Also at the game was Freiburg coach Christian Streich – unsurpising seeing as how Hertha are their opponents next Sunday, and Germany u21 coach Stefan Kuntz. I’m unlikely to be collecting any Hansi videos and photos now so Stefan will have to do:
Yesterday was slow and today was even slower, of all the games I expected to be dull Bayern’s was not one of them. The afternoon can be summed up perfectly by what Neuer said in his post-match interview, “in the first half that wasn’t FC Bayern.” No it was most definitely not, the goal was fantastic but not enough to salvage the afternoon. They got the three points but it’s not the only thing which counts, it should not have gone that way. Neuer for one thing had more to do than I expected. Douglas Costa’s goal was good enough to make a GIF of it anyway:
Neuer’s save was less spectacular, by his standards it’s all in a day’s work but I still wanted to make a GIF of it, I think I just wanted an excuse to make one of Neuer:
And seeing as I did that I couldn’t resist the temptation of adding a few pictures from his interview either:
As well as being disappointed by Bayern’s game I was most displeased to see Ingolstadt beating Leverkusen 2-1, the reason being that’s who Freiburg face on Wednesday. The last thing I want is them ruining Freiburg’s fairly decent end to the year, if they win or least draw then it’ll be four without a loss. Just by writing that I’m probably cursing it but then I can add that to the list of stupid things I’ve done today. Getting into a good enough mood to write something isn’t an easy task right now, I should have left well alone. I should have just carried on with what I was doing and not allowed anything to distract me. But no, I had to check. I haven’t been able to do anything about this particular problem the other times, why I thought this time would be any different I don’t know. I’m lying to myself about the whole thing anyway, no matter what I say fixing this wouldn’t make me happy. If it wasn’t this then it would be something else. That’s how it always is with obsessions, they will always be replaced by something else. It’s exactly the same with each and every one of them. There’s something I either can’t have or is very difficult (and usually expensive) to get. Each time I swear it will make me happy, and it’s the absolute last thing I need. Of course it’s a lie, there is always something after it. Obsessions have an insatiable appetite that way, because the empty space they go someway in filling is always there. That emptiness is never going to go away.
I should have just stuck to the story, it was going fine, better than fine in fact. Though when it came to posting the first part of it I of course spent plenty of time agonising over it. I probably spent more time making up my mind than I actually did checking it over and making a few last minute changes. Which is pretty much typical for me, spend half the day obsessing over a task and then just a few minutes on actually carrying it out. It’s funny that some people associate thinking a lot with being intelligent, in my case thinking a lot makes me stupid, no doubt about that.
As for the story it’s not the one I want to be working on but the Christmas one is proving trickier than I anticipated. I think the idea of it is depressing me a little, partly because I don’t like Christmas all that much but also because I’ll never get to experience what I’m writing about. It’s not the Christmas part I care so much about, it’s the having someone to come home to,someone who cares whether you’re there or not. In other words someone who wants you to be there, not just someone who got stuck with you and is only there because they have to be. And I guess there is one part of the Christmas thing I like too, buying and wrapping gifts for someone. Taking the time to pick out something you know they’ll love and spending an equal amount of time wrapping it up for them, making it perfect. I didn’t have many people to buy for this year and one of the people I did buy for said I shouldn’t have, the reason being I spent more than they did. I wasn’t just being polite or saying what I knew I was meant to when I said I loved buying people books. Nor was I lying when I said I didn’t care their gift wasn’t equal to mine, it’s not about getting something back which made me happy. It’s knowing you’ve bought books for someone that you know they’ll love. I bought gifts for them not in anticipation of something in return but because I couldn’t bear not having someone to give gifts too. As good as that is they are just a friend, and that’s not what the story is about. I’m never going to have my own little Matze to buy gifts for, and first Christmasses are all done and dusted now my brothers are all practically adults. Now I’m just rambling, which is pretty much how every post concludes these days. At least I can recognise that I suppose, just wish I could do the same in a face to face conversation.
