'How I went from striker to centre back'

Shkodran Mustafi may be well-recognised as a World Cup-winning defender nowadays, but it wasn’t always the case for the man from Hesse.

The 24-year-old started out as a striker in his younger years, before slowly moving back through the team and establishing himself as a commanding centre back.

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“First of all, I’m happy now because otherwise I don’t know if I would be here,” Mustafi told Arsenal Player. “But when I started, I started as a striker.

“When I was only 14, I signed for Hamburg and slowly went all the way back to the defence.

“I played in front of the defence for a few games and then in the end I ended up being a central defender and then I got a call up for the national team, for the under-15s at this time, and then it became my position.”