DER BOMBER DIES

Gerd Müller, the Bayern Munich and former West Germany soccer forward known as “Der Bomber” for his scoring prowess, has died. He was 75. The Bavarian club announced his death on Sunday, with club president Herbert Hainer saying it was “a sad, dark day for FC Bayern and all its fans.” Müller scored 566 goals for Bayern between 1964 and 1979, helping the team to four German titles, four German Cup wins and three European Cup victories in that time. He still holds the record for the most goals scored in the Bundesliga with 365 goals, scored in 427 league games.  

Müller was named European Player of the Year in 1970. After a successful season at Bayern Munich, he scored ten goals at the 1970 World Cup finals for West Germany where he received the Golden Boot as top goalscorer. In 1972, he won the UEFA European Championship and was the top goalscorer, scoring two goals in the final. He also scored 65 goals in 74 all his European apps. 

Two years later, he scored four goals in the 1974 World Cup including the winning goal in the final. There were 68 goals in 62 games for his country. Müller held the all time World Cup scoring record with 14 goals for 32 years. In 1999, Müller was ranked ninth in the European player of the Century election held by the IFFHS, and he was voted 13th in the IFFHS' World Player of the Century election. In 2004, Pele named Müller in the FIFA 100 list of the world's greatest living players.

Müller's goals, scored in a variety of ways, helped earn Bayern promotion to the Bundesliga in 1965 and usher in a period of greatness at the club that laid the foundation for its success today. “Gerd Müller was the greatest striker there’s ever been, and a fine person and character of world football,” Hainer said in a statement posted on the club’s website. “We’re all united in deep mourning with his wife Uschi as well as his family.” 

Former West Germany forward Rudi Völler said it was “a sad day for soccer. Gerd’s performances will stay unforgettable.” Tributes came from outside Germany, too. “The best striker in history,” Manchester City coach Pep Guardiola. Former England forward Gary Lineker said he “loved watching him as a child and learnt so much from doing so. The greatest penalty box goal scorer I’ve ever seen.” Bayern announced in October 2015 that Müller had Alzheimer’s disease for “a long time” and that he had been cared for professionally with the support of his family since the beginning of February that year. 

Müller made 607 competitive appearances for Bayern. He was the league’s top scorer on seven occasions. He was able to score goals as important to Bayern’s ascent to becoming Germany’s powerhouse as former teammates Franz Beckenbauer and Uli Hoeneß. Definitely worth watching this video for a series of his goals but also to see terrible marking, some clever "fox in the box" and comedy goals......you have to be there to score....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ywa9yD8AzVk

David Winner in "Brilliant Orange" wrote:

"Müller was short, squat, awkward-looking and not notably fast; he never fitted the conventional idea of a great footballer, but he had lethal acceleration over short distances, a remarkable aerial game, and uncanny goalscoring instincts. His short legs gave him a low center of gravity, so he could turn quickly and with perfect balance in spaces and at speeds that would cause other players to fall over. He also had a knack of scoring in unlikely situations."