“The Last Dictator of Europe”
Magath obligation causes horror
By Ben Redelings
03/14/2022, 8:10 p.m
Felix Magath is the new coach of Hertha BSC. What many football fans initially thought was a joke soon turned out to be true. It remains to be seen whether Fredi Bobic has done himself a favor with this obligation. However, it is already certain that Magath will make headlines in any case!
Desperate disbelief, insane laughter or just sheer horror! The internet community and most of the Berliners’ supporters took Felix Magath’s commitment as the new coach of Hertha BSC almost collectively with a lot of humor and little understanding. However, the reactions to Magath cannot really surprise long-time Bundesliga observers. The unexpected Bobic move was all the more astounding. Didn’t the former striker and current Hertha manager delve deeper into Felix Magath’s biography – or was that why he deliberately chose the Aschaffenburg native? It’s not known exactly. Which doesn’t really make things any better, though.
Review. Let’s start with a well-known quote from Bachirou Salou. The former player of the new Hertha coach once said about him: “Felix Magath is the last dictator in Europe.” A sentence that goes well with Magath’s two nicknames “Saddam” and “Quälix”. These are catchy marketing terms, but unfortunately they don’t exactly have a positive connotation.
And that’s exactly why Magath put himself in the hands of a marketing agency and lo and behold: “IMG had an analysis done that said I was very likeable, popular and very effective in advertising. I hope it stays that way for a long time to come .” Was the “analysis” thing a joke? You don’t really know that either. However, the results may have surprised many an old hand when looking at the past.
injured thigh? Cheese!
When Magath went to England in 2014, the old reputation may have stuck with him more than the new market research results. The time at FC Fulham was even reminiscent of the darkest Magath times in the Bundesliga. The “Daily Mirror” breathed a sigh of relief together with its readership when the “reign of terror” of the “control freak” (“Sun”) was finally over after seven months. The newspaper even reported on very old stories from the moth box that Magath is said to have brought back to life. This time, however, without any tea bags. Of course we’re talking about the legendary number where Magath invited a player into his office, sat down opposite him, but then didn’t say a word to him for minutes. The former HSV champion player denies to this day that he ever did this in his career. As a result, not at Fulham FC either.
At the time, the German media gleefully picked up reports from England that Magath wanted to have his player Brede Hageland’s thigh injury treated with a piece of cheese instead of following the doctor’s instructions. The statement that was given to Magath in the course of the report was wonderful: “That’s cheese!” Magath quickly made it clear that it was an infection in his knee and that he had only advised the player to try the “old house recipe quark”.
Ben Redelings is a passionate “chronicler of football madness” and a supporter of the glorious VfL Bochum. The bestselling author and comedian lives in the Ruhr area and maintains his legendary anecdote treasure chest. For ntv.de he writes down the most exciting and funniest stories on Mondays and Saturdays. More information about Ben Redelings, his current dates and his book with the best columns (“Between Puff and Barcelona”) can be found on his page www.scudetto.de.
Over the years, Felix Magath has really earned his best-known nickname (“Bayern gets big balls again with Quälix”, Max Merkel). He always started the time of preparation with pithy sayings like this: “Lake Michigan is so big, it’s an obvious training option.” During the practice camp, there were sessions at night, endless runs through the terrain (“If the players have done something on vacation, then we can save ourselves forest runs in Dubai”) and, of course, a variety of maneuvers on and with medicine balls.
Bochum professionals laugh at a joke on the microphone
When Felix Magath joined FC Schalke 04 for the 2009/10 season, his reputation preceded him. The spectators expected the full program from “Quälix” right from the first training session. When that somehow didn’t happen and it looked more like a quiet practice session, a training ground kibitz complained loudly: “Hömma, no player has thrown up yet! And where are the medicine balls anyway?” Magath reacted calmly and confidently calmed the angry fan: “Everything in its own time. We’ll manage that here.”
Magath pursued the subject of medicine balls at each of his stations. When he returned from S04 to VfL Wolfsburg, the technician allowed himself a good joke during the sound check in the press room before the introduction of the new coach Magath. Smiling, he breathed into the microphone: “One, two, three, one, two, three, medicine ball!”
The VfL professionals could also laugh at the joke. A few days later, however, the fun was over again. After a 3-0 defeat at Bayern Munich, Magath himself poured out most of the mineral water bottles at the training ground. When the team came back from a run, each player didn’t have their own bottle as usual. The professionals reacted in amazement. Magath only shrugged his shoulders to the press representatives and explained that it was merely “a pedagogical measure”. The team should learn to share.
No articulated bus for the Schalke team
Some players accepted Magath’s intensive program (“We earn so much money that we can throw up,” Eintracht professional Ralf Weber), while others were happy if they didn’t have to take part (“I was the one first three weeks. I think that was for the best,” Roy Makaay). Kit manager at VfB Stuttgart, Jochen Seitz, was even really happy when Magath signed on with the Swabians: “It’s worth washing your training clothes again, they’re wet again.” And when he then switched to Bayern, tabloid columnist Max Merkel rejoiced: “No more strains at night in the disco. No more picking your nose in the center circle. Now we’re marching again!”
His time at Schalke certainly contributed a lot to the resentment and horror at Magath’s commitment now in Berlin. When things stopped going there at some point, Udo Lattek advised everyone involved to take the following measure: “Felix Magath and Clemens Tönnies should go into a room for half an hour, turn off the light and smack each other in the mouth. Then the topic would be over. ” That was it – but differently than suggested. Uli Hoeneß remembers: “When Clemens Tönnies Magath sacked Schalke, he said to him: If you continue like this with your squad of 45 men, then we need an articulated bus for the team. I’d rather let you go!”
No one knows how and why Fredi Bobic came up with the idea of signing Felix Magath for the Berlin short-term relegation adventure. However, one thing is already certain: these weeks will definitely go down in the collective memory of the Bundesliga. It remains to be seen whether Felix Magath will later be remembered differently as a coach.