Warm welcome
May 22, 2010
Tens of thousands of fans greeted Bayern Munich players on their return home to Germany on Sunday following their Champions League defeat to Inter Milan.
The players were greeted like champions at Munich's city hall, despite a 2-0 loss to the Italian team on Saturday in Madrid.
"It's incredible proof of the affection people feel for Bayern," said Bayern’s Chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge. "We have super fans. They suffer with us but they also celebrate with us when we lose."
"We won the league and the cup. We lost the Champions League but it doesn't matter ... I love all fans from Bayern Munich," said French player Franck Ribery. The 27-year-old midfielder enjoyed an especially warm welcome from fans following Sunday's announcement that he had signed a new contract to stay with the team until 2015.
"We're delighted we've reached agreement on a contract extension with one of the world's best players," Rummenigge told the Bundesliga club's website. "That is a sign of the big goals the team has set for the coming years."
According to media reports, Ribery's annual salary will be around 10 million euros ($12.5 million).
Unprecedented win
After winning the Serie A and Coppa Italia earlier in the season, Inter Milan’s victory over Bayern Munich meant the team had secured an unprecedented treble. It was Inter Milan's third Champions League triumph after successes in 1964 and 1965.
Portuguese manager Jose Mourinho became only the third coach to win the European Cup with two different clubs following his success with Porto in 2004.
The convincing victory ends a 45-year drought for the Italian champions in Europe's prestige soccer tournament. It was also a personal triumph for Milito who scored 22 goals this season including the goal that clinched the Italian title last weekend. He also got the winner in the Italian Cup final.
"It's a joy I've never experienced. Incredible. I am so happy for Inter because we wanted this so badly. We are so happy and it's a unique sensation," Milito told reporters.
The loss meant that Bayern, after a very successful season with new coach Louis Van Gaal, missed out on the treble, having also won in the German leagues this year.
"Inter were the better team over 90 minutes and deserved to win," former Bayern president Franz Beckenbauer told German TV.
Even though Bayern had a lot of possession, Samuel Eto'o and Milito were a constant threat to the Bayern defense and Inter were able to convert their goal scoring chances.
Inter Milan's superb display of soccer skill and passion was typified by excellent skipper Javier Zanetti, who was playing in his 700th match for the club.
cmk/nrt/dpa/AFP/Reuters
Editor: Gabriel Borrud