Marlon Monning. (Photo: IMAGO / Fotografie73)
He is a player with two faces: Marlon Monning can give a lot to do on the pitch at 1. FC Köln. Playing against him is no fun for opponents. Sometimes, the 17-year-old pushes the limits of what’s allowed. Off the pitch, however, the defender hardly manages to hurt a fly. A portrait of the next up and coming defensive talent in the FC youth sector.
There are those guys on the soccer field that you just want to see from afar. Unless they play on their own team. Then they are precious. Because they do the dirty work, they get into every duel, they earn respect and they fight for it. And why they take the lead.
Marlon Monning is one of those guys. A tough guy with a soft heart. Who sweeps the space in between, who works the opposing strikers on fine days in such a way as to lose the desire to even get closer to the penalty area of the U19 of the Cologne. This is Monning’s work area, which he wants to protect – by all means, sometimes even the ones that the opponent doesn’t like because a check like this can be quite painful: “I’m a defender and I understand my job in a situation like that. the way I take care of my team and have to defend my goal. By any means allowed “.
The dream of professional football
It’s not unfair, but it’s tough. He is only 17 and played for the U19 of the 1. FC Köln for the second year of his career. It was important to have a high school diploma with a qualification for classical high school – also the Abitur is part of the development.
Since moving from SC West to FC U10, Marlon has been dreaming of becoming a professional footballer. He has had setbacks and has not always behaved in a way that pleases the adults who drive him. At the DFB he was U17 captain, after an injury he was no longer nominated. Also, as they say, because his basic aggression did not suit the perpetrators.
It’s not that easy to bring two characters together and not offend them. You know it in football. The big hit on the pitch is often one of the nicest guys after a shower. This is especially true of Marlon. He often spends his free time with his grandparents. Grandfather Peter and grandmother Dagmar always have an open ear for the boy, who discusses his problems and his successes with them. Hanging out with friends is out of the question, but rather an extra drive to the gym during this time.
Connection to the family and to Cologne
Parents identify with what the child is doing. Until recently they accompanied him to every game. Since his younger brother Max played for the club himself, in the U8 team at Fortuna Köln, they have separated. Marlon participates in Max’s development and they both play at the same time, the first question after the final whistle is always for his younger brother: “How did Max play?”
The bond with the family is also a bond with Cologne and its club. There were requests from Schalke and Dortmund, Marlon immediately blocked. His football mentor played an important role in this decision: Stefan Ruthenbeck, who raised him from the Under 17, initially as Rijad Smajic’s sideman in the center of defense. After being promoted to U21 and professionals, he forms a defensive bulwark with Elias Bakatukanda that is difficult to break in the U19 Bundesliga. Ruthenbeck is the man Monning trusts the most: “He has always relied on me, I want to pay him back with performance and development”.
