Mönchengladbach (Germany) (AFP)
A double, and a knee on the ground in homage to George Floyd: Marcus Thuram, the French striker of Mönchengladbach, expressed his convictions Sunday after having propelled his team on the podium of the Bundesliga.
With a 4-1 victory over the Union Berlin, Borussia is strengthening its position in the square-head race, a qualifier for the next Champions League.
Thuram, 22, son of the 1998 French world champion Lilian Thuram, himself engaged in the fight against racism, made no comment on his gesture.
But just after the match, Mönchengladbach's club posted a photo of their player, knee on the ground and looking down, on Twitter, with the caption in English: "No explanation needed" ").
Another Bundesliga player, Weston McKennie of Schalke 04's club, sported a Justice for George armband on Saturday in memory of George Floyd, a 46-year-old African American who died after his arrest on Monday in Minneapolis, USA. United.
- Thuram / Pléa keys to success -
On the field, Marcus Thuram was one of the two architects of the 4-1 victory against the Union Berlin, with his teammate Alassane Pléa, who delivered the two assists before closing the score.
The "Foals" are provisionally third, but RB Leipzig can push them into fourth position if they win or draw on Monday (6.30pm GMT) in Cologne, at the end of the 29th day.
Five days before the end of the German championship, Bayern Munich leads with 67 points and ten lengths ahead of Dortmund (57 pts), which will narrow the gap a bit if it beats the red lantern Paderborn Sunday (4:00 p.m. GMT). Mönchengladbach follows with 56 pts, tied with Leverkusen. Leipzig is 55 points away.
Florian Neuhaus opened the scoring for a nice goal for M'Gladbach (1-0, 17th), but it was the performance of the French duo, behind closed doors at Borussia Park (due to coronavirus), which made the difference.
First two goals of the same bill, in the 41st and 59th minutes: slightly deep center of Pléa and close conclusion of Thuram. Then at the end of the match, Pléa rewarded himself by scoring (4-1, 81st). Sebastian Andersson had reduced the gap to Berlin after the break (2-1, 50th).
This season, the French pair is the key to Mönchengladbach's success: Pléa has scored 10 times and delivered 11 assists. Thuram now also has 10 goals on the clock and 8 assists.
- Cardboard fans -
The Rhenish club, surprise team of the season, even remained at the top of the classification more than two months in autumn, at the time when Bayern was stuck in the crisis which led to the dismissal of Niko Kovac and the arrival on Hansi Flick's bench.
As the final sprint begins, the fight for qualification for the Champions League promises to be hot, and Mönchengladbach is not yet assured of his ticket.
Germany is entitled to four direct qualifiers for the queen competition: Bayern Munich having already (except in the unlikely event of a collapse) been assured of its place, three places remain which are contested by four clubs neck and neck: Dortmund, 57 points before his match against Paderborn, Leipzig, 55 points, traveling on Monday (6.30 p.m. GMT) to Cologne, Leverkusen and therefore Mönchengladbach, 56 points each.
Beaten on the way to Berlin in November, while they were at the top of the classification, the teammates of Thuram took their revenge at home, without supporters but in front of several thousand cardboard effigies of their fans, who launched this operation to populate Borussia Park during the closed match period.
© 2020 AFP