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WORLD CUP

VIDEO: When a German ‘flattened a Frenchman’

Forget Luis Suarez and his appetite for an Italian, one of the most shocking moments in World Cup history was when France played Germany in 1982 and German goalkeeper left French player Patrick Battiston in a coma. Watch what happened and read this interview with Battiston.

VIDEO: When a German 'flattened a Frenchman'
Patrick Battiston is stretchered off the pitch after being poleaxed by German goalie Harald Schumacher. Photo: AFP

Frenchman Patrick Battiston's place in World Cup folklore is not down to a goal or piece of skill but for being knocked unconscious by German goalkeeper Harald Schumacher in the 1982 World Cup semi-final.

Schumacher's brutal shoulder charge on Battiston became known in France as the 'Tragedy of Seville'.

Battiston, now 57 and in charge of Ligue 1 side Bordeaux youth academy, kept his own counsel for a long time over the incident which happened just seven minutes after he had come on as a substitute and saw him lose a couple of teeth, suffer bruised ribs and damaged vertebrae and eventually slip into a coma.

With France set to face Germany in the World Cup quarter-finals on Friday – the first meeting at the finals between the two European titans since the 1986 semi-final which the French lost 2-0 – interest has once again been reignited in the dramatic events of that evening in Spain.

Battiston, who appeared in three World Cup finals and was a member of the French side that won the 1984 European championships, said it would be wrong to solely remember the game for what happened to him.

His terrible injuries not only carried a personal cost but also to the team as with only two substitutes allowed in those days Michel Hidalgo was forced to send on his final one.

The importance of fresh legs was brought home when despite leading 3-1 in extra-time the French wilted while the German substitutes engineered a comeback which saw them draw 3-3 and win on penalties.

"Entrenched in our memories is this charge by Schumacher who flattened the little Frenchman," said Battiston.

"That's how things are. People talk to me about 1982 often. But it wasn't only about me."

Battiston, capped 56 times, says he had already noticed before he came on to replace Bruno Genghini five minutes into the second-half that Schumacher was very pumped up.

"I remember his attitude even when I was sitting on the substitutes bench," said Battiston, who sticks to the belief that Schumacher's action was not intentional.

"I observed his behaviour, the way he clashed with Dominique Rocheteau and Didier Six. I thought he was very hyped up, very excitable. I remarked on this to the other players on the bench."

Schumacher's only regret is that he didn't realise how seriously injured Battiston was and instead of paying attention to him he strolled off, without even a booking.

The referee Charles Corver claimed afterwards he failed to see the incident because he was 'following the ball'.

However, Battiston was less impressed by Schumacher's remark that 'I will pay for the crowns' at the press conference afterwards when a journalist informed him of the extent of the Frenchman's injuries.

"That was not a very wise remark. It was pretty gauche," Battiston said.

"Still to his day I have a cracked vertebra and broken teeth."

Indeed it is Corver not Schumacher who bears the brunt of Battiston's ire today.

"Recently I tumbled upon by accident images of the match on Arte (a German/Franco financed TV station).

"I paid more attention to what happened on the pitch, after I had been stretchered off, as I had never seen them before.

Ten reasons why France is better than Germany

"The refereeing by Corver who did not whistle for obvious fouls when Germany went behind. That struck me as odd and we have the right to be astonished by that."

Battiston, little by little, regained some of the memories of that night.

Michel Platini holding his hand in the way someone holds a dying person's on the way to the hospital and worse the jokey discussion between Corver and Schumacher, both of whom appeared impervious as to the seriousness of what had happened and which revolted the whole of France.

A line was finally drawn under the incident at least on a personal front when Schumacher, shocked by the negative reaction to him back in Germany, asked his agent to organize a press conference between the two of them after the finals even though Battiston had already forgiven him.

"Maybe he did feel guilty, one can draw all sorts of conclusions as to what he did feel. All I know is that Schumacher was someone who wanted to win at all costs and he went way over the top that evening."

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SPORT

Norway’s football clubs to vote on Qatar World Cup boycott

Will Norwegian football star Erling Braut Haaland stay home or play on what fans have dubbed a "cemetery?" This Sunday, a meeting of Norway's football community will decide whether to boycott next year's World Cup in Qatar.

