Boateng reflects on time in Berlin before Pokal clash with Hertha

Before Jerome Boateng was a Champions League and World Cup champion for Bayern Munich and Germany he got his first taste of the big leagues with Hertha Berlin. In an interview with DFB.de, the 30-year-old center-back looked back on the city and club that gave him his big shot ahead of the impending clash between Hertha and Bayern Munich in the DFB Pokal. He told DFB.de,

I had a great time in Berlin. I was born there and that’s where I learned how to play football. I was with Tennis Borussia for four years and with Hertha for five. Those years shaped me into the person and player I am today and it’s really a dream to have been able to start my professional football career in my home city.

Boateng visits the German capital regularly to visit his parents. His daughters live with him in Munich. But Boateng was effusive with praise not only for the time he spent developing at Hertha, but also for their current squad. He said,

Hertha have developed a lot and play very attractive and impressive football under their coach, Pal Dardai. That’s why it’s become a harder fixture in recent years. Hertha are still improving and show no signs of stopping — it won’t be an easy task for us to get to the next round.

However, it wasn’t all smiles and sunshine. Boa, who still has family back in Berlin, hasn’t forgotten that it was Real Madrid and Hertha Berlin who were the only two teams that Bayern Munich failed to beat in the 2017/18 season. Also from the department of mind boggling facts, Bayern has failed to win IN Berlin in two and a half years.

It is unknown whether he will get the starting spot for Bayern this Wednesday, but one thing is for sure. Boa is looking for some payback.