The World Cup
Let's talk about the World Cup. Looking at the opening matches, Germany have beaten Curacao and the Ivory Coast, while Ghana - your second country - managed to snatch a win at the end against Panama. What impression did the two teams make on you in their debut?
"As for Germany, it's a team I know very well because I've played both with and against almost all of its players, and I know the group is really strong.
"With all due respect to the opponent, I think it's still too early to judge the real potential of the Germans because Curacao wasn't the toughest test; tonight's match (a 2-1 win over the Ivory Coast) was definitely much more complicated. But I'm convinced Germany can go very far.
"As for Ghana, I have to be honest: they didn't seem irresistible to me. It's a very young team, and right now they're dealing with six or seven injuries among their most important players. They're not playing with their best lineup, but for me there are no excuses. I'm happy they won their first match, and I hope they can pick up more points in the group. It will be tough because of the absence of these key players who play for top European clubs.
"For the youngsters, in any case, this is still a great showcase to get minutes and gain experience, also looking ahead to the next World Cup, where they will surely show up with a more mature and competitive squad."
How do you rate Nagelsmann's tactical approach? Do you think the national team can go all the way under his management?
"At the moment, it seems to me that the team is responding very well to his ideas. He's a young and very interesting coach, he's doing great things. I think for a coach his age, it's normal to still make a few small mistakes, but he shows great adaptability.
"He's very self-critical and is exceptional at managing the group. There's a great chemistry between him and the players, and we know well that harmony in the dressing room is one of the key factors to go far in a World Cup."
Besides Germany, who do you see as the favourites to win the World Cup this year?
"To be honest, so far Spain hasn't seemed at its best to me, but it's still a national team that always has to be considered among the possible contenders for the title. Then there's definitely France: with the squad they have, they have to be among the frontrunners. I think England also has great cards to play and can go far.
"As for Brazil, I'm not one hundred per cent convinced. The same goes for Argentina: they're a great team, but I have some doubts about how they'll hold up when they face the big teams.
"If I have to name a possible surprise that could go far, I'd say Colombia. They have excellent players, they're a good collective, and they know how to fight together on the pitch."
Becoming a world champion
Let's go back in time. In 2014, you were one of the stars of the historic 7-1 win over Brazil on their home turf. What personal memories do you have of that night, and did you immediately realize you were going to win the World Cup?
"That match against Brazil is one that has rightfully entered the history of German football. Beating such a huge football nation by that score was something unreal. We were extremely well prepared, but that night everything just came naturally to us, while for them it was a nightmare. We scored with every attack, the atmosphere was almost mystical, and for us it wasn't easy to stay cool, focused, and on task without being overwhelmed by emotions.
"Obviously, that win gave us an incredible boost of confidence ahead of the final, but we were well aware that a 7-1 in the semi-final doesn't guarantee you a goal advantage in the final. The final against Argentina was a completely different match, really tough.
" It's a historic page that I'm deeply proud of. I have to admit, though, that at the end of the match there was also a hint of sadness: the Brazilian people had welcomed and treated us wonderfully throughout the tournament, and seeing the whole stadium and an entire country burst into tears was a powerful and somewhat strange sporting moment to experience on the pitch."
In that final against Argentina, you put in a monumental performance. What memories do you have of that special day?
"I have a particular anecdote about that final. I woke up on the morning of the match and felt a very strange sensation. I wondered what was happening because I felt incredibly good. I had slept really well, and I felt an energy and power in my body that was out of the ordinary. Of course, there was tension, as before every big event, but it was the kind of positive nervousness that fires you up.
"That feeling of physical and mental omnipotence stayed with me for all 120 minutes of the game. I think I played the best match of my entire career on that occasion. I was really lucky that that peak of mental and physical form coincided exactly with the World Cup final."
Man City memories
During your time at Manchester City, your coach was Roberto Mancini. What was your relationship with him like, and what impact did he have on your career at that stage?
"I always had a great relationship with him; after all, he was the man who wanted me at Manchester City. He taught me a lot tactically at a time when I was still a young player developing. He gave me the basics and secrets of how to defend in England by applying the principles of the Italian defensive school, and I'm deeply grateful to him for that."
"My first steps in the Premier League under his guidance weren't easy, also because I got injured as soon as I arrived at the club, but he always supported me. I left Manchester after just one season, but not because of problems with him or the environment - simply, when Bayern Munich call you and you're a key player for the German national team, you want to return home to be more in the spotlight.
"I recently met him in Doha, Qatar; we were sorry not to see each other for longer, but the mutual respect remains unchanged. I really consider him a great coach."
When you were at City, the club was just starting its climb to become the superpower it is today. Did you already feel back then that the club was destined to dominate English and European football?
"As far as English football is concerned, yes, I clearly sensed their huge ambition and the presence of professionals who were doing an extraordinary job. Then the arrival of Pep Guardiola was the final piece of the puzzle, it was a kind of 'destiny already written.'
"In Europe, they did very well in the season when they won the Champions League. I think they can improve even more in a few years, recently they've missed a few opportunities. In any case, today they've firmly established themselves among the top four or five teams in Europe."
