If reports are to be believed Melbourne Victory Goalkeeper Mitch Langerak was offered a half a million dollar deal to join German club Borussia Dortmund. The offer was then rejected by the Victory leaving Langerak extremely disappointed at his club and the temporary halt to his dreams of playing in Europe.
If this is the case the Victory's stance would constitute its most despicable behaviour yet toward one its players. Which to be fair to the Melbourne club has so far been relatively decent over its brief five year history.
I'm ordinarily reluctant to join the chorus of people in this country who insist the slightest hint of Australian football talent immediately leave and pursue a career in Europe, irregardless of the destination. And though I'm not denying a better quality of football does exist in Europe, parts of Europe at least, I strongly disagree with leaving at such an age and for the first club who comes calling, be it in Sweden, Turkey, Russia or in many of the other European leagues surely not profoundly better than our own. The Mitch Langerak case however is different.
First and foremost when a club as prestigious as Borussia Dortmund inquires about a player's services the public naturally takes note. Or it should. In Dortmund we're talking about a giant of German football who have six times been crowned Bundesliga champion (only three clubs in German football history have been more successful) while only 13 years ago they conquered Europe itself by winning the Champions League. We're talking about a club who has the biggest stadium in Germany and a club who averages more than 77,000 to its home games which is second to no one in Europe. A club who's currently fourth in this season's Bundesliga and who could again be playing Champions League, or at least Europa League football in as little as six months.
The very fact that Dortmund was even aware of the Victory's existence should have been treated as a great honour by the young A-League club. For Melbourne to tell them to come back in a year with a better offer is downright deplorable.
Mitch Langerak is ready to go to Europe. Unlike many outfield players who leave Australia looking like they could still play for the under 14's, Langerak is a player who needs little more physical development. At 6 foot 3 he appears as a giant in the Victory goal equipped with a temperament and composure which belie his twenty-one years. In Melbourne's most recent failed Asian Champions League campaign Langerak has far and away proven to be the Victory's best player conceding just three goals in the four matches he's played, looking both comfortable on the big stage and as though he very much wants to be there. Something which unfortunately can't be said for the bulk of Langerak's teammates.
Having already made the move from Bundaberg to Melbourne and the the seamless transition to number one goalkeeper in Australia's biggest club, a move to Germany wouldn't be that difficult for a player such as Langerak who seems to take everything in his stride. While he should feel secure in the success Australian goalkeepers have had in top tier Europe with the likes of Bosnich and Schwarzer, Kalac and Federici being able to forge strong international careers much quicker than their outfield contemporaries.
The Victory should have proudly accepted Dortmund's offer and Mitch Langerak should already be in Germany amongst his new teammates and relishing being a part of a team on the brink of returning to the Champions League. Instead we're left scratching our heads at Melbourne's greedy stance and regretting that the future Socceroos goalkeeper has to wait possibly another year to realise his dream. That the deal didn't go down really is a great shame.
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