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major doubts – but if I was ever worried that something might go wrong , Gerd would sweep those thoughts away : ″ What can possibly happen , Franz ? We ‘ ve got this !“ ‘ Bulle ‘ (‚ Bull ‘) Roth also affirms that Müller had internalised the ‘ Mia san mia ’ spirit like perhaps no other of them . On matchday at the team hotel , he and Müller were the early risers ; the ‘ Bull ’ often went for a walk until the others were awake because he couldn ‘ t talk to his teammate : ″ He was already in his tunnel : No-one ‘ s going to get past us – that was his motto on matchday morning .“ Hasan Salihamidžić grew up in Bosnia , far from Germany and years after Müller ended his career . ″ But I ‘ d already heard of him back then ,“ he says . The fact that Müller once cost Bayern DM5,000 in transfer fees makes Salihamidžić grin : ″ A striker like that today , who scores 30 or more goals every season , would be priceless .“ Herbert Hainer once sat with a few friends in Munich ‘ s Olympic Park after the 1974 World Cup final to raise a glass to the world champions . “ It ‘ s hard to put into words what Gerd Müller achieved for German football and FC Bayern ,” says the current club president . ″ Gerd Müller was all about football , goals and living modestly – and he inspired an incredible number of people to realise what they can achieve . I think we at FC Bayern must do everything we can to ensure this club remains the FC Bayern that it was in the 70s : an incredibly successful , but also modest , popular and people-orientated club . Gerd Müller epitomised all of that as a player .“ Humanity , togetherness , family feeling – Gerd Müller exemplified these values as a player , and these were the values he also experienced from FC Bayern when he went through some difficult times after ending his career in the USA . Beckenbauer asked Hoeneß to make sure FC Bayern took care of him , ″ and we supported him ,“ recalls the former general manager . ‘ We helped him to bounce back , and that ‘ s worth more to me personally than any title .“ Müller was given a coaching job
7i in the youth setup and Hermann Gerland never left his side ,
7w which was important , recalls Maier , who , as goalkeeping
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coach , often popped round for a chat during training breaks . ″
Gerd Müller is certainly also synonymous with FC Bayern ‘ s stance when someone from this club is not in a good place ,“ says Hoeneß , ″ we all worked together to ensure that Gerd had a good life . We succeeded in doing that .“ The fact that Müller fell seriously ill in the last years of his life saddened the old companions . ‘ Bull ’ Roth grows quiet when he talks about how he once visited his old partner : He doesn ‘ t even know if it ’ s appropriate to mention this now , he says , but one time he couldn ‘ t get in the car and drive off immediately after a meeting . He first shed a few tears because of the many wonderful memories they shared : ″ We experienced so much together .“ During one of his visits , the ‘ Bull ’ once voiced something that had been on his mind for a long time : ″ I told Gerd : you will be remembered forever , generations after ours will remember your name and everything you did for FC Bayern .“ Uli Hoeneß ‘ eyes also start to moisten at the end of the conversation about his old strike partner , and he needs two attempts to express his final thoughts : ″ Dear Gerd , you were a terrific footballer , but above all a terrific person . I know that many , many people – and without exception all of us at FC Bayern – feel that way with all our hearts . We will be eternally grateful to you .“
BAYERN GAME
A terrific footballer , a terrific person , says Uli Hoeneß : ″ We will be eternally grateful to you .“
FC Bayern Magazine 27