Littbarski on the night of Seville: Was the most legendary game

Created: 07/05/2022 04:17

National goalkeeper Toni Schumacher (back) jumps at French Patrick Battiston (3) at full speed during the semifinals of the World Cup.

© -/dpa

For former football world champion Pierre Littbarski, the 1982 World Cup semi-final against France still ranks at the top.

Sevilla - "I would say it was the most legendary game I've played.

This was close to how I want to watch a football game.

I was mesmerized by Italy's 4-3 win over Germany in 1970.

I hoped that there would be a game like this again - and then that," Littbarski told the German Press Agency before the 40th anniversary on July 8th.

Germany prevailed in Seville after penalties.

The game was overshadowed by the clash between Germany goalkeeper Toni Schumacher and France's Patrick Battiston.

“Actually, the analysis is simple: Toni is late and then meets him.

Otherwise he was very precise in his actions,” Littbarski described the collision in which Schumacher hit Battiston hard.

Today, the scene with video evidence would probably be evaluated differently, judges Littbarski: "He would probably get red - with today's television media, they didn't exist back then." dpa