LUKAS PODOLSKI
As FourFourTwo perches in the bar of a Kobe hotel with Lukas Podolski on this lazy Sunday afternoon, we inform him that the most common request we received from readers for this interview was to ask how his Cologne kebab shop is going.
The former FC Köln, Bayern Munich, Arsenal, Inter Milan and Galatasaray man gladly updates us. “Very well,” he says with a grin. “We have five shops in and around Cologne, including three ice cream shops. My favourite flavour is strawberry and pistachio.
“I played in Turkey and already had a lot of Turkish friends in the city. We make everything fresh: the bread, the meat and the sauces, too. My name is behind it all, so I take care of it.
“People will always want kebabs and ice cream – that’s why I started this business. It’s hard work for the people involved, but easier than a restaurant with lots of seats and staff.”
Podolski likes to keep himself busy – after winning the Emperor’s Cup, Vissel Kobe’s first-ever trophy in January, the German returned to Turkey to play for Antalyaspor. However, the 34-year-old is relaxed, forthright and friendly as he tackles your questions – some of them, not about kebabs...
Given that your mum, Krystyna, was part of the Polish national handball team, was that a sport you seriously considered playing?
Christian Phoenix, London
No, not really. Mum played at a really high level, but I don’t remember those days much as I was too young. When I got older, I would throw an apple to mum and say, “Show me how good you are at handball”. She would catch it easily. She had great hands. Also, my dad was a professional footballer in Poland. Everything I have comes from my parents.
You were a big fan of Gornik Zabrze as a kid – what does the club mean to you? And, after moving to Germany as a child, did you still feel a strong attachment to Poland?
Jan Symanski, Zabrze
Of course. I have a big family in Poland and will always feel something for my country. I was born there, and we used to go back there for our holidays. I feel a connection to my country, my city and to my club, Gornik. I played on the streets around the ground – it was the first club I knew, and the club that my family supports.
