football
Free beer in Dortmund, frustration at Müller and hope in Heidenheim – the stories of the 34th Bundesliga matchday
Up close and personal: Marco Reus personally said goodbye to the south stand – and bought a round of free beer
© Bernd Thissen / DPA
The current Bundesliga season ended on Saturday with nine simultaneous games – and brought with it a lot of emotions. Marco Reus sweetened the fans’ farewell, Thomas Müller was in a less good mood.
It would be better to have a script for saying goodbye Marco Reus cannot write in Dortmund. On the last matchday, Borussia Dortmund won 4-0 against the already relegated SV Darmstadt 98, Reus scored the interim 2-0 with a fantastic free kick goal. When the long-time captain was replaced shortly before the end, his team stood in line – and the people of Darmstadt also enthusiastically applauded.
“It was perfect, I’m incredibly grateful for the love that people showed me,” said an overjoyed Reus after the end of the game and went to Dortmund’s south stand. There, at the entrance to the Ultras, Reus was immortalized with a mural at the beginning of the week. Reus wanted to spend the last minutes of his Dortmund Bundesliga career in the stadium there. On the fence in front of the stands, Reus celebrated with the most loyal Dortmund supporters and thanked them in his own way: with a round of free beer. The club showed a picture on social media of a cash register with a note stuck to it that read: “Thanks for everything! The farewell beer is on me. Your Marco.”
But Reus’ Dortmund career is not over yet. On June 1st, Borussia will play in the Champions League final against Real Madrid – and Reus still has one last chance to finally win a major title with the club he loves.
Müller’s frustration on the microphone
Completely different emotions were felt by the dethroned long-time champions from Munich, who also gave up the runner-up title with a 2-4 defeat in Hoffenheim. The frustration was then unleashed on Thomas Müller, who quickly canceled the interview on “Sky”. When Müller was asked about his 473rd Bundesliga game for Bayern – which puts him on a par with goalkeeper legend Sepp Maier – he interrupted moderator Patrick Wasserziehr in the question. “We just lost 2:4. I’m sorry, I thank you for all the congratulations, but I’m not interested in any game records today,” explained Müller and left the interview.
Although Müller then apologized to Wasserziehr again for inducing the question, he still didn’t want to answer it and left the interview. Bayern will want to get this season over with quickly. All we need for a new beginning is a new coach, but that’s something we’re currently having a hard time doing in Munich.
Last matchday
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Heidenheim: From a relegation candidate to international business?
FC Heidenheim’s recent promotion to the Bundesliga was like a fairy tale. With continuous work, the small club from the city of 48,000 made it into the highest German class – and continued the fairy tale there. Decried as the number one candidate for relegation, they reached eighth place with a 4-1 win on the last matchday against 1. FC Köln. The reward for the strong performance could still follow and in Heidenheim they should now keep their fingers crossed for Bayer Leverkusen. If the new German champions also win the DFB Cup final on Saturday against 1. FC Kaiserslautern, the eighth-placed team in the Bundesliga will move into the playoffs of the Conference League – and that would be Heidenheim. It would be the first time that the team from Baden-Württemberg plays internationally and another chapter in the Heidenheim fairy tale book.