Michael Ngadeu Ngadjui: "Football is like religion" | Sports | '
‘: In 2017, the Cameroonian team won the Africa Cup. What is the significance of the cup and the tournament for you personally?
Michael Ngadeu Ngadjui: The Africa Cup is the most important sporting event for the African people. Football is like a religion to us. At this event, all Africans speak the same language: football. The victory in 2017 is and was indescribable for me. As a child from Maroua, in my wildest dreams, I could never have imagined getting the trophy home. It is an honor for me to be part of the team that has put the fifth star on the Cameroonian jersey. When we returned to Cameroon in 2017 with the trophy, the whole city of Yaoundé was on the streets to welcome and celebrate us. It was crazy, it was great. I think we have never celebrated so much in Cameroon as this cup.
What is the feeling of being back at the 2019 Africa Cup in Egypt?
I am glad that it starts again (Cameroon will play its first group match against Guinea-Bissau this Tuesday starting at 7 pm CEST – Note by Red.), Too bad that the Cup actually should have taken place in Cameroon. That unfortunately did not work. Now we go to Egypt to defend our title. Many see in Cameroon again the favorite, of course, together with other nations. We know what the Cameroonian people expect from us, we are aware of the pressure. And we go into the tournament with the greatest possible motivation – in honor of the Cameroonian people and Cameroonian football.
"One team with one voice"
You are the defending champion and you will certainly be given special attention at the Africa Cup. What are the strengths and weaknesses of the team?
Our strengths are our cohesion and our solidarity, our fighting spirit. We play with bitterness and with all love to defend the Cameroonian jersey. We are a very big team that may not have world-famous international players. That may be what makes us weak. But the players we have together form a very good team that speaks with one voice.
Ngadeu (back row, 3rd v. Rd) was already a member of the Cameroonian national team in 2017, which won the Africa Cup
Which teams are the title favorites in this year's tournament?
The competition has been extended to 24 teams. This gives many major African football nations the opportunity to participate. For me, Egypt and Senegal are favorites, with all their armada of big players. The Ivory Coast, Morocco, Tunisia and Nigeria should not be underestimated either. And of course Cameroon.
Internationally, people talk a lot about European football. Do you think that African players have to play in Europe to make it big?
I do not believe that. It is true that European football is much bigger in the media. To get known today, you should play in Europe. But there are also some famous players who have only played in Africa. Like Mohamed Aboutrika, who played for Egypt. He has never played for European clubs and is one of the leading figures in African football. But that does not exclude that many African footballers in Europe want to play in order to develop, to show themselves and make a living.
The biggest problem for African football players who want to go to Europe is getting a visa. I am convinced of the qualities that African footballers have. With them, the European clubs would have a lot of good young players with a lot of talent from Africa.
"Refill bottles for 25 cents"
When you came to Germany, you did not come there to play football but to study. How are your memories of the time here?
When I think back to the time in Germany today, I think about October 2010. It was almost winter. I came from 35 degrees in Cameroon, and in Germany it was only three degrees warm. It was not easy. I remember the moments I spent with my friends in our nine-square-foot room. I remember the times when we were out to collect returnable bottles and exchange them for 25 cents at Lidl for something to eat. These are moments that have shaped me.
And I remember the first German team I played for, Kirchhörder SC, with coach Adrian Alipour. It is all these moments that make me believe that everything is possible with faith, determination and good work. I will not forget my past in Sandhausen and in Nuremberg, in the training center at the U23. It was a fabulous experience. I've always said that what God does is wonderful. Everything worked out fine. I have a wonderful life and thank God for it.
A future in Germany is quite conceivable for Ngadeu
They belong to the cadre of the Cameroonian national team and today they are one of the big players at the Czech top club Slavia Prague, for which you play since 2016. Why did not the German top clubs contact you before?
I would say that my professional life really started in Nuremberg. I spent two seasons there (from 2012 to 2014 – Note d. Red.). In the end I thought for my part that I deserved a chance to play in the first team of 1. FC Nürnberg, who was in the second division at the time. I am sure that I would have grown even more. God alone knows where I am today. In Germany it is not easy, especially for players who leave the training center. We were there 22 players, I was the oldest. I think there are only three professional football players from the then U23 in Nuremberg: Florian Ballas, who plays at Dynamo Dresden, Jann George at Regensburg and me at Slavia Prague. I was really sure that all these players would achieve great things and become professionals in the Bundesliga. I do not know if the problem was Nuremberg or the players, but one thing is certain: These players had a future in German football for me.
How does it look today? Can the German teams hope for a second chance to contract you?
Yes, of course, why not. It depends on the club and the conditions.
Michael Ngadeu Ngadjui is Cameroonian international and center-back at Slavia Prague in the Czech Republic. The 28-year-old began his football career in October 2010 while studying in Germany at the Dortmund amateur club Kirchhörder SC. He then played for the U23 teams of SV Sandhausen and 1. FC Nuremberg. Since 2016, he plays for the national team of Cameroon and won in 2017 with the "irrepressible lions" the African Cup.
The interview was conducted by Silja Fröhlich.
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