Bayern prodigy who crashed and burned plays big again
The hype is huge when Fiete Arp scores Bundesliga goals for HSV in the 2017/18 season. FC Bayern won the bidding for the young footballer, but then the bright star quickly faded. Even a move to Holstein Kiel in the 2nd division did not help for a long time. But suddenly Arp is back.
For Fiete Arp, the end of the year was a success. The Holstein Kiel striker scored twice in the 3-0 win against Hannover 96. Never before has the 23-year-old achieved this in professional soccer. "It became apparent to me during the warm-up, because every ball somehow flew in," said Arp.
The native of Bad Segeberger played a big part in Kiel winning the fall championship in the 2nd Bundesliga. He scored five goals and provided one assist in the last eight games of the season. "After the start of the first half of the season, this is an extremely cool way to end the year, because it feels really good and hard-earned," he said. Shortly before, it seemed as if Arp no longer had a future in Kiel - or in professional soccer at all.
A brief look back: Arp trained at Hamburger SV and was at times considered one of the biggest talents in German professional soccer. In 2017, he was awarded the Fritz Walter Gold Medal as the greatest talent of his year, following in the footsteps of internationals such as Leon Goretzka and Timo Werner, who previously won this award. Arp sparked hype in Hamburg when he scored two Bundesliga goals for HSV in the 2017/2018 season.
"We have a lot of fun with him"
He moved to FC Bayern Munich in the summer of 2019, but did not play a single Bundesliga match for the record champions and mainly played for the 2nd team in the 3rd division and regional league. In the summer of 2021, he moved to Kiel - initially on loan, then permanently a year later. However, he was mostly relegated to the role of reserve and scored just three goals in two seasons in the Bundesliga 2. It is therefore all the more surprising that he has suddenly developed so strongly in his final year under contract at Holstein Kiel.
"I started with myself to change things, to work on myself and to look for the mistakes in myself," he said. "I said at the start of the season that I wanted to try and become a new person, a new player. And maybe these are the first fruits I'm bearing somewhere."
When coach Marcel Rapp was asked why Arp is suddenly experiencing an upturn in form, he replied: "Good training, that's the main reason. I'm not surprised at his consistency because he's been training well all the time." Due to the strong competition in the forward line, Arp had to take a back seat at times. "But then he got his chance and made the most of it. Now we're really enjoying him. He can put his good training into practice on the pitch, something he perhaps lacked a little in the past," said Rapp.
His strike partner Benedikt Pichler had this to say about playing together with Arp: "We're both players who are dynamic. In the last few games, in which Fiete also played, this dynamic has given us an advantage because we are simply a tad more unpredictable." Arp himself is happy to have finally overcome the long form crisis: "It feels really good."
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Fiete Arp's resurgence in form continued in the Bundesliga 2, as Holstein Kiel's striker scored two goals in their 3-0 victory against Hannover 96. This was the first time Arp managed to achieve such a feat in his professional soccer career.
Despite facing strong competition in Kiel's forward line, Arp's impressive performances led to coach Marcel Rapp praising his consistency and enjoying having him in the squad. Holstein Kiel's Bundesliga 2 campaign saw Arp score five goals and provide one assist in the last eight games of the season, contributing significantly to Kiel's fall championship victory in the second division.
Source: www.ntv.de
