The hatred in the debate about DFB star Antonio Rüdiger frightens me

After Antonio Rüdiger’s latest incident, the biggest critics feel their prejudices have been confirmed and wish the national player to hell. Fairness in the personnel debate would be good, says columnist Pit Gottschalk.

Antonio Rüdiger is, if you’ll forgive the choice of words, in a shitty situation: he can do whatever he wants – it’s always wrong.

If he shows the tawheed finger, his profession of faith immediately becomes a call to Islamism misinterpreted.
If he provokes opponents with the head-down gesture, his character becomes on the field questioned.
Most recently, after a duel, he fell knee first on his opponent Diego Rico. He was already Intent assumed.

“He wanted to smash my face,” raged Diego Rico from Getafe FC. This accusation is no longer questioned.

Antonio Rüdiger is the new bad boy of German football

It happens like that all the time. The Real Madrid international and central defender is the new bad boy of German football. And it’s also true: Rüdiger’s freakouts are inexplicable. You don’t understand what’s going on in your head.

Julian Nagelsmann (l.) and Antonio Rüdiger with the DFB team Getty/ANP

The national coach gave him a warning in the summer of 2025: one more incident like the head-down gesture – and he’s out. “He knows my opinion that the limit has been reached,” said Julian Nagelsmann at the time. “Otherwise there will be consequences.”

Has the limit now been reached? The question can be discussed objectively. Just don’t make a mistake. Namely: being unfair.

What scared me were the comments under his opinion piece: Rüdiger is denied character. Worse still: He is even accused of not being kicked out of the DFB team just because of his skin color. The whole thing had a hostile tone, and at times I even felt something like hatred.

I can’t believe all of this. Are the critics deserted by all good spirits? Is this how you treat people?

Too many Rüdiger critics feel their prejudices have been confirmed

There are enough sporting reasons that Antonio Rüdiger should only be second choice. (Jonathan Tah and Nico Schlotterbeck are better.)

The German central defenders Jonathan Tah, Antonio Rüdiger and Nico Schlotterbeck Imago

But giving a diagnosis of personality structure from afar is presumptuous and invasive. We don’t know whether the kneeling against Getafe was intentional or an industrial accident. Rico just says so.

Too many Rüdiger critics feel that their reservations and possibly prejudices about the perpetrator have been confirmed. This poisons the culture of discussion and doesn’t get us any further in the matter: Above all, the sporting aspect should decide.

Maybe we can all return to a little more fairness

To be clear: I also believe that Rüdiger is a security risk in defense. Too often, in his carelessness, he misplaces balls or makes positional errors. But that’s only one side.

The other: He goes into duels like no other national player. There’s a reason he plays for Real Madrid. We probably wouldn’t have taken any notice of the Getafe duel if the Rico quotes hadn’t reached us unfiltered.

Any presumption of innocence suddenly lost its validity. Maybe we can all return to a little more fairness.