The Hindu : Sport / Football : Bayern Munich bids Kahn farewell with a win

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Wednesday, May 28, 2008
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Bayern Munich bids Kahn farewell with a win

KOLKATA: The match was all about commemorating a significant event — the formal exit of one of the sport’s most celebrated goalkeepers, Oliver Kahn.

The match was hardly 55 minutes old when the Bayern Munich captain was replaced by Michael Rensing, the substitution signalling the end of a professional career spanning more than two decades.

Kahn walked out of the field of play to a rapturous applause from the galleries packed to the brim. The rest of the match remained a routine exercise. For the record, Bayern Munich, the four-time European club champion toyed with Mohun Bagan to win 3-0.

Kahn thanked the gathering of 120,000 spectators for making the occasion “one of the most memorable moments” of his life.

During the break between the sessions, the charismatic goalkeeper was showered with greetings and gifts, prominent among which was a trophy featuring a miniature football studded with 8648 diamonds.

Imposing itself

Bayern put the signature of authority without breaking much sweat.

Two of the goals came in the first session — striker Zan Schlaudraff and midfielder Ze Roberto scored. Schlaudraff opened the account in the18th minute aided by a miscued clearance by Mohun Bagan defender J. Anandvasan. Ze Roberto doubled the score off a spectacular freekick in the 36th minute.

The local side could only make a few moves in the midfield, where Lalkamal Bhowmick stood out. The visitor’s four-man defence was impregnable, as the Mohun Bagan forwards, P. Lalawmpuia and Ishfaq Ahmed discovered.

Kahn came into play only twice in the first session: off a Bhowmik direct free-kick in the ninth minute and then when Lalwampuia tried a flicked shot on the run. The margin could have been bigger had not Sangram Mukherjee made two superb saves for Bagan.

Schlaudraff scored his second goal in the 55th minute. In the 84th minute, Bayern’s Brazilian defender Breno was shown the red-card for kicking Mohun Bagan substitute Branco Vincent Cardoso. The later too was ejected for retaliation.

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