Fiete Arp may have transferred clubs within Germany but he has found a slight language barrier following his move from Hamburg to Munich. “I need to get used to the language. When the locals pull out the Bavarian jargon then it’s tough to follow them,” the 19-year-old explained with a smile at his official unveiling.
However, his teammates are trying to make his acclimatisation easy. “They always repeat it in standard German, so it’s fine,” the Germany youth international added. He generally feels good in his new home, which has many “similarities” with Hamburg, even if Arp finds the Bavarian capital “smaller and more familiar”. The latter is also how the striker described his new club.
„“It’s staggering how huge the club really is.””
Fiete Arp on his new club
In comparison to his youth club Hamburger SV, the new signing believes FC Bayern is “bigger but still familiar. From the training ground to the interest, everything here is a step up. The ambitions are also different.” Arp added that “the identification that the players and people here experience rubs off on you straightaway and you identify yourself very quickly. It’s tough to put into words because I haven't been here long but it’s staggering how huge the club really is. There’s no comparable club in Germany."
Arp appeared excited by what he’s seen so far at Säbener Straße and is fully looking forward to the next chapter in his life. “My future is here at the club. No club has better conditions and I completely want to benefit from that and develop. I’m convinced I’ll feel good here for a long time.” The teenager has already put this ambition into practice by beginning training a week earlier than his teammates and completing extra shifts with the reserves. When pre-season began on Monday, the striker was able to meet his teammates and coaches from the first team. Niko Kovac was immediately taken by his new charge.
Soak everything up and learn
“Fiete is a very young player with great potential. He’s without equal in his age group,” the head coach enthused before immediately putting a brake on the high expectations. “He now needs the time to mature. He has to try to soak up everything he can in a short space of time.” That is exactly what Arp wants to do and has already thought about who his role model could be.
“Robert Lewandowski has been one of the most successful strikers in the world in recent years. There’s no better teammate to learn from as a 19-year-old. He’s a complete player so he’s the perfect player to learn a lot from in all areas.” Arp perhaps only needs another teacher for his Bavarian, but that shouldn’t pose a problem.
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