Marc-André ter Stegen's Return: Managing Recovery for Germany
Marc-André ter Stegen’s return to the Germany goal is being carefully managed on two fronts – in Amsterdam and in Klopp’s planning room.
Ajax coach Míchel confirmed that his goalkeeper is still carrying the effects of a serious injury and deliberately left him out of Tuesday night’s league game against Willem II Tilburg. The decision was not tactical. It was protective.
“Marc is recovering from a serious injury,” Míchel explained, outlining why Maarten Paes started instead. With an international break looming, Ajax see this week as a window to ease their No 1 back without overloading him. The idea is simple: give Paes minutes now so ter Stegen can “properly recover for the game on Saturday as well as the subsequent international break”.
The timing matters. Germany’s new coach Jürgen Klopp is expected to name ter Stegen in his first squad, despite the 34-year-old’s recent fitness problems. Míchel even hinted that a call-up is more likely than not: “Should ter Stegen travel to the national team – which is likely – we will then have time to continue working on his recovery.”
So Ajax are balancing club needs with the national team’s future. And that future, by all accounts, has ter Stegen right at the centre of it.
Klopp’s No 1 in waiting
In Germany, the long-running storyline is familiar: ter Stegen as the “eternal crown prince” to Manuel Neuer. That label has followed him for years. Now Neuer has definitively retired from the national team, the throne is finally clear.
Klopp is reportedly planning with ter Stegen as his first-choice goalkeeper. That was already the case under Julian Nagelsmann, who handed him the gloves after Neuer’s post-Euro 2024 retirement, only for injuries to derail the Barcelona legend’s momentum. Ter Stegen’s last international appearance came on 8 June 2025 in the Nations League, a 2-0 defeat to France in Stuttgart.
The comeback, if it arrives as expected, will be loaded with symbolism. Klopp’s debut as Germany coach is scheduled for 24 September in the Nations League, away to the Netherlands – in Amsterdam, ter Stegen’s current home city. A home game of sorts, in a different shirt.
Germany then face Greece on 27 September, Serbia on 1 October, and Greece again on 4 October in a packed international window. Klopp will announce his squad on Thursday at 10am, and all signs point to a large goalkeeping group.
New hierarchy in goal
Behind ter Stegen, a new order is forming. Alexander Nübel, now at Besiktas, and Jonas Urbig of Bayern Munich are viewed as his main challengers. Both are expected to be part of Klopp’s first selection, as is Augsburg’s Finn Dahmen, who has pushed himself into the conversation with consistent Bundesliga performances.
Not involved: Neuer, whose retirement from the Germany squad is now final, and Oliver Baumann, the previous No 2. The changing of the guard is no longer theoretical. It is here.
For ter Stegen, that makes the coming weeks critical. Ajax want him ready for Saturday. Germany want him ready for a new era. And in Amsterdam, as he sits out league games to protect a recovering body, the next chapter of his international career is quietly being shaped.
