Dhe posters are witnesses to a time that everyone thought was long gone. “Koan Neuer” was written on the handy slips of paper that were held up thousands of times in the Munich soccer arena when FC Schalke 04 played FC Bayern on the 31st Bundesliga matchday of the 2010/11 season. With that same Manuel Neuer, the young national goalkeeper and declared transfer goal of the record champions, who fell behind Borussia Dortmund in the national hierarchy at the time and had to react.
No one in Munich’s fan scene had any doubts about Neuer’s sporting qualifications, the rejection was mainly driven by ultra circles because Neuer had lived an identification with his club in Gelsenkirchen that made it seem impossible that he would serve another club with the same dedication could. But the anti-Neuer protest did not seep away in the south stand, but spread to the circles of supporters who were not suspected of questioning club politics.