Borussia Mönchengladbach have given homegrown talent (17) Simon Walde an opportunity to showcase his abilities with the first team. Daniel Farke has placed the German youth international in the training camp with the professional team.
“This week is really crazy for me,” Walde told BILD. “I didn’t even expect to be allowed to ride. That’s a real bonus. I only knew the guys from TV and cheered them on. Now I’m standing next to them on the pitch.”
The 17-year-old sacrificed his vacation in Turkey to train with the first team: “I actually wanted to go to Turkey but cancelled before the start of training because it became apparent that I would be there at the start of training.”
Walde will play his second game with the first team on Sunday but doesn’t have any nerves making the step up. Speaking about his goals, the right-back added: “I graduated from high school and I’m now only concentrating on football. I want to be a professional footballer. It’s a tough road I still have to walk but I’m optimistic I can do it. I believe in myself, the coaches do too. I just have to keep working hard.”
Born in 2005, Walde played 14 league games across the U17 and U19 leagues last season.
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