Yann Sommer: Who is the Bayern Munich and Switzerland goalkeeper?
Bayern Munich's winter signing Yann Sommer is one of the Bundesliga's, if not Europe's, best goalkeepers. bundesliga.com profiles the Switzerland No.1, who seemed to get a kick out of thwarting his new employers...
Age: 34
Club: Bayern Munich
Position: Goalkeeper
Country: Switzerland (83 caps)
Key stats
Sommer joined the youth ranks of Basel in 2003, eventually making his senior breakthrough for the Swiss giants in 2011/12, via loan spells at Lichtensiten's Vaduz and Switzerland's Grasshopper Zurich. He went on to win four league titles and the Swiss Cup with Basel, keeping 65 clean sheets in 170 appearances, before making the move to Gladbach in the summer of 2014. The 6'0" stopper has since established himself as one of the league's best in his position, consistently ranking among the top five for most saves.
Watch: Sommer's arrival at Bayern
By now, Sommer has over 290 Bundesliga matches under his belt and 77 clean sheets to his name. Not only that, but the 34-year-old broke the Bundesliga's single-game saves record on Matchday 4 of the 2022/23 season, stopping 19 shots to help earn the Foals a 1-1 draw away at Bayern. Unsurprisingly, he is the current Switzerland No.1, representing his country at five major tournaments up to and including the 2022 World Cup, since earning his first senior cap in May 2012. All of which convinced Bayern to swoop for his signature in January 2023 as a replacement for the injured Manuel Neuer.
Plays a bit like: Marc-Andre ter Stegen
There's good reason Sommer was brought to Gladbach as Marc-Andre ter Stegen's replacement. Like the Germany international, the Swiss custodian is a world-class shot stopper - one of the most agile in the business. He also shares his predecessor's nifty feet and laser-guided distribution.
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Did you know?
Sommer is friends with tennis legend Roger Federer, who was born in Basel and remains an avid supporter of the club. The 20-time Grand Slam champion has even been known to pop into the dressing rooms to congratulate the team after a victory.
"We always seemed to end up bumping into each other, whether it was at the stadium, in the changing rooms, or when he was practising with Marco Chiudinelli, another tennis player from Basel," Sommer once told bundesliga.com.
"We're from the same city and we've developed a good relationship. We Swiss are really proud of him, and what he does for our country. He may be a global star with unbelievable quality - but he's still very down-to-earth, a really friendly guy."
What they're saying
"It was a world-class performance." - Then Gladbach coach Daniel Farke on Sommer's record-breaking heroics against Bayern
Watch: All 19 of Yann Sommer's saves against Bayern
"Yann is one of the best goalkeepers in Europe... He's also important for our team structure as a person. Yann works hard every day to stay at the same level or even push further forward in some areas. He's an absolute role model." - ex-Gladbach coach Marco Rose
"Yann Sommer is one of the most underrated goalkeepers in Europe. Not the biggest, but how he can play football. Not many goalies can do that." - legendary Danish goalkeeper Peter Schmeichel
"[Sommer] is better with his feet than most outfield players. That's not a joke - I really believe that." - former Hamburg midfielder Rafael van der Vaart
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