It was an evening Serge Gnabry will never forget! His maiden goal in the Champions League was followed by real fireworks, in a venue of great personal significance. In FC Bayern's fulminating 7-2 away win over Tottenham Hotspur on 1 October, the 24-year-old scored no fewer than four goals in the second half and was thus largely responsible for the German record champions' historic victory in Europe’s elite club competition.
It was the first time in the history of European competition that an English team conceded seven goals in front of their home crowd, and it was also the highest-scoring match involving Bayern in the Champions League. "I’ve waited a long time for my first Champions League goal. I never dreamed that I would score four. It's simply fantastic," said an overjoyed Gnabry, who is only the fifth player to net four times in a UCL match.
Special venue, unforgettable evening
For the Germany international it was an unforgettable evening at a special place. At the age of 15, the Stuttgart-born starlet moved to Spurs’ arch-rivals Arsenal and lived in London for four years. "This evening, the game, the result, we’re all enjoying it. It's a very good feeling, we’re thrilled about a night like this," Gnabry said.
Despite the ecstasy, there was a brief moment of dismay for the attacking player after the final whistle. Gnabry had secured a match ball as a memento of his four-goal haul. However, during the celebrations in front of the travelling fans, team-mate Javi Martínez impishly grabbed the ball and punted it towards the supporters in red. But there was a happy end: the fans threw the ball back to Gnabry, who then refused to let the richly-deserved ‘trophy’ out of his grasp.
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