Saturday, December 11th, 2021
Incredible miss
RB striker fails like Frank Mill once did
André Silva is a candidate for all football annual reviews. Not because the Portuguese striker scores so often or so beautifully, but because he fails to score so spectacularly. In the Bundesliga game against Borussia Mönchengladbach, the RB Leipzig professional delivers a curious scene.
The end of the German European Championship in the summer and the end of the long and long dazzling era of national coach Joachim Löw, the moment when Robert Lewandowski erased Gerd Müller’s goal record from the history books of German football after almost 40 years, endlessly wonderful goals and bitter moments, big seconds and empty stadiums: the annual reviews of football can help themselves from a rich fund of unforgettable scenes. And André Silva will line up somewhere between all of these. Involuntarily. Because the striker from RB Leipzig made a bad shot on matchday of the Bundesliga in the tradition of Frank Mill.
In his first game for Borussia Dortmund in the summer of 1986, Mill ran towards FC Bayern’s goal all by himself, goalkeeper Jean-Marie Pfaff had already been beaten and Mill only had to push in. But somehow the ball got tangled between Mill’s legs, and the striker somehow maneuvered the ball against the post. A scene that has burned itself into the collective memory of the German soccer audience.
“I suspect he played with several thoughts in the situation, wanted to finish it aesthetically or was a bit tired after the 40 or 50 meters that he had traveled alone. His shot at the end of this long distance was sharp , maybe too hot, “Pfaff later recalled the scene. “All of this can happen. As a result – and that is the most important thing – a piece of German sports history remains. Great football entertainment, a moment for eternity.”
André Silva can now claim that for himself. The failed against Borussia Mönchengladbach also on the empty goal. In the 52nd minute, Gladbach’s goalkeeper Yann Sommer had thrown the ball from Christopher Nkunku, who served Silva, well in front of the penalty area. The Portuguese was not even easily pushed, but only chipped the ball from 14 meters onto the crossbar of the empty case. A scene that caused astonishment.
Tedesco “would have made him in”
“It’s a shame, but not just this scene. In the end it went well. I think the player went through the scene for a longer time,” said the new RB coach Domenico Tedesco on Sky. For 23 million euros, Silva moved to Leipzig in July, with the recommendation of 28 hits in the preseason – one more than Erling Haaland. He struggled for a long time at his new club: he had only managed two goals up to matchday 12 in the Bundesliga, and now there have been four.
Because the 26-year-old not only had a bitter, but also a good scene on Saturday: In the 33rd minute, he made it 2-0. In the end, his strange miss had no consequences, RB won after three Bundesliga bankruptcies in a row 4-1 against overwhelmed Gladbacher. This is another reason why the scene was not over-dramatized by his colleagues: “That is extremely bitter for him. But he scored his goal and will continue to score. There is no criticism,” said midfielder Kevin Kampl.
Frank Mill fared not so well: At the end of his Bundesliga debut, also due to the bad mistake of the attacker, only a 2-2. “Suddenly the ball was right between my legs. I couldn’t control it properly anymore. Pfaff came rushing up again. I had to lock it,” said Mill years later. “And so this trick came about. Instead of sinking the ball, I actually shot it at the short post. Unbelievable. It was the laughing stock.” André Silva has not yet commented. His coach Domenico Tedesco revealed in the “Sportschau” when asked: “Yes, I would have put him in.” And started laughing. Everything went well again.