a écrit le 31 juillet 2013 à 18h15 An initiative called 'We are Finke' had formed and was collecting signatures to make the board change their mind. When that didn't bear fruit, they urged people to become Freiburg members and then enforce an extraordinary general meeting to oust the board and keep Finke at the club. Things got so out of hand that the club decided to not accept new memberships, refusing applications by saying: 'In the interest of the club, we have to prevent a potential split.'
But of course club and city were already split.
Following an impressive 4-1 win against Kaiserslautern in March, midfielder Roda Antar handed out 'We are Finke' shirts among his team-mates. But in the stands there was a banner that said: 'We are Freiburg - no matter who's the manager.'
In early May, Freiburg lost their third but last game of the season at home to Paderborn. The only goal of the game came three minutes into stoppage time when goalkeeper Alexander Walke gave the ball away with a diabolical pass. Freiburg won the final two games to set a record for the best second half of a season in the history of the 2nd Bundesliga - but finished in fourth place, level on points with promoted Duisburg.
If the Paderborn game had ended after 92 minutes, or if Freiburg had scored another ten goals in the preceding nine months, Volker Finke would have pulled off yet another miracle. And it would have put the board in a very awkward situation. Then again, it would have been the ultimate punchline to the Freiburg story: We keep the manager when he takes us down, we fire him when he takes us up.
In any case, next season won't be an easy one for Robin Dutt. Hardly anyone knew him last December, now they all know him as The Man Who Follows Finke, the man who follows the man who set a record in the German professional game by staying sixteen years at one club. Finke, meanwhile, is careful in his statements, but you sense he must be bitter about some things.
But of course club and city were already split.
Following an impressive 4-1 win against Kaiserslautern in March, midfielder Roda Antar handed out 'We are Finke' shirts among his team-mates. But in the stands there was a banner that said: 'We are Freiburg - no matter who's the manager.'
In early May, Freiburg lost their third but last game of the season at home to Paderborn. The only goal of the game came three minutes into stoppage time when goalkeeper Alexander Walke gave the ball away with a diabolical pass. Freiburg won the final two games to set a record for the best second half of a season in the history of the 2nd Bundesliga - but finished in fourth place, level on points with promoted Duisburg.
If the Paderborn game had ended after 92 minutes, or if Freiburg had scored another ten goals in the preceding nine months, Volker Finke would have pulled off yet another miracle. And it would have put the board in a very awkward situation. Then again, it would have been the ultimate punchline to the Freiburg story: We keep the manager when he takes us down, we fire him when he takes us up.
In any case, next season won't be an easy one for Robin Dutt. Hardly anyone knew him last December, now they all know him as The Man Who Follows Finke, the man who follows the man who set a record in the German professional game by staying sixteen years at one club. Finke, meanwhile, is careful in his statements, but you sense he must be bitter about some things.
