Germany faces Bosnia and Herzegovina on Friday. For many, it’s just an improved friendly match, but for one former Schalke player, it’s something very special.

Alexander Nübel is set to make his debut in goal for Germany. The VfB Stuttgart goalkeeper will be between the posts against Bosnia and Herzegovina on Friday, October 11, at 8:45 p.m. It’s a dream come true for the 28-year-old.

“Of course, I’m a little nervous, but the anticipation clearly outweighs that. I’m really looking forward to tomorrow evening. From a sporting point of view, it’s the early highlight of my career,” he said in the run-up to the game.

Nübel expects anything but a walk in the park for the favored German team: ”It’s nice and traditional. They have some nice old-school changing rooms. We had those in Stuttgart during the arena renovation, but of course you can’t compare the two. We’re expecting a special, heated atmosphere. That’s what makes games in countries like this so special.”

Nübel had to cope with the disappointment of being dropped from the European Championship squad in the summer. Now the keeper, who is on loan from FC Bayern Munich to VfB Stuttgart, is in high demand: Manuel Neuer has ended his international career, and his designated successor, Marc-André ter Stegen, has been seriously injured and will be out for months.

Now Hoffenheim’s Baumann and Nübel are fighting for the German goal. It was not always clear that Nübel would get there again. The undoubtedly talented goalkeeper was repeatedly considered uncertain, but has stabilized noticeably since his loan move to VfB Stuttgart in the summer of 2023. He is now one of the best goalkeepers in the Bundesliga.

Nübel, born in Paderborn, came through the SCP youth ranks and left the first team in the summer of 2015 for FC Schalke 04. At Schalke, he slipped into goal in the 2018/19 season and became the regular keeper. After 53 games for the pros, he moved to FC Bayern Munich in the summer of 2020 – much to the displeasure of Schalke fans.

In Munich, he was unable to get past Neuer, which is why he was loaned to AS Monaco in France. There, he was promptly established and played two seasons as the first-choice goalkeeper. This was followed by a loan move to VfB Stuttgart, which proved even more successful and has now even resulted in another call-up to the DFB squad.