Did you know Bastian Schweinsteiger, Arjen Robben, Frank Ribery, Thomas Muller visited India? Shocked? Wait– For–It… Did you know Bayern Munich played our national side as well? Yes! It’s true! This charity match took place in the first month of the year 2012, the revenue generated from that match went to the earthquake victims of Sikkim. Wondering what happened on the Match day? Let’s find out.
On 10 of January 2012, Bayern Munich played India in the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium. This match was special for both sides. This was the first time the most successful side in Germany played India despite visiting the sub-continent for the 5th time. The match was close to every Indian football fans heart as it was the final match of Baichung Bhutia’s International career. The match ended 4 – 0 in the favour of the German side.
Bayern Munich dominated the play in the first half. Striker Mario Gomez managed to beat the keeper just 14 minutes into the game. Talented Midfielder Thomas Muller then added his name to the goal scorer’s sheet 15 minutes later when he beat the keeper in the 29th minute. The versatile player then added another goal to his tally when he beat the keeper in the 37th minute. German Legend Bastian Schweinsteiger added another goal for Bayern Munich in the 43rd minute. His strike made the half time score-line read 4 – 0.
The story of the second half on the other hand was completely different. Coach Jupp Heynckes made numerous changes to his side towards the beginning of the second half involving high profile players like Arjen Robben, Philippe Lahm and Thomas Muller. India seemed to have settled well into the game and successfully closed the gaps quickly. Bayern were unable to convert chances however the number of chances drastically reduced in the second half thanks to the amends made in the defensive strategies by Coach Savio.
Coach Heynckes in his post match interview stated that his side was tired after their training stint in Qatar. “We could have scored more goals but India played a clever game. They were able to close gaps and did not concede goals. “ Heynckes said.
Meanwhile, Arjen Robben believes that Indian Players definitely have the talent to make it big. The Dutch International was also impressed by the quality of the pitch. “In general, the Indians are strong physically and very good. They have strength and speed. If they have good facilities they can improve tactically and technically. It must be good experience for the Indian players to play against us. They made a good impression” Robben said.
Baichung bid adieu to the Jersey he donned for 16 years. In the post match interview the poster boy on Indian football said: “The boys were a bit carried away by the big names in the Bayern side. In the second half, the boys were a lot better," he said.
The match provided the national side with invaluable experience. Even though the German side got 4 past the Indian national team in the first half, The Blue Tigers contained the Bundesliga champions well in the second half. Bhutia’s last match may not have been a win on paper but it was definitely a huge win for Indian football.
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