze confirmed his rapidly improving form in the clash with Paderborn. “What matters to me is being fit and able to play. The coach is giving me a good feeling,” the player reported after completing the random post-match doping control. “I’m very happy and delighted to be here. I always look forward to playing here at this stadium as a member of this team.”
Lewandowski off the mark
Especially in the first half on Tuesday, the interplay between Götze, Thomas Müller, Arjen Robben and Robert Lewandowski was fluid, precise and easy on the eye. “We played very, very well. We needed to make amends for [the goalless draw in] Hamburg,” commented Götze, “you could see we were simply enjoying our football.” That certainly applies to Lewandowski, who scored his second league goal for the Reds and his first for FCB at the Allianz Arena.
“I’m delighted,” said the Pole, who has been carrying a couple of minor muscle sprains in recent game, but was able to play his “normal game” against SCP. Sporting director Matthias Sammer enjoyed Lewandowski’s 14th-minute strike: “It was a great goal!” The volley from outside the box was certainly not unstoppable, but Lewandowski made his own luck and deserved his goal with another hard-working performance - just like Götze, in fact.
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