Ghanaian forward Kevin-Prince Boateng is proud to have achieved his dream of returning to boyhood club Hertha Berlin before ending his career.
Boateng, whose career has spanned for over a decade and featured for top clubs such as Barcelona, AC Milan, Dortmund and Tottenham, is clearly a happy man following his return to the Bundesliga side.
He rejoined them in the summer on a free agent after parting ways with Italian Serie B club Monza
“I’m the boss, in a good way,” Boateng told journalists in a video call this week. “I’m a good boss. I listen, I talk. I help, I’m the joker, I’m the singer. I do everything, but I’m the boss.”
Hertha’s new head of sport Fredi Bobic signed the veteran forward for his experience.
Bobic already knew Boateng from their successful time together at Eintracht Frankfurt. Hertha’s other summer signings were mostly young promising inexperienced players.
“I’ve always said that my experience helped me a lot, because there are so many things I see, that I’ve been through before,” said Boateng, a combative player who has also played abroad for Barcelona, Las Palmas, Besiktas, Sassuolo, Fiorentina, Milan, Tottenham and Portsmouth, as well as Schalke and Borussia Dortmund in Germany.
“I’m always proud of myself if I can help someone reach a level they didn’t believe they could reach,” said Boateng, who said he helped Italy midfielder Manuel Locatelli during their time together at Sassuolo. “Now he’s in Juventus, he’s one of the best midfielders, because he was intelligent to listen.”
Boateng said he helped Dortmund midfielder Marius Wolf when they were together at Frankfurt, and that he’s doing the same now with Hertha players Marco Richter and Maxi Mittelstädt.
“These guys, to be honest, when I arrived, they were kind of shy. They didn’t know what to do. Now, they even get a little bit arrogant. So I have to bring them down a little bit, but I like that because now they start to believe in themselves.”
Boateng has been used sparingly by Hertha coach Pál Dárdai, while injuries have also reduced his impact so far. He has played seven matches with no goal or assist.