Can Stefan Ortega become a mainstay in the Germany squad? | OneFootball

Manchester City’s Stefan Ortega is getting his first taste of international football. Receiving his maiden call-up to the German national team, the 32-year-old has been training alongside Oliver Baumann and Alexander Nubel as the Nationalelf prepare for their UEFA Nations League games against Bosnia and Herzegovina and Hungary.

Ortega, who moved to the Premier League in 2022 to provide competition for Ederson, has played four games across all competitions for Manchester City this season, and has played 38 since his move from Arminia Bielefeld.

Regarded as an excellent ball playing goalkeeper, Ortega could well find himself in contention to become a mainstay in the Germany squad given the international retirement of Manuel Neuer and long-term injury to Marc-André ter Stegen.

During his time at Arminia Bielefeld, Ortega played 67 games in the Bundesliga, keeping 17 clean sheets. Marco Kostmann, a 58-year-old goalkeeping coach who trained Ortega from the youth teams all the way through to the Bundesliga, believes his prodigy has a good chance of securing a permanent place in the squad.

Speaking to Kicker, Kostmann said: “The chances are good. He has a reputation for being a reliable player at Manchester City, one that Pep Guardiola can always rely on. That is exactly how the DFB will see it: They are getting another top player in goal and for the team, who has proven that he can deliver top performances in stress-resilient situations, even when coming off the bench.”

GGFN | Daniel Pinder