BayernForum.com

23.02.2007

One of the joys of following football is the (almost) never-ending debate after the final whistle. One man's thriller is another's bore draw, and one woman's dead cert of a penalty is another's blatant dive, but the biggest differences of opinion usually arise when it comes to individual players.

Bayern centre-half Lucio would thus have been forgiven a sense of confusion when he opened the Munich papers on Wednesday following the Champions League meeting with Madrid. Reporters rated the Brazilian's performance average at best, with a certain mass-market tabloid even slating the player as poor, but respected news agency dpa described "the on-form Lucio" as the visitors' best player alongside Oliver Kahn.

<b>First goal in Europe for Bayern</b>

The Bayern captain himself was in no doubt. "Lucio was world-class tonight, and not just because he scored," Kahn declared afterwards. Chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge was equally convinced: "We had one world-class player in our ranks, and that was Lucio."

The facts are these: Lucio committed two fouls, and was himself fouled on three occasions. The official UEFA statistics otherwise fail to mention the Brazil World Cup winner - apart from the fact that he scored. The 28-year-old rose on 23 minutes to net his first goal in Europe for the men in red.

<b>Backing from Hitzfeld</b>

The combative player simply seems to provoke contrasting emotions at the present time. Following Bayern's 3-0 defeat in Nuremberg, Ottmar Hitzfeld voiced unusually sharp criticism, describing the Brazilian's forays forward as "not clever. A centre-half's first job is to shore up the middle of the park, and not get forward too often."

Hitzfeld took the player to one side several times over the next few days in a bid to curb his over-enthusiasm, a remedy which has clearly borne fruit. "He was a lot more intelligent going forward, smarter, doing it with restraint. Clearly, Ottmar Hitzfeld has got the message across very well," Kahn commented approvingly in midweek.

<b>Moving on from the autumn</b>

Speaking to reporters afterwards, Lucio himself acknowledged a "difficult first half of the season," partly due to a painful ankle injury in the autumn. "I played through the pain often enough, but I've only recovered full fitness now," he declared. Brazil's relatively early World Cup exit may also have taken a mental toll on the emotional player, general manager Uli Hoeneß has speculated, but Hitzfeld appears to have restored the defender's belief. "He's my defensive chief," the General insisted.

Lucio was certainly not at fault for any of Real's goals on Tuesday, and was arguably fouled by Ivan Helguera in the build-up to Raùl's second goal. "We need him back to his former best," Rummenigge remarked. And what did the man himself think of his display? "The papers can write whatever they want. I'm only interested in Bayern Munich."

FCBayernNews wrote: And what did the man himself think of his display? "The papers can write whatever they want. I'm only interested in Bayern Munich."

Thank you Mr. Lucio.. We admire you...

He is a true professional and his heart is 100% Bayern.