Mueller had absolute desire to score, recalls Beckenbauer on his 75th birthday
DOHA (Qatar): Former Germany striker Gerd Mueller celebrates his 75th birthday on Tuesday, but his wife Uschi said the legend is slowly passing to the afterlife in his sleep.
Mueller, who won the World Cup in 1974 and countless domestic and European titles with Bayern Munich, suffers from dementia and lives in a specialised care home.
One of the greatest players in the history of Bayern Munich and German football, he scored an astonishing 1,251 times in 998 games between 1964 and 1979 while his 365 strikes in the Bundesliga remains the record to beat.
“I’m often asked about Mueller’s importance for Bayern and German football,” Beckenbauer told Bayern Munich website. “And my answer is that football is very much about goals. You can play well, but without goals you won’t win. Mueller was quite simply the greatest guarantee of goals in the history of football.”
Beckenbauer was his teammate, partner-in-crime for one-twos and his long-time roommate. With Der Bomber’s birthday coming, it’s brought up special memories for Der Kaiser.
“The way he scored goals was incredible. He had that absolute desire to score. So much so, that in his eagerness to score he’d even take out his own teammates. I still remember the opening game at the Olympiastadion in Munich against the USSR. Uli Hoenes was completely alone in front of goal and then suddenly Gerd flew in from behind and sent the ball and Uli over the line. It was his goal, which was the important thing for him,” added the former Germany captain and coach.
Mueller, who also lifted the European Championship with his country, holds the record of 40 goals in one Bundesliga season, set in 1971/72.
“He spends almost 24 hours a day in bed, he has just the rare moments of being awake,” Uschi told newspaper Bild in an article published on Monday.
“It’s beautiful when he opens his eyes a little bit. Sometimes he manages to say yes or no with his eyes.”
