Manuel Neuer, always the Bayern keeper. He cannot be overcome by Real Madrid’s offensive stars. Until the 88th minute of the semi-final second leg of the Champions League, when he didn’t really grab it. This mistake cost FC Bayern the final – and caused several flashbacks to football history.
Oliver Kahn had made himself very comfortable. Up in the stands of the Estadio Santiago Bernabéu. The football temple of Real Madrid. Semi-final second leg in the Champions League. Real Madrid against FC Bayern. The first leg in Munich ended 2-2, so this encounter must produce a winner, at the latest in a penalty shootout. Who will be Borussia Dortmund’s opponents in the final on June 1st at Wembley Stadium?
With a beer in hand, Kahn had worked his way to his seat, past Brazil’s soccer icon Roberto Carlos, Formula 1 driver Fernando Alonso and Raúl. Of course, the Spaniard was invited because of his Real past as a long-time captain and record player. From hosts Real Madrid. Just like the other guests in the box of honor and also Kahn, even though he has no real past.
This was the first time he had seen a game at his former club since he was kicked out of FC Bayern in May 2023. Almost a year ago he was suddenly dismissed as CEO. As is well known, there were even fears that he could cause trouble on the last matchday of the season, which is why he didn’t come to the game against 1. FC Köln. The Munich team celebrated their eleventh German championship in a row without him. The great love between the long-time guarantor of success in goal and his FC Bayern team had expired, and mutual accusations and criticism followed.
But there’s still a spark of love: “I’m still very involved in the world of football, and because my heart beats for FC Bayern, I’m looking forward to going to a big game tonight,” he wrote before Play on X. And he should see a big game. One that later awakened an unpleasant memory for Kahn – and everyone else in the stadium and on the televisions. Hopefully he didn’t choke on his beer.
Neuer unnerves the Real offensive
First of all, everything started off quite well. Although Real Madrid played dominantly, Thomas Tuchel’s team was forced into the defensive and acted harmlessly and timidly. But they didn’t concede a goal. At the latest, there was no getting past Manuel Neuer. In front of the titan’s eyes, the 38-year-old made world-class moves time and again. He had to be wide awake early on, in the 13th minute Vinicius Junior shot, Neuer touched the ball with his fingertips and it hit the left post. The ball bounced to Rodrygo and Neuer was there again. In the 40th minute, the man who, after his serious leg injury, hardly anyone expected to be in the old class, avoided falling behind again. A supposed cross from Vinicius Junior from the left corner of the penalty area resulted in a dangerous shot on goal, but Neuer jumped after it and got his left hand on the ball in time. The “Bild” counted six saves with the rating of world class.
And on the other hand, Alphonso Davies scored out of nowhere in the 68th minute. The lightning-fast Canadian came on as a substitute in the 27th minute for Serge Gnabry, who had again injured his thigh. He was given preference over Thomas Müller in the Tuchel swap. It should pay off a good 40 minutes later. After a counterattack, he prevailed in a duel with DFB defender Antonio Rüdiger and flicked the ball into the far corner. FC Bayern lead – the door to the final is thrown wide open.
“This is the 10,001st time”
If it hadn’t been for that damned 88th minute. “Manu holds the ball 10,000 times out of 10,000 times. That’s the 10,001st time,” said Tuchel. “It’s impossible for Manu to make a mistake. And he made it today, of all days, after the world-class game. That’s so bitter.” Because suddenly it was 1:1. Vinicius Junior shot with his right – actually completely harmless – and the ball jumped out of Neuer’s arms. The ex-Hannover, ex-Frankfurt and ex-Hoffenheim player Joselu was first and pushed the ball over the line. “I have to say that I expected the ball differently, more towards the chest. It then went a little higher and I didn’t expect that there was a minimal mole in the space,” said Neuer at DAZN. “This 1-1 draw is brutal.” Müller also found it on ServusTV: “The ball bounces a bit stupidly, Manu gets it on the chin, we saw the rest.”
Of course, Kahn also saw the momentous faux pas up in his box seat. Like everyone else, he must have felt reminded of 2002. At the World Cup in Japan and South Korea he was the best goalkeeper in the tournament. He had stopped almost unstoppable balls before they hit the net and he had parried the DFB team into the final. Only to then make the crucial mistake in the final against Brazil. He let a harmless shot bounce off Rivaldo and Ronaldo pushed it in for a 1-0 lead. The final score was 2-0, world champions Brazil.
The vibes of 1999
And Real Madrid also made a decisive improvement 22 years later. Joselu again, played by Rüdiger. 2:1 in the 90th + 2nd. Minute. A late double blow – and again an unpleasant déjà vu. This time directly for FC Bayern, not just for Kahn in his role with the DFB team. In the 1999 Champions League final against Manchester United, Munich conceded two goals in stoppage time. There is the story of tennis legend Boris Becker, how he got into an elevator at the Camp Nou in Barcelona with Franz Beckenbauer and the then UEFA President Lennart Johansson to get from the VIP stand to the pitch. “When we got into the elevator, it was 1-0 for Bayern. We heard cheers in the elevator car. We thought: OK, the final whistle. When we walked through the catacombs towards the lawn a short time later, we saw the Man Utd players cheer, Bayern were on the ground. I thought: crap, but shortly afterwards the scoreboard flashed: 1:2!
This time the late turnaround in Real’s favor was not undeserved. The more dominant team, the one with more possession and more shots on goal, struck late but decisively. But Kahn and many others probably gasped several times at the similarities in the scenes. Also because there were 13 more minutes of added time after ex-Bundesliga professional Joselu’s brace. In the 90th+13th minute, a shot from Matthijs de Ligt even landed in the goal, but referee Szymon Marciniak had blown the whistle beforehand. The supposed offside continued to heat up tempers long after the end of the game.
That’s not the only reason why nobody wanted to shift the blame to Neuer. “Because if there’s anyone who doesn’t deserve this, it’s Manu. We know where he comes from. We know what he’s done, what he’s done for it,” said Tuchel about Neuer’s mistake. “No one will point the finger at him. He is the unluckiest of all.” Neuer said: “It’s extremely bitter the way it happened. There are few words for it.” According to him, they were already in London with one foot, but then Joselu crossed between them twice. Kahn must have remembered from his seat how, in 1999, he remained sober in the goal after the final whistle. And how three years later he was leaning against the post, completely empty.
Both times he then had to walk past the trophy at the award ceremony. This time Bayern are spared this disgrace. No participation in the final, no award ceremony. But it hurts the even bitter realization: not even qualified for a final. Titleless. For the first time since 2012. A year later there was the Wembley final in the Champions League against Borussia Dortmund. That’s canceled this time.