The Serie A experience
In your career, you've played in the Bundesliga, Premier League, Ligue 1 and, recently, you've also had a taste of Serie A. What is the biggest difference in terms of playing style and pace that you've noticed in the Italian league compared to the other top European leagues?
"The main difference lies in the tactical aspect.
"In Italy, the strategic preparation of coaches and teams is taken to the extreme. Italian football is less frantic than English or German football, but it requires total concentration. Scoring is extremely difficult because almost all teams defend with impeccable organisation. You rarely see matches ending with big scores like 5-0; the most frequent results are 1-0, 1-1, or 2-1, and this makes the league extremely interesting.
"On the other hand, in my experience, the overall intensity is slightly lower compared to the Premier League, Ligue 1, or Bundesliga. I believe that if the historic giants like Inter, Milan, and Juventus could raise their pace and intensity to higher standards, they would become dominant again. In Serie A, they're used to controlling the game and having a lot of possession against theoretically weaker opponents, but when they face giants like Bayern or Real Madrid in the Champions League, the lack of that habit of high intensity is felt."
What memories do you have of your experience in Serie A?
"My only real regret is that I arrived in Salerno too late, and unfortunately I got injured after just a few matches. But I want to say that I loved the city of Salerno and its people. It's a fantastic place, with incredible passion.
"Unfortunately, things didn't go as we hoped on the pitch, but I truly hope that Salernitana can bounce back quickly and return to Serie A very soon. It's a club that deserves the best and I wish the club and the fans all the best for the future."
Meeting Del Piero
Is there a particular opponent who made life hell for you on the pitch?
"On this topic, I can tell you a really funny story about a great Italian champion: Alessandro Del Piero.
"I have so many friends in Italy who, when I was younger, kept telling me how strong he was. Watching him only on TV or at the 2006 World Cup, I always replied: 'Yes, he's a great striker, but he doesn't seem like this out-of-this-world phenomenon you're talking about.'
"Then, in 2010, with Manchester City, we faced Juventus in the Europa League. He was already 36 or 37 years old. It only took seeing him touch the ball up close on the pitch to completely change my mind: I was literally left speechless. I realised I was facing one of the most extraordinary players I had ever seen in my life. He had sublime ball control and technique, unbelievable stuff."
"I remember it took just one touch from him to send me the wrong way while he went the other. It was an impressive football lesson. I hope Alessandro forgives me for having underestimated him in my youth. I don't know him personally, but besides being an immense world-class player, he really seems like a wonderful and delightful person."
Bayern Munich and Vincent Kompany
You experienced the best years of your career at Bayern Munich. Last season, under the guidance of Vincent Kompany – whom you know very well from playing together – they dominated the Bundesliga. Having had him as your defensive partner on the pitch, do you see in him as a coach the same personality he had as a player? How do you think he has got Bayern back to the top?
"First of all, I want to say that Vincent is a great friend of mine, I have huge respect for Kompany as a person. His current playing style is clearly the result of the experiences he gained under great coaches like Mancini, Pellegrini, and of course, Guardiola.
"As a player, he was a formidable defender: very strong physically, aggressive, dominant in the air, fast and dynamic. His football perfectly reflected that character. As a coach, on the other hand, I find him to be an extremely calm and thoughtful figure. He's very composed in his decisions, knows exactly what he's doing, and is incredibly smart at finding the right tactical solutions.
"I've had the privilege of talking football with him often and he always has very clear ideas. He has brought Bayern a clear identity and excellent management of human relationships with the players."
"On the pitch, it's clear that the team plays with calmness; I'm not saying they play only for the coach, but you can see they're happy, comfortable, and fully embrace his football philosophy. In modern football, that's a decisive factor."
Past and future
Let's go back to your roots: what inspired you as a child to take up football?
"My first and greatest source of inspiration was my father. He also played football, but unfortunately had to quit very early due to serious knee problems and couldn't reach a high level. He started letting me kick a ball as soon as I could walk. That's where it all began.
"As I grew up, I started devouring football on TV: I remember the first images of the 1990 World Cup in Italy, the spectacle of Brazil, then Euro '96 and the 1998 World Cup. My absolute idols were the defenders of the Italian school, above all Paolo Maldini and Fabio Cannavaro; I studied them constantly.
"In 2006, when I was only 17, I had the honour of playing a friendly with my team against the German national team before they left for the World Cup; it was an indescribable emotion.
"I was literally obsessed with football: I was crazy about Ronaldo (Nazario) and Zinedine Zidane. I remember at night, when my parents sent me to bed, I would hide the TV in my room to watch the shows that broadcast highlights of the Italian and Spanish leagues. In my head, there was room only and exclusively for football."
You played for the most prestigious clubs in Europe, won a World Cup, and achieved two historic trebles. When people talk about Jerome Boateng's career in twenty years, for what specific aspect would you most like to be remembered?
"It really depends on the football culture of whoever is talking about me.
"I would like my technical and tactical evolution to be remembered: how I was able to change and refine my playing style from a young prospect to a mature and experienced defender in the golden years at Bayern, in the Champions League, and at the World Cup. If those talking about me really followed my career, understand football, and know why I stayed at that level for so many years, then it will be interesting."
"If, on the other hand, the memory is limited to a cold, 'He won this and that, he was a good defender,' then it means it's someone who only scratches the surface without delving into the true essence of football."
