Last season, German side Mainz 05 were nearly relegated from the Bundesliga and avoided relegation on the final matchday. Currently, the club where former Liverpool boss Jürgen Klopp served both as a player and a manager for a long time is one of the contenders to qualify for a European competition next year.
When it comes to the success of the Southwest German team, a man with Irish roots plays a significant role. 22-year-old winger Paul Nebel has established himself as a go-to guy at Mainz and convinces with resilient performances.
Paul Nebel, whose grandmother originates from Ireland, is a product of the internationally respected Mainz 05 academy. Many notable players, like 2014 World Cup winner André Schürrle, made their first steps in the youth teams of the “05ers”. Born on 10 October 2002, Nebel joined Mainz as a 14-year-old prospect in 2016. Four years later, he signed his first professional contract at the club.
Shortly after, he made his debut for the first squad. Until June 2022, Nebel had collected 14 Bundesliga caps for Mainz, mostly as a substitute. Besides that, he played in 34 games for the reserve team in the fourth division and scored 7 goals.
For the next two years, Nebel would go on to join Bundesliga 2 side Karslruher SC on loan. One tier lower, the midfielder, who prefers to play outside right, celebrated his breakthrough. At Karlsruhe, he was a starter from the beginning and scored 9 goals in 65 games.
Last summer, Nebel returned to Mainz and had no problems in fulfilling the high expectations. This season, he has already scored 6 goals in 21 games. “After my time in Karlsruhe, I wanted to come back and prevail,” Nebel told German sports magazine “Kicker” after the 2-0 victory against FC St. Pauli.
In this game, he managed to score the second goal for his side in extra time. “Everyone goes his own way. It can take longer or shorter. It’s nice that it happened so fast for me. I will try to keep up with it”, he added.
On the pitch, Nebel shines with his pace and his stamina. Against St. Pauli, he ran for an extraordinary number of 12.62 kilometres. Due to the “granny rule”, Nebel would be eligible to play for Ireland. “My grandparents have a house in Ireland. We also have a lot of relatives there.”
“As a child, I’ve been there many times. From this, Ireland is my second home,” he recently explained to the German news outlet “t-online”.
However, the chances of Nebel wearing the green shirt in the near future are rather low. With his performances, he could be a candidate for the German national team at some point. For the moment, Nebel is still part of the German under-21 squad that will compete in the European championship this summer in Slovakia.
Still, it might be a good idea for Heimir Hallgrímsson and his staff to at least observe the development of the talented midfielder. And sometimes, an opportunity might come up faster than you think…