By Isaac Akugizibwe,
PARROTS UG | SPORTS ANALYSIS: When the Gerd Muller is mentioned in any conversation It is most likely that it would be followed by Bayern Munich,West Germany or a comparison between him and other Football icons like Pele, Maradona, Ronaldo or Messi. Muller’s death on Sunday leaves German and world football in traumatic sorrow.
Born on 3rd November,1945, Muller is regarded one of the best clinical finishers of all time.He joined Bayern Munich in 1964. Due to his short stature and stocky build, Zlatko Cajkvoski, his first coach at Bayern Munich, nicknamed him , “Short fat Muller.” He went ahead to score 547 goals in 594 games for the Bavarians in 15 years.
“Today is a sad day for Bayern and all Bayern fans,” Bayern president Herbert Hainer said after receiving the news of Miller’s death on Sunday afternoon.
“Without Muller Bayern Munich would not be the club that we all love today. His name and memory will live on forever,” He added.
Bayern Munich and German will remember Gerd Muller as the greatest player to have ever played for them while the rest of the world will remember him as one of the best finishers that have ever graced the football.He was frequently reffered to as the bombardier or the ‘Muhammad Ali’ in the ‘penalty box’s due to his strong, lethal clinical finishing and unmatched prowess in the 18-yard box.
“He is one of the greatest legends of FC Bayern,his achievements are unrivalled to this day and will forever be part of the great history of FC Bayern and all of German football,” Bayern Munich chief executive Oliver Khan said.
In 2015, Karl Heinze Rummenige another German great described Gerd Muller as the greatest of all time.He scored 10 goals at a star studded 1970 world cup in Mexico taking home the tournament’s top scorer award which saw him win the Ballon d’or that year. Four years later,Gerd Muller scored the winning goal to help West Germany beat Netherlands 3-0 in the 1974 World final.He scored 68 goals in 62 appearances for his country.
Apart from being Bundesliga top scorer seven times in fifteen years at Allianz, Gerd Muller also had a 40 year long record of scoring the highest number of goals in a calendar year in 1972 when he scored 85 goals in all competitions. The record was broken by Argentina’s Lionel Messi in 2012 with 92 goals that year.
Muller’s 40 league goal tally for a Bundesliga highest number of goals record was ended by Robert Lewandoski in May 2021 when the Polish striker surpassed with a goal. Gerd Muller set the record in the 1971-1972 Bundesliga season scooping the top scorers golden boot with the Season’s high of 40 goals.
The “short fat Muller” won four Bundesliga and DFB titles,three European cups,a European winners cup and an intercontinental cup for Bayern Munich. He won the 1974 World cup for West Germany before retiring from international football few months after aged only 28.He continued to play for Bayern Munich until 1979 when he left for the United States of America to join other legends like Brazilian legend Edson Arantez Donacemento Pele who had signed for Fc Cosmos then.
Gerd Muller retired from football in 1982 though he remained close to the game in different capacities. His death on Sunday followed years of illness.
