DFB Cup
Fortuna blissful: Cup triumph is reminiscent of great times
Klaus Allofs (2nd from left) congratulates Fortuna goalkeeper Florian Kastenmeier on his victory. photo
© Christian Charisius/dpa
Düsseldorf is back in the cup semi-finals after 28 years. Fortuna is in ecstasy, the Greek penalty hero Tzolis is celebrated with a Sirtaki dance – and gets a scolding from the coach.
In Florian Kastenmeier’s personal feeling, only a few things come close to the cup madness at Millerntor. “There were hardly any moments – apart from the birth of my children and my wedding – that were more emotional than today,” said the Fortuna Düsseldorf goalkeeper after the 4-3 penalty drama at FC St. Pauli in the quarter-finals DFB Cup.
Fortuna has been in the semi-finals again for 28 years. And the Rhinelanders celebrated a lavish party with the fans at Hamburg’s Millerntor shortly before midnight on Tuesday evening. In honor of the Greek winning goal scorer Christos Tzolis, the Düsseldorf team did a Sirtaki dance together in the dressing room.
However, coach Daniel Thioune was bothered by Tzolis’ casual execution of the decisive penalty. “Completely inappropriate, I’m not a fan of it and I don’t think it’s respectful towards the opponent,” said the 49-year-old on ZDF. “But he was in,” countered Tzolis, who, in his own words, experienced the craziest game of his career to date on his 22nd birthday.
Match winner Tzolis
Tzolis had hit with a so-called Panenka lift. In the 1976 European Championship final against the DFB team, the Czech Antonin Panenka gently placed the ball in the goal with a lob over the astonished Sepp Maier to make the decision – and was then copied again and again.
Tzolis, who was initially scheduled to be the third shooter, had carefully considered the execution of his penalty. “The goalkeeper has to decide on a corner. The middle is usually left free,” he explained and was right. If Tzolis hadn’t scored, Tzolis would probably have had “relatively long ears” from him, his coach added. “Now I have to take it. Then maybe I won’t scold him.”
In any case, the birthday child sent fans and team into ecstasy. “These are the evenings you dream about as a teenager,” enthused André Hoffmann. “Today was something historic for Fortuna and an achievement for the entire club,” added the captain. The defender couldn’t easily shake off the dramatic play towards the end. “I’ll need a few more nights to realize it all. It was a crazy night of football,” he said.
Images of great cup times are now coming back to the fans. The last time the Rhinelanders were in the round of the last four teams was in 1996, when they lost 2-0 to Karlsruher SC. The great successes in the cup are a long time ago. Between 1977 and 1980, the Fortunes reached the final three times and lifted the trophy twice.
Million dollar bonus for Fortuna
Also involved at the time: current sports director Klaus Allofs. The four-time cup winner as a professional had previously emphasized that reaching the semi-finals would be a “quantum leap” economically. Fortuna will receive a bonus of 3.45 million euros for reaching the semi-finals and could now face Borussia Mönchengladbach if their neighbors advance next week against third division club and cup terror 1. FC Saarbrücken.
From the guests’ perspective, every cent was hard earned. After Vincent Vermeij took the lead with a penalty kick (38th minute) and the interim equalizer from Marcel Hartel (60th), who sealed St. Pauli’s 2-1 win in Düsseldorf at the weekend, Ao Tanaka (99th) brought the fortunes in the lead in extra time. Carlo Boukhalfa (120.+1) shocked Düsseldorf late on and secured the hosts a penalty shootout, in which Hartel was allowed to repeat his missed penalty and missed it again. Then Tzolis finally scored spectacularly for the guests.
The lucky progression in Hamburg could also give the fifth-placed team a boost in the promotion race in the 2nd league. “We are aware that the season can be really big,” said goalkeeper Kastenmeier.