Celtic midfielder Mika Baur admits his shock Germany call-up has underlined just how significant his summer move to Parkhead has been.
The 22-year-old could become the first Hoops player to represent Germany since Andreas Hinkel 17 years ago if he features against Serbia in Munich tonight.
Baur was a surprise inclusion in new Germany boss Jurgen Klopp’s initial 44-man squad before surviving the cut to 25 players for the remaining two Nations League fixtures.
And the Celtic star admits playing for his country had barely felt realistic before receiving the call.
He said via The Herald: “Until I got the phone call about a call-up, playing for Germany felt very distant and far away.
“I knew that Celtic was the next step in my career, but I didn’t expect it to be such a big step.
“It was just as surprising for me, probably as it was for all of you, that I’m here!
“I’m trying to absorb everything here. Of course, you want to make a name for yourself, leave your mark, ideally play and ultimately get some minutes.
“But I have to earn them.”
Baur also comes from impressive sporting stock, with his father Markus winning 228 caps for Germany and lifting European and World Championship titles in handball.
The Celtic midfielder added: “We’re a sports-mad family. My brother plays youth football in Freiburg too and he’s also very good at it.
“We didn’t sit around the table and say, ‘you play handball, you play football.’ Instead, everyone did what they wanted to do. That worked out quite well.
“What my father did was a huge achievement. It’s not like if I don’t reach that level, my career is for nothing. Of course, we all want to win, to win all the titles. But he can be proud of that because not everyone achieves that.
“He won’t be there for the Serbia game, but he will be coming to Greece for the second game.
“His advice was to have fun and smile a lot. Don’t get too excited and take it easy. In the end, it’s football and it’s about having fun.
“But of course I want to show what I stand for and who I am – far more than just the son of a World and European Champion.”
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