Leon Goretzka was brutally hit on the neck with his studs by his opponent during the 9:0 thumping victory. But the two quickly made up and Jens Hofer was later even given the Bayern player’s jersey as a present.
This looked really bad when Jens Hofer didn’t see counterpart Goretzka during a defensive action and kicked him full on the neck with his studs while trying to clear. Goretzka went down immediately and Hofer took care of him straight away, quickly realising the mishap he had suffered.
In any case, this sealed Liechtenstein’s fate just as quickly. Hofer saw red (9th), Ilkay Gündogan converted the penalty and from then on the Liechtenstein team was outnumbered. Goretzka’s kung-fu kick left visible marks on his neck, but he continued to play until the break.
After the game, Goretzka made a nice gesture. He gave his jersey to his opponent. “He was completely exhausted and dejected, I felt totally sorry for him. That’s why I gave him my jersey,” Goretzka told Bild.
Goretzka: “Everything is fine with me “
The midfielder suffered a bruise to his head and neck during the action and will therefore not travel to the final World Cup qualifier in Armenia on Sunday. The 26-year-old had already given the all-clear via Instagram: “Thank you for your messages! Everything is fine with me. “