For Fiete Arp, a native of Schleswig-Holstein and former Bayern striker, the clash between Munich and Kiel will be a special one. The 24-year-old talks to fcbayern.com about the ‘highlight game of the season’ and the great delight of his club and fans that FC Bayern will be coming to Kiel for a Bundesliga match for the first time.
Wahlstedt, Hamburg, München, Kiel – that's the career path of Fiete Arp to date. The forward for upcoming opponents Holstein Kiel may well have used all four words in a popular parlour game. His former team-mate in the Bayern reserves, Josip Stanišić, with whom he became a third-division champion in 2020 in sensational style, praised the former Bayern player's skills in the classic game Stadt, Land, Fluss (City, Country, River). "As a young boy, geography was actually my favourite subject," explains Arp. "Through football, I was always interested in where all the clubs come from." Arp won't see Stanišić on Saturday evening in the Bundesliga game between Bayern and Kiel (kick-off 18:30 CEST) as the full-back has a ligament tear, but the meeting under the lights in the far north will nevertheless be a special one for the Schleswig-Holstein native, his club and its fans. Despite bumps along the way, Arp has made it back into the Bundesliga – and now he faces Bayern.
Bundesliga promotion in 2024
In the south, they can only imagine the euphoria caused by this first-time promotion for the club in the handball stronghold and harbour city. "The state capital Kiel has been waiting decades to be this relevant in football," says Arp. "Even before we'd sealed promotion, people in the city were saying: Bayern are coming to Kiel next season! At the end of the day, it's always about Bayern." Now the Munich club are indeed visiting for only the second competitive meeting between the two teams. The first in January 2021 is one that Bayern fans would rather not remember.
Second meeting after cup upset
"Of course, a lot of it has to do with the cup sensation," adds Arp. "That's why it was the biggest dream of the people here to host FC Bayern in Kiel again." Around three and a half years ago, Marco Komenda, Finn Porath, Thomas Dähne & Co dumped the Reds out of the competition in the second round with a 6-5 win on penalties. According to Arp, who was still on loan from FCB at the time, the video of that shock success is still played in the dressing room from time to time.
However, now it's not about progressing in a knockout tie but about points in the German top flight. Coach Marcel Rapp's men are still yet to get off the mark following defeats to Hoffenheim (3-2) and Wolfsburg (2-0). "The start to the season hasn't gone our way," admits Arp, who's played over half an hour as a substitute in both games. "But we can take that and learn our lessons." The 24-year-old is now hoping for more minutes against his former club, with him and his team-mates pumped up. "Everyone certainly has extra motivation against Bayern."
'Highlight game of the season'
With a capacity of just over 15,000, the Holstein-Stadion is the smallest stadium in the Bundesliga along with 1. FC Heidenheim's ground. A redevelopment is planned for the future, but Arp is hoping the current special atmosphere will act as an advantage. "We certainly noticed in the promotion race in Bundesliga 2 what our stadium can do," he says. The clash with the Munich men will "certainly be a highlight game of the season", although the preparations have been normal, even if names such as Harry Kane or Manuel Neuer in the video analysis have brought the odd "smile to the faces", as Arp reveals. "We mustn't invite Bayern with mistakes and need to take the few opportunities we get."
Contact with Bayern
In addition to all the sporting relevance of Saturday evening, Arp is also looking forward to seeing some familiar faces: "The personal connections are always the nicest. I met some impressive people at Bayern." As examples he names Joshua Kimmich, Leon Goretzka, Alphonso Davies and Jamal Musiala, who was "already running rings around everyone back then as a youngster".
High ranking
"Obviously, the match ranks highly for me," says the 24-year-old a few days before Matchday 3. Between 2019 and 2021, the Hamburger SV academy product wore the German record champions' shirt. He made his first and only appearance for the first team in October 2020 against Düren, playing 13 minutes in the DFB Cup. He scored eight goals in 42 games for the second string. The move to the Storks in the second tier has paid off for the Bad Segeberg-born forward: as well as regular playing time, he got to celebrate promotion to the Bundesliga in May.
The fact that he took a short holiday in the Bavarian forest during the international break proves he still has Bayern in his heart as his former home. However, there will be little evidence of this connection on the pitch on Saturday – three points are what he wants.
Arp's apprenticeship in Munich belong to the past. What counts is the here and now, which is fighting for survival in the top flight after promotion. The first Bundesliga season in Kiel's history should be enjoyed. "I learned a lot about myself and about football during my time at Bayern," reflects Arp. "I only feel excitement for Saturday and the Bundesliga campaign." Together with his Kiel colleagues, Arp will be doing everything in his power to ensure that in May 2025, he'll be able to enter the word ‘Klassenerhalt’ ('staying up') in the ‘football term with a K’ category with a typical smile on his face during a round of Stadt, Land, Fluss. He hopes his journey in the Bundesliga will continue for a long time with Kiel.
Fiete Arp's club are the 56th different opponents Bayern have faced in the Bundesliga. Ahead of the match, fcbayern.com looks back at some memorable debut duels:
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