Deniz Undav was once earning £120 a week operating a laser machine in a factory, waking at 4am for eight-hour shifts before training. On Saturday night, he became the first German to score in his first two World Cup appearances since Miroslav Klose in 2002 — a dramatic double that sent Die Mannschaft into the knockout stages for the first time since their victorious 2014 campaign.
Undav’s two goals off the bench turned a 1-0 deficit into a 2-1 win over Ivory Coast, a comeback that ratified Julian Nagelsmann’s proactive changes and forced the manager to admit the striker is now in serious contention for a starting spot. “Yes, definitely,” Nagelsmann said when asked whether Undav could start Germany’s final group game against Ecuador on Thursday. “Why should I ruin his flow? He came in twice and got goals twice.”
“Deniz Undav's double off the bench sent Germany into the World Cup knockout stages for the first time since 2014.”
It was a far cry from March, when the 29-year-old’s place in the World Cup squad had looked uncertain after a public row with Nagelsmann. Undav had spoken openly of his ambition to push for a starting role; Nagelsmann responded by warning he was placing unnecessary pressure on himself, suggesting Undav would not have scored had he played from the start. The manager later revealed he had apologised to the forward.
Since then, Undav has let his football do the talking. With three goals and two assists in two substitute appearances, he now has five goal involvements — the joint-most by a substitute at a World Cup since 1966, tying Cameroon’s Roger Milla in 1990. His tally of nine goals in 11 international matches underlines a remarkable journey for a player who was rejected by Werder Bremen at 14 because he was deemed too small.
“When Werder told me at 14 that I didn’t have a future with them because I was too small, it broke my heart,” Undav told Belgian outlet 7sur7. “But I did not abandon hope. I left the family home at 17 to sign for Havelse in the fourth division in Germany where I combined playing and training with working full-time, eight-hour days operating a laser machine in a factory. I got up around 4am, went to the factory, then I went to training and got back home around 8pm… before doing it all again the next day.”
That early grind now looks like the making of a World Cup star. With Germany through to the knockout phase and Undav in electric form, Nagelsmann faces a decision he might not have imagined a few months ago — whether to keep his super-sub on the bench or let him loose from the start.