Manuel Neuer will go down as one of the greatest goalkeepers of all time. However, his international career ended not the way he would have hoped.
Fabrizio Romano posted on X: 'Manuel Neuer retirement from international football is confirmed. “It's extremely bitter for it to end like this…”, Neuer says.'
The last game Neuer would have played in was Germany's shock defeat on penalties to Paraguay. Neuer was his country's hero when they lifted the 2014 World Cup. He became known for rushing out of his box and being the so-called 'sweeper-keeper.'
Neuer amassed 128 caps for Germany, and this is not the first time he has retired. He called time on his international career after Euro 2024, where Germany lost to Spain in the quarter-finals at the tournament they hosted.
He came out of retirement for the World Cup this summer. Neuer is now 40, and this does feel like it will be it for Neuer with Germany. He is still contracted to Bayern Munich until 2027, so we may be able to see him in club soccer for one more season at least.
Germany do not have a natural replacement for Neuer
The reason Neuer had to come out of international retirement was that Germany was lacking options in goal. Their other keepers for this tournament were Oliver Baumann, who plays for Hoffenheim. He is 36, but only has 13 caps for his country.
Germany's other keeper for the World Cup is Alexander Nubel. He is from Bayern too, but has been on loan at Stuttgart for the last couple of seasons. At 29, Nubel is still relatively young for a keeper, but he has only played for Germany on three occasions.
Jonas Urbig was not part of Germany's squad for the World Cup. However, he travelled as a training keeper. He is uncapped at the senior level, but has represented his country up to the Under-21 level. He has a similar style to Neuer and has played in the Bundesliga 22 times for Bayern. At 22 years old, Urbig is expected to be the long-term replacement for Neuer.
Noah Atubolu, the 24-year-old from SC Freiburg, is also a potential future option for Germany. He is also not yet capped at the senior level, but did play for Germany's U21s. FC Augsburg's Finn Dahmen has made the bench for Germany, but has not yet gotten on the field. The 28-year-old may also have a chance at being Neuer's replacement.
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