The next step for Tim Binder was uncertain in December: a foot injury had ended his dreams of taking part in the winter preparations with the first team. Instead of having the chance to impress head coach Vincent Kompany, the then 18-year-old toiled away in rehab after his operation. With success: around six months later, Binder was on the pitch with the first team – initially in the first friendly at Wiesbaden, then at the training camp at Tegernsee and also on the Audi Summer Tour in Asia. “Stay patient, take it one step at a time, keep believing in your chance,” Binder would tell his younger self now. Patience, he says, is something he learned again during this period.
Debut in Wiesbaden
The close contact to Säbener Straße during his rehab at the Campus also helped him. He was in regular communication with the first-team management, and when he returned, he was able to immediately complete the last three weeks of last season with the team. “I never had the feeling I was left out,” he said. “When I came back and was allowed to join in with the first team again straight away, that was very valuable to me mentally.” The next milestone came in July in the first pre-season friendly against Wehen Wiesbaden. Binder first found out he was involved when the squad list was published. On the pitch, he quickly put his nerves to one side, winning a penalty and gaining his first minutes of professional football in front of 12,000 spectators.
After the training camp at Tegernsee, what started as a first taste became a true experience on the trip to Asia. As well as Binder, seven other Campus talents were part of the group in Bastian Assomo, Guido Della Rovere, Maycon Cardozo, Filip Pavić, Felipe Chávez, David Podar-Stiube and Vincent Manuba. This shared experience made the unfamiliar environment a bit more familiar for Binder. At the same time, everything else was extraordinary. It was Binder’s first visit to Asia, and the experiences in South Korea and Hong Kong, the fans, hotels and big stadiums made the tour special off the pitch too. “When you pause for a moment, it’s quite surreal what goes on there.”
Assomo’s special moment
For reserve striker Assomo, his biggest moment came on the pitch. In the 2-1 friendly win against Jeju SK FC, he scored his first goal for the pros – and could hardly believe what was happening: “It was overwhelming for me, to already be on the tour at this young age and playing. When I then scored the goal, it felt surreal. To be able to enjoy these experiences with many other Campus talents will help me in my ongoing development.” Binder played around half an hour in Jeju but got to play the full match in the second friendly in Asia against Aston Villa, the strongest opponents of his career to date. He quickly blocked out the huge crowd of 38,000 there. “I was actually only excited about my game,” he revealed. “I didn’t really notice everything going on around me on the pitch. Playing 90 minutes there and also being pushed to my physical limit was a very important experience.”
Off the field, too, the group grew closer together. The young players spent their free time together, played cards and went out and about with the team. In Hong Kong, for example, there was a group meal with the whole squad. For reserve midfielder Della Rovere, it was also the first Summer Tour and a valuable experience – not just from a sporting point of view after his long injury lay-off, but also because of the shared experiences with the other youngsters. “Sharing those moments with your friends is obviously amazing. We spent most of the time off the pitch as a Campus group and enjoyed it a lot,” explained the Italian. At the same time, the talents quickly felt part of the group. “Both the players and the staff were always very open towards us and had jokes with us. They treated us like a regular member of the team from the beginning and constantly tried to integrate us into the team.”
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Binder also feels accepted in the side. He shares a particular connection with Luis Díaz due to their similar playing style: both like to take on their man and dribble with the ball. “I can learn a lot from him.” So for now, a chapter closes for the wide player, one which he couldn’t have foreseen in December. Instead of having to wait for the next chance, he got it on an international stage – together with a group of Campus talents who shared the same special experiences.