Sven Ulreich is the ordinary bloke in Bayern Munich's goal making extraordinary saves

In the absence of Manuel Neuer, Ulreich has spent almost the entire season in goal and will face Besiktas on Tuesday night. What started farcically has become something exceptional

Sven Ulreich is making a name for himself in the absence of Manuel Neuer (Getty)

It is always heartwarming when an exceptional team has one player in their ranks who doesn’t resemble a footballer, so much as a bloke playing football. Spain’s 2010 World Cup winners were one of the great international teams, a utopian mix of talent from Real Madrid and Barcelona, but they would not have been the same without Joan Capdevila, apparently the only left-back with a Spanish passport at the time.

Behind Bayern Munich’s swagger of all-stars this season is Sven 'Sven Ulreich' Ulreich. Ever since joining Bayern three years ago from his hometown club, Stuttgart, he has mostly been a bloke sitting on a bench watching football. But in the absence of the injured Manuel Neuer, he has started to resemble a world-class goalkeeper.

Things didn’t start that way: against Wolfsburg in September, Ulreich tried to slap away a straightforward free-kick which ricocheted into the net behind him. He was ridiculed on social media and faced the scrutiny of the press – to which he replied: “If you let in a goal, you know people are thinking ‘Neuer would have saved it’. Manu is the world’s best goalkeeper so it’s not easy to replace him. But I’m not Manuel Neuer, I’m Sven Ulreich.”

He said he hoped his next mistake would be a long time away, and that proved prophetic. He began to flourish, and reached a poetic high point just before Christmas when he faced his old club. Bayern were 1-0 up when, in the 95th minute, Stuttgart were given a penalty. Ulreich dived low to his right to keep out Chadrac Akolo’s spot-kick and clinch the win. “You couldn’t write a film any better,” he said.

That was one of three penalty saves already this season. He played brilliantly against Dortmund in November, making several crucial stops in a 3-1 victory, and even claimed a Champions League assist against Celtic in the group stage with a long pass to Kingsley Coman. He collected two player of the month awards in a row, leading Bayern president Uli Hoeness to say he is should be the club’s player of the year. “If a man like Uli Hoeness say something like that then it’s a great honour,” Ulreich said with characteristic deference.

He was soon handed a contract extension by Bayern, and although he has never played a senior international, he has caught the eye of Germany coach Joachin Low ahead of the World Cup. All the while, the goalkeeper of one of the world’s best teams has been studying in his spare time to complete a course in sports management.

Sven Ulreich has become very popular among his teammates (Getty)

Bayern have not revealed a specific date for Neuer’s return but, in the buildup to Tuesday night's Champions League last-16 first leg against Besiktas, the manager Jupp Heynkes said Germany’s No1 would return in plenty of time for the World Cup in Russia. This, then, may be one of Ulreich’s last opportunities to impress on Europe’s biggest stage.

He has become a favourite among the fans who chant “Ulle! Ulle!”, and he’s a favourite among his teammates too. “He’s been really solid behind the defence for months,” said Mats Hummels. “He exudes calmness and saves everything that comes his way – and sometimes more.”

Sven Ulreich, the ordinary bloke wearing gloves behind a multi-talented team, is fast becoming someone extraordinary, but until he does his presence will continue to warm the heart.