Mike Wunderlich gave his emotional walkout on Friday evening. He wore both jerseys at the farewell match between Viktoria Köln and 1. FC Kaiserslautern.
Viktoria Köln used the international break to bid farewell to a great player: Mike Wunderlich, record player (347 games) and record scorer (194 goals) of the Höhenberger.
The 37-year-old, who ended his active career in the summer and is now head coach of fifth-division club SV Bergisch Gladbach, laced up his boots for the last time on Friday evening. His opponents were 1. FC Kaiserslautern, with whom Wunderlich said he experienced the best moment of his career in 2022 when they were promoted to the 2nd Bundesliga.
On his retirement on Friday, the Palatinate side won 2-1, but the highlight of the evening was neither the 1:0 by Luca Marseiler (10th) nor the FCK goals (1:1, Terrence Boyd, 45th / 1:2, Philipp Hercher 74th).
In the 75th minute, the time had come: both teams formed a line, Wunderlich’s son shouted “it’s over now, Dad” into the microphone and the visibly moved midfielder left the pitch for the last time to applause and chants.
Wunderlich: One half for FCK – one for Viktoria Köln
Wunderlich played the first half in the jersey of FCK, for whom he played a total of 56 competitive games (11 goals and 9 assists) between July 2021 and January 2023. At the change of ends, he put on the shirt with “his” number eight from Viktoria Köln. It was to be his last.
Because Viktoria Köln was not only one of his training clubs, but also the place where he found refuge when he suffered from burnout syndrome at the then second-division club FSV Frankfurt. Mike’s father Franz was sports director there at the time and the late, long-time patron Franz-Josef Wernze also helped him “unbelievably” during this phase.
Wunderlich: “That’s why I stayed here after the missed promotions,” he said recently in an interview with the EXPRESS. “Because I was grateful to him and wanted to help realise his dream of the third division.”
In his retirement, the dream is still a reality.