Sane’s transformation to symbol of early Flick coaching era

Leroy Sane appears to be in the best phase of his turbulent career as he has managed a stunning turnaround over the past months to become a shining light for the German national team, and coach Hansi Flick absolutely delighted.

Wolfsburg, Germany (dpa) – Leroy Sane has undergone a stunning transformation from villain to hero and role model in the space of three months.

The gifted winger was jeered by Bayern Munich fans when he was substituted in a 3-2 Bundesliga win over Cologne in mid-August for a performance mainly dismissed as phlegmatic.

On Thursday he got an ovation when he left the pitch before the end of a 9-0 demolition of Liechtenstein in Germany’s penultimate World Cup qualifier. And children could be heard screaming his name during the game.

Not only did Sane score twice but he is also being seen as being the shining light of the aggressive football new national team coach Hansi Flick wants to see as the team gets ready for next year’s World Cup.

“Leroy Sane has become a symbol of the new greed under Hansi Flick. Sane, of all people, whose extraordinary talent was never doubted while his readiness was,” Kicker sports magazine said on Friday.

The last time the national team played in Wolfsburg in 2019 Sane made headlines only off the pitch for his extravagant attire.

He made his Germany debut as a teenager in France in a 2015 friendly overshadowed by the terrorist attacks in the French capital.

Then coach Joachim Loew was not amused when Sane underwent a nose operation instead of being part of the winning Confederation Cup campaign in 2017, and not only sporting reasons then reportedly made Loew overlook him for the 2018 World Cup. A severe knee injury was another setback before Sane joined Munich last year from Manchester City.

Flick was Munich coach at the time and things didn’t always go well between the two, but that has completely changed in the national team while Sane has also turned into a key man in Munich under Julian Nagelsmann.

“He’s shown in the last few weeks what an incredible player he is,” Flick said after Thursday’s game.

“He makes it all look so easy, which is really impressive, and everything about him is unique, even his running style. He’s proven his attacking qualities, too.

“But what I really like about him is his willingness to hunt the ball down and press the opponent: he’s done that really well in recent weeks.”

The learning effect to also work at the back has worked wonders for his image as this time no one took notice of his apricot coloured jacket and rather talked about the checkered coat of defender Mats Hummels who was present for Loew’s official pre-game farewell.

“Great game! Thanks for the support, Wolfsburg!” was all Sane said on social media.

But the accompanying photo showed him with a big smile on his face, with more joy possible in the final qualifier Sunday in Armenia.