Norway's football clubs to vote on Qatar World Cup boycott
Norway's forward Erling Haaland (L) and teammates wear jerseys reading "Fair play for migrant workers" before the international friendly football match between Norway and Greece at La Rosaleda stadium in Malaga in preperation for the UEFA European Championships, on June 6, 2021. JORGE GUERRERO / AFP

Under pressure from grassroots activists the Norwegian Football Federation(NFF) has decided to hold an extraordinary congress to decide on whether to pass up football’s showpiece event all together.

The games on the pitches in the Middle Eastern emirate will “unfortunately be like playing on a cemetery,” according to Ole Kristian Sandvik, spokesman of the Norwegian Supporters Alliance (NSA), invoking a commonly used metaphor among opponents of Norway’s participation.

Norway, which has not qualified for a major international competition since Euro 2000, is currently fourth in its World Cup qualifying group behind Turkey, the Netherlands and Montenegro. 

So while qualification seems an uphill task, the result of the vote could have an impact on whether Norway and its young star Haaland — one of the rising stars of world football — continue to play qualifying matches. 

The movement calling for a boycott began north of the Arctic Circle when football club Tromso IL spoke out against turning a blind eye to alleged human rights abuses at the end of February.

“We can no longer sit and watch people die in the name of football,” the first division club proclaimed.

Qatar has faced criticism for its treatment of migrant workers, many of whom are involved in the construction of stadiums and infrastructure for the 2022 World Cup, with campaigners accusing employers of exploitation and forcing labourers to work in dangerous conditions.

Qatari authorities meanwhile insist they have done more than any country in the region to improve worker welfare.

“There is no doubt that this World Cup should never have been awarded to Qatar,” Tom Hogli, a former professional footballer turned public relations officer for Tromso IL, told AFP.

“The conditions there are abominable and many have lost their lives,” he added.

In March, a spokesman for the Qatari organisers put the number of deaths on the construction sites at “three” since 2014, with another 35 having died away from their workplaces, challenging the heavy toll reported by some rights groups.

Push from fans
The Tromso call began gathering pace in Norway, where clubs operate under a democratic structure, and under pressure from fans, many teams now say “nei” (no).

According to Sandvik, the fans feel that the deaths on the World Cup sites would have been avoided “if they had not had to build hotels, railways and stadiums”.

Nearly half of Norwegians, 49 percent, now say they are in favour of a boycott, while only 29 percent are against it, according to a poll published by newspaper VG on Wednesday.

The Nordic country’s national squad has already protested conditions in Qatar, but stopped short of calling for a boycott.

Before recent Norway games, Borussia Dortmund superstar Haaland, captain Martin Odegaard and the rest of the team have worn t-shirts with slogans like “Human rights on and off the pitch.”

Other countries, like Germany, the Netherlands and Denmark have also followed suit.

FIFA, on the other hand, argue that awarding the hosting of the World Cup in Qatar has opened the door to social progress.

“We know there is still work to be done, but we need to recognise the significant progress achieved in a very short time,” FIFA president Gianni Infantino said in May.

‘Few successes’ 
While the executive committee of the NFF have said they regret Qatar being awarded the World Cup, they oppose a boycott.

President Terje Svendsen said he thought it was “not the right tool to improve the human rights situation or the working conditions in Qatar,” when speaking at the federation’s ordinary annual congress in March.

According to the NFF, a boycott could end up costing Norway 205 million Norwegian kroner ($24 million, 20 million euros) in fines and compensation as well as lost revenue.

Feeling the pressure from grassroots campaigns, the NFF referred the matter to an extraordinary congress which on Sunday will bring together the eight members of its executive committee, representatives of 18 districts and of hundreds of professional and amateur clubs.

The discussions will be revolve around the findings of an expert committee which, with the exception of two members representing fans, has also come out against a boycott.

“For a boycott to succeed, you need a critical mass behind it, an opposition that calls for it in the country, the UN to put pressure on the
authorities, the business world, the trade unions and civil society to put pressure on it in the long term,” committee chairman Sven Mollekleiv said in a debate hosted by broadcaster TV2.

“Historically, there are few successes,” he said.

Rather than a boycott, the committee recommended 26 measures to consolidate and further the gains made in Qatar but also to ensure that FIFA doesn’t become complicit in so called “sportswashing” — the polishing of a country’s public image through a major sporting event.

Some initial supporters of a boycott, like Tromso’s Hogli, have since sided with these conclusions, although calls for a complete boycott remain.

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