Anyhow, the advent calendars. The 18th day served up a very special player indeed, the quick footed and very talented Vincenzo Grifo who netted hs first Bundesliga goal this season against Eintracht Frankfurt and also has five assists.Equally unforgettable is his goal against RB Leipzig last season. He also has the honour of being the subject of two my (non-Jogi related) favourite GIFS. I hope Marc-Oliver Kempf will be back on his feet soon enough so and Grifo and him can dance together again. I miss him and more importantly Freiburg’s defence is definitely missing him.
In the Dortmund calendar was Sven Bender, I like him anyway but ever since the summer and the Olympics I like him a little more, since now he’s connected in my head to Nils Petersen:
The Bundesliga rarely disappoints and despite several teams suffering from a post Europe hang-over this weekend was no exception. This weekend was a little different with no game of the week on Saturday, instead being an aptly named “Super Sunday.” Despite there being no official game of the week Wolfsburg v Bayern was obviously the top game everyone had their eyes on. There was unfortunately no repeat of the Lewandowksi show this time around. He just got the one goal. Wolfsburg battled hard against Bayern, no doubt very motivated to avoid the humiliation they endured earlier in the season.
The real action however was on Sunday with Dortmund playing host to Hoffenheim and as the title suggests two former Freiburg keepers battling it out. Roman Bürki for Dortmund and his predecessor in the Freiburg goal Oliver Baumann.The latter also going up against his former team-mate Matthias Ginter who remained on the bench. As it turns out they came a little closer to going head to head than two keepers usually would. On the subject of former players facing each other the game has another connection of that nature, Thomas Tuchel and Julian Nagelsman have a connection too. Tuchel having worked with him whilst he was the youth coach at Augsburg.
Visiting a high flying Dortmund would be nerve wracking enough for a team battling against relegation, let alone one that’s adjusting to life under new coach Julian Nagelsman. He certainly had a difficult job on his hands yet he didn’t disappoint. It’s ironic that a hard earned 1-1 draw with Dortmund was one of Hoffenheim’s few successes before sliding into the relegation battle. A lot has changed since then with the team on their third coach of the season. Naglesman was meant to take over in the summer but had to take over ahead of schedule after Huub Stevens was forced to step down because of health problems. Since taking over his presence has certainly made a difference and it most definitely showed against Dortmund. Going 1-0 up against Dortmund is incredible enough but holding onto that lead until the 80th minute is all the more so. It looked like Hoffenheim could do the impossible and hold onto what would be a vital three points, that is until Sebastian Rudy was sent off. What a day for him, his birthday, a potentially match winning goal and then a red card.
Mkhitaryan’s equaliser in the 80th minute promised an exciting end to an already pretty exciting game, and it did not disappoint. Those final nine minutes plus extra time provided plenty of drama. A late winner from Adrian Ramos who only came on the pitch ten minutes earlier and then Hoffenheim decided to throw everything at it. Even Baumann got in on the act coming up into the box in the final minutes before having to rush back. That wasn’t the end of the drama, after having a fairly uneventful and quiet game Aubameyang finally got his goal in extra time, making it 3-1. It is a result Dortmund didn’t really deserve but one that’s important for them in terms of keeping in touch with Bayern at the top of the table. It’s even more important considering they were to face Bayern the weekend after.
With the arrival of Erik Durm my Euro 2016 album is one step closer to completion, he was the final German I needed to complete their page. I now just have one sticker left before the whole album is finished, the missing sticker being number 326, Herr Kari Arkivuo of Finland. I hope this time around it works out. I got one of him just before Christmas and he was damaged. This time I hope he’s perfect. It’s nice in a way, it’s my final sticker and for the person I’m trading with it’s their first swap online. Anyhow, Erik Durm’s sticker and the complete German pages:
Seeing as how one collection is almost done I figure it’s the perfect time to start another one. The next one I’m embarking upon is the Bundesliga 2013/14 album. I’ve opened 10 packets so far and am very happy that in those fifty stickers is two Freiburg players, Matthias Ginter and Oliver Baumann. Also most amusing was the fact I got both Lars and Sven Bender. Even better is not only were they in the same packet but right after each other:
