An unemployed world champion

“Show the world that you are better than Messi and that you can define the World Cup, you have the qualities to do that”. Joachim Löw addressed Mario Götze in the 88th minute of the 2014 World Cup final against Argentina. The small midfielder, then 22 years old, replaced Miroslav Klose with 0-0 on the scoreboard. In 113 'it entered the golden books of German history with the goal that made Germany reign for the fourth time in its history. There, his future was bright. Brand new signing of Bayern Munich the previous summer, 37 million euros through, and had come from scoring 15 goals and distributing 14 assists with the Munich.

However, despite the numbers and having decided a World Cup, Götze had gone down a notch after reaching their highest in the ranks of Borussia Dortmund. In Munich, his career was losing gas. So much so that he decided to return to his origins, three years later, to regain the level that placed him among the players called to dominate the decade that is ending. It didn't work either. So, the one from Memmingen comes as soon as he is right now: Mario Götze, a world champion just six years ago and at an ideal age (28 years) for playing soccer, is without equipment.

His barely 609 minutes during the past course under Lucien Favre did not convince those from Signal Iduna Park to renew the contract of which one day he was his child prodigy. Far is its peak of value, in February 2014, when Transfermarkt valued at 55 million euros. Now, on the label it says 10.50. Still, it is surprising that he did not find accommodation before the close of the major league market. Hansi Flick came close to rescuing him for Bayern, but the interest did not crystallize. He will end up signing for a squad with free chips, but it is surprising to see him unemployed.

Sturridge, Clyne, Pato, Ben Arfa, Nasri …

In the list of players without a team, Götze is not the only name with tradition, although he is the best valued. Nathaniel Clyne (8 million euros for Transfermarkt), Daniel Sturridge (€ 8 M), Alexandre Pato (€ 4.8 M), Jack Wilshere (€ 4.8 M), Ezequiel Garay (€ 4.8 M), Hatem Ben Arfa (€ 4 M) or Mario Mandzukic (€ 4 M) They are another of the big names on a list loaded with seniority and broken promises. Whether due to injuries, age or lack of performance, many high-quality footballers have been left composed and without destiny. We'll see how long it takes to set up and how long it takes for the most needed equipment to start fishing.