It’s unusually quiet in the stands at Bayern’s game against Lisbon. The reason is a drama in the stands. The FC Bayern players only found out after the game. In the dressing room they pay respect to the dead.
FC Bayern’s 1-0 win in the Champions League game against Benfica Lisbon was overshadowed by a death. Around an hour after the final whistle, the German record champions received “the sad news” that a fan who had been resuscitated several times had died on the way to the hospital. Shortly after kick-off, the spectator in the stands in the middle tier received emergency medical care and was then transported away.
“FC Bayern is at the side of the relatives in mourning,” the club wrote on its website. The team’s success was “taken into the background due to a sad occasion.” Out of sympathy, the Bayern fans in the south curve refrained from their usual loud support of their team during the game. After just a few minutes, parts of the Munich supporters had become noticeably calmer.
After about half an hour of play, one of the lead singers (capo) made an announcement via microphone in the south curve to inform the fans. All flags were then rolled up and taken out of the block and support from this area was finally stopped.
Bayern’s players only found out the news after the game
The music was also more subdued than usual after the game, which was won by a header from Jamal Musiala. “There are definitely more important things in life than football,” said sports director Max Eberl. He found that the fans had shown appropriate respect with their behavior.
“We didn’t celebrate much after the game. The boys only found out after the game,” reported coach Vincent Kompany before the news of his death was announced. After the final whistle, the stadium announcer also informed the audience in the sold-out arena of 75,000 spectators about the incident and why there was no support from the supporters.
“When something like that happens, it’s a nice sign of solidarity somewhere that the fans don’t organize their own party, but also show a sign of humanity,” commented Bayern veteran Thomas Müller. Captain Manuel Neuer also felt for him. “It was brought up that there was this background. “We are very sorry and we didn’t really celebrate this victory in the dressing room,” said the goalkeeper: “We feel for the fan or the person.”
Meanwhile, the win against Benfica thanks to Jamal Musiala’s goal (67th minute) was extremely important for Bayern. The desired place among the top eight teams in the table is still within reach at the halfway point of the preliminary round, even if six points are currently only enough for 17th place. In the league, Bayern have to face newly promoted FC St. Pauli on Saturday (3:30 p.m., in the WELT sports ticker).
dpa/pk
