EM experts: Why you can see better with Mertesacker and Kramer

Christoph Kramer stated two years ago in Micky Beisenherz’s podcast “Apokalypse & Filterkaffee” that it was a stroke of luck in terms of the media. He is, of course, talking about his collision with the Argentinian Ezequiel Garay in the 17th minute of the 2014 World Cup final. “If I hadn’t experienced this story, I wouldn’t be a ZDF expert today, for example,” Kramer continued. “Ref, is this the final?” the head-stomping Gladbach player asked the referee, who then made the only right decision and suggested that Kramer be substituted.

The 32-year-old is hardly threatened by any substitutions these days, on the contrary: The man is guaranteed a regular place and that is a good thing. And he does not have it alone, Kramer has been there since 2018, and Mertesacker joined the ZDF team in 2020. The two have been a reliable team in recent years, but this time, in keeping with the home European Championship, they are playing a lot more entertainingly, acting as a tiki-taka tandem of verbal volte-face.

Elder Statesman Per Mertesacker and youngster Christoph Kramer

The roles are fairly clearly distributed. Mertesacker, whose voice alone has an extra portion of sonorous gravitas, is more of an elder statesman of TV expertise. He remains calm even when he loses his good jacket on a bet live in the studio or when he has to justify terms that are supposedly out of date. Kramer, on the other hand, acts more youthful, more verbose, more emotional. Regardless of whether it’s Southgate, Dönergate or Flitzergate, Kramer has nothing to do with keeping the ball low. The man knows who plays with a back five and how to fish out the second balls, how deep a six has to be and how to hit the high notes in the national anthem.

In direct comparison, it is not an easy situation for their ARD counterpart Bastian Schweinsteiger on the first channel, who sometimes provides the expert opinion with Alexander Bommes, sometimes with Esther Sedlaczek. Admittedly, after some criticism in recent years – keyword generalities combined with subtle sleepiness – the eternal Schweini has shown a clear improvement in form. His analyses are much more compact and accurate. His teamwork with Bommes often strives for balance, that with Sedlaczek is sometimes fueled by slightly prickly, flirty undertones, which usually provide an extra portion of spice.

Still, the question remains whether Schweinsteiger is being done a favor by positioning him on the sidelines instead of on a comfortable studio sofa. When you see how he watches the players, especially the Germans, warming up, how longingly he catches a ball rolling in or how solemnly he pauses at the kick-off point, it becomes unmistakably clear: The man would much rather slip into the jersey and join in the fun than “just” be there in his smart knitwear polo and not be in the thick of it. Perhaps a permanent partner would be an asset; nothing beats a well-rehearsed duo. Statler and Waldorf. Ernie and Bert. Mertesacker and Kramer. Why not Schweini and Poldi?

“Per, is this the finale?”

“The team is the star,” was Vogts’ mantra at Euro 1996, but that only applies to this year’s Euro experts to a limited extent. The Mertesacker/Kramer axis cannot be topped; it is the Lennon/McCartney, the Starsky & Hutch, the Beckenbauer/Pelé in the cosmos of connoisseurs. Following in the rankings are the now almost untouchable Lothar Matthäus with old-school precision. The first-class Almuth Schult, who even after various nut schnapps in the “Zeigler&Köster” podcast still exudes her irresistible mix of charm and precision. And Michael Ballack, who after a few years of getting used to it now slips into the role of expert on RTL almost as naturally as into his shoes without laces.

Since ARD is broadcasting the European Championship final this year, Per Mertesacker and Christoph Kramer can enjoy the game privately from the stands. After two or three beers in the stadium, they might ask: “Per, is that the final?”

Transparency note: Der Stern belongs to RTL Deutschland.