The star of the match was made of wood. A standard model, collapsible, functional – and suddenly famous. It trended on Twitter under the hashtag (#Klappstuhl), had a chance to speak in fictitious newspaper interviews. Just because the Bayern coach Pep Guardiola had sat on it on 8 April 2015 to watch the penalty shootout in the DFB Cup quarter-finals at Bayer 04 Leverkusen. Or not to watch it. As Guardiola covered his eyes with his hands, bobbed up and down, turned away. The folding chair was certainly warmed up on that night.
The team were less nervous than the coach.. Thomas Müller, Robert Lewandowski, Xabi Alonso, Mario Götze and Thiago all converted their spot kicks, Manuel Neuer saved the penalty taken by Josip Drmic – Bayern won 5-3 on penalties. (The score was 0-0 after 120 intense minutes). When Guardiola sat on the folding chair, FCB then went through to the semifinals.
All the talk afterwards was of Guardiola’s folding chair, which was actually intended for the security staff at the BayArena. But the FCB head coach grabbed it at the decisive moment in the match. For very simple reasons: “I was tired and my back was hurting.”
In the ‘Looking Back’ series, fcbayern.com presents regular snapshots from the photo archives for fans to enjoy.
Topics of this article