Frankfurt / Main (dpa) – German football and above all Eintracht Frankfurt mourn a world champion from 1974 and the greats of their sport: Jürgen Grabowski died at the age of 77.
His name still echoes through the Frankfurt stadium – fervently sung by the fans. And it will continue to be so in the future.
“We saw Eintracht in the final, with Jürgen, with Jürgen. She played so well and she played so beautifully with Jürgen Grabowski! Black and white like snow, that’s the SGE,” says the long-running hit of the thrash Metal band Tankard, which plays before every game.
In Frankfurt Grabowski was the playmaker, in the national team he mostly acted as a right winger – because of Wolfgang Overath and Günter Netzer. “For me, he was one of the greatest artists we had at Eintracht – if not the greatest,” said Bundesliga record player Karl-Heinz Körbel once.
Overath: “He could do everything with the ball”
The complications after a femoral neck fracture and previous illnesses – in the end this was too much for Grabowski. The Eintracht legend died in a Wiesbaden hospital on Thursday evening, as his wife confirmed to the German Press Agency. The media group VRM reported first.
Overath once described Grabowski as “a very fine person, a great boy. He could do everything with the ball.” Grabowski played 44 international matches and 441 matches in the Bundesliga for Eintracht. He was world and European champion, UEFA Cup winner in 1980 and 1974 and 1975 DFB Cup winner.
The Eintracht legend was part of the World Cup squad as early as 1966, but did not play. In 1970, the dribbler and strategist couldn’t get past one who could get past almost every defender: Stan Libuda. However, the Frankfurter received the dubious award “Best Substitute in the World”. And in the “game of the century” against Italy, Grabowski hit the cross to “Schlingenger of all people” (cult commentary by Ernst Huberty). The Italy professional scored the equalizer in the last second before the semi-final game was lost 3-4 after extra time.
Grabowski scored the World Cup winning goal
On his 30th birthday, Grabowski initiated the 2-1 victory in the World Cup final in Munich: pass to Rainer Bonhof, cross, goal and Gerd Müller’s jump. On that July 7, 1974, Grabowski thought, “The world is yours.” He was thrown out of the team after the embarrassing 1-0 draw against East Germany, which hit him deeply. As a substitute he then managed the decisive 3:2 against Sweden and he was back in the first eleven. “I owe everything to this game,” he kept saying.
After winning the World Cup, Grabowski resigned from the national team, but he continued to trump at Eintracht. From 1965 to 1980 he played for the Eagles, previously only in Biebrich. His favorite coach was Gyula Lorant. The Hungarian already played a kind of area marking and his players sipped another mocha with relish, while the opposing team already appeared in the dressing room with clattering cleats and was impressed by so much composure.
Shortly before his 75th birthday, the German press agency accompanied Grabowski through his club’s museum. He arrived in his fancy Mercedes and said apologetically, “Cars have always been my weakness.” From his first earnest money – 12,000 marks for two years in addition to the monthly salary of 1000 marks – he bought a “Triumph Spitfire”. In fire red.
successful career
In the museum you can find memories of Grabowski in many nooks and crannies. Born in Wiesbaden, he looked around at the time: where is the replica of the World Cup? An employee hurriedly brought the mini trophy from an adjoining room and promised that it would go into a display case.
A sensational photo of Grabowski comes from the DFB Cup final in 1974. After the win against Hamburger SV, the captain was a bit overzealous in changing his jersey, slipped on the HSV shirt with the bold Campari ad and held the trophy high. “I didn’t think anything of it, but it caused me a lot of trouble,” he recalled. “Campari sent me six bottles afterwards.”
When he won the UEFA Cup in 1980, Grabowski lifted the heavy cup in civilian clothes. Bernd Hölzenbein was the first to present it to his fellow world champion and friend. A foul by Lothar Matthäus and a serious foot injury had just ended Grabowski’s splendid career.
40,000 at the farewell game
More than 40,000 fans attended his farewell match between Eintracht and the 1974 World Cup team in what was then the Waldstadion. The beautiful poster is the showpiece of an extra showcase. “I still have 40 of those posters at home,” said Frankfurt’s honorary captain at the time. “It’s still a nice present.”
After his career, Grabowski ran an insurance agency together with his wife Helga, with whom he lived in Taunusstein. He was interim coach of Eintracht for a short time and sat on the board of directors. But he “never had in mind” a career as a functionary or manager.
In the Eintracht Museum, he didn’t sit unnoticed for long at a table during an interview. A class from the Riedberg Gymnasium did a good job, each student wanted to be photographed individually with Grabowski. A fifth grader shook his hand: “It was a great honor to have met you.” Grabowski looked into his eyes – and smiled. Until the very end, Grabowski received autograph requests every day by post.