Mateusz Stefanik: The Legend Has Died – Franz Beckenbauer. How do you remember him?
Cesar Kowalski: I will remember him as one of the greatest. Gone are Alfredo Di Stefano, Ferenc Puskas, Eusebio, Johan Cruyff, Pele, Diego Maradona and Franz Beckenbauer. The most visible participants of football Olympus are leaving this earthly hell. Franz Beckenbauer was one of the best players and also a defender. Everyone we admire so much is usually an attacking player who scores a lot of goals.
At one point, Beckenbauer found it very difficult to penetrate the awareness of the football community as a defender. Once upon a time these defenders were clumsy players who kicked the ball around – there was certainly no greater philosophy than that. Beckenbauer was breaking it. He reached the top and stayed there for years. In fact, in various roles towards the end of his life, he was seen as an elegant bodyguard towering over him. Hans-Georg Schwarzenegger, his team-mate from the national team and also from Bayern Munich, once said of him that he did not look at the ball with his eyes, but with his feet, as the high head was his trademark. He moved so elegantly on the field that he could throw the ball several tens of meters with the inner part. He wasn't brutal about it all, but he was very good at predicting and positioning himself in the right place. He was proud of himself. When he needed to score, of course he did. He started his career as a winger. All this made him stand out.
It was characteristic of him that he did not really have a serious collapse. Later, as a coach, he also achieved great success. He was one of the few coaches and people who won the World Cup as a player and coach and it was not easy, as we remember the 1986 final – lost in dramatic circumstances to Argentina. 1988 brought problems again. However, later in 1990, after Andreas Brehm's goal, Franz Beckenbauer rejoiced and won, while Diego Maradona cried. This is how Beckenbauer will be remembered. The glory years at Bayern, who had won three league titles when he joined the team in the 1960s. When he left the club as honorary president, the Bavarian team already had thirty-three titles. When he left, he knew he had done everything in football. Nothing more could be done.
1. “Beckenbauer? I haven't played against a better defender”
These words are also confirmed by the fact that we do not appreciate him only after his death, but they appreciated him during his career. He won the Ballon d'Or twice, which was almost a miracle.
It was an additional difficulty that he was in such a position on the field. I would take Beckenbauer in a broader perspective as a German. This is a post-war man, born in 1945. We know the reputation the Germans had and this was one of the symbols that broke those thought patterns and worked in Germany's favor in a global version, not just a football look. His departure is a great loss, and not only for the Germans. It's hard to fault Beckenbauer. When he was no longer a player or a coach, but an activist, FIFA was heavily criticized and he always avoided these criticisms. He acted in such a way that there was no reason to suspect any scandal, violation or anything wrong. He was just an outstanding person, player and activist. It's a shame he's gone.
