Team-mates have backed Germany midfielder Felix Nmecha ahead of the team's second World Cup game on Saturday over his religious activities which have led to some raised eyebrows back at home.
The protestant Christian Nmecha prayed together with defender Jonathan Tah and several players from opponents Curaçao on the Houston pitch after Sunday's first match.
That gave him almost as much attention as his superb performance in the game where he scored the opening goal in Germany's 7-1 triumph.
"I am in and we will continue that because it is a nice sign in the end. It is about love, it is about benevolence, it is about peace, gratitude. These are values we want to convey to the outside world," Tah told MagentaTV.
Fellow defender Antonio Rüdiger, who is a Muslim and like Nmecha has expressed his religious beliefs on social media, agreed.
"It is something personal. He did it and I see nothing wrong with it," Rüdiger told a news conference on Wednesday.
Thank you, Jesus
Borussia Dortmund's Nmecha himself told ARD after the match: "We’re opponents on the pitch, but after the match we’re all Christians and we’re brothers. So we just said a little prayer together, because we’re still very grateful.
“In terms of the result, it’s obviously great for us, but overall we all believe that Jesus is glorified through the match. That’s why we came together and prayed together.”
He also posted "Thank you, Jesus," on his Instagram account as the issue drew mixed reactions at home and was picked up by the media ranging from the Bild tabloid and Süddeutsche Zeitung (SZ) broadsheet to Kicker sports magazine.
A socio-cultural issue
"Is he ‘a gentle man’? A Christian missionary? Or a figurehead for a culture war?" thr SZ asked.
"From the more left-wing camp, the tolerance of his faith and the moral integrity of the believer were called into question; from the more right-wing camp, Nmecha received expressions of gratitude for his profession of faith, though these served primarily to mock his political opponents and their supposedly deluded worldview," it said.
"Thus, Nmecha suddenly became a focal point for socio-political discourse – or, to put it another way, a battleground."
Nmecha is not the first footballer to spread his religious beliefs, and he frequently does so on Instagram.
Dortmund controversy
Three years ago he caused controversy among some Dortmund fans who wanted to veto his transfer from Wolfsburg because he approved posts from fundamental activists which appeared to be directed against the LGTBIQ+ community.
The fans said this did not meet club values but Nmecha dismissed the allegations and posted at the time that "it’s important that I make it clear that I genuinely love people and don’t discriminate against anyone."
Meteoric rise on the pitch
Dortmund are said to be keeping a close eye on his social media activities while on the pitch he has made a meteoric rise lately after originally being signed by the club as the successor of Jude Bellingham.
He played his best season in the past campaign and recovered in time from another injury to not only make the World Cup squad but to start in place of Leon Goretzka alongside Aleksandar Pavlovic in defensive midfield.
Saturday's match against Ghana will be only his ninth cap but Germany coach Julian Nagelsmann said a few weeks ago that Nmecha can develop into a "world class" player.
Captain Joshua Kimmich said on Tuesday that Nmecha is “one of the most talented players we have. A very, very complete player and a real asset to us."
