Farewell to a legend
Elber: Bayern years were best of my career
With a proud record of 92 goals in the Bundesliga, 24 in the Champions League and 15 in the German Cup, Giovane Elber rates as one of the greatest strikers ever to appear for Bayern. Some three years after he left Bavaria for pastures new, the Brazilian is back in town for his long-awaited testimonial against TSV 1860 Munich.
fcbayern.de talked to the player who features in Bayern's official Team of the Century about his target on his farewell appearance, what he learned in Munich, and what he has been up to over the past three years. "I can still run, and I've not lost my nose for goal," he declared. 1860 be warned!
Interview: Giovane Elber
fcbayern.de: Giovane, you're finally saying farewell to Bayern, three years after leaving the club. How many goals do you intend to score in your last derby?
Giovane Elber: "I'll be happy enough if I just manage one. I normally scored against 1860. It was always a special fixture for me. Beforehand, I used to think to myself, today's the day when you'll score again. And it always worked out somehow. I hope it happens again, but it's no disaster if it doesn't. What matters most to me is the reunion with my former team-mates and friends."
fcbayern.de: It's a reunion with the Bayern faithful too...
Elber: "Yes, the worst thing back then was that I told the fans I'd stay until the end of the season. Then I went and left after just four matches, and didn't have any time left to say thank you to the fans for everything. I have that opportunity now."
fcbayern.de: You were a significant figure in a glorious era at the club. How do you feel now about your six years with Bayern?
Elber: "They were the greatest years of my career, in a very successful period. I learned what it takes to be a winner while I was with Bayern. As a Brazilian, I needed that. I always used to think you can win the league and the Champions League with attractive football, but that's not the way it is. You have to fight, you have to give everything, and that's how you win the most difficult games. That's what I learnt from Bayern."
fcbayern.de: And now you've exported your unshakeable will to win back home to Brazil?
Elber: "Oh yes indeed! Not just Brazil, I took it to Lyon as well. I never really got to grips with French, but the other players took me seriously. They told me, if Giovane has something to say, he must be right, because he won everything with Bayern."
fcbayern.de: The 2001 Champions League for example...
Elber: "That was my finest season in Munich, although 1999 was wonderful too. We just have to try and forget the last two matches, the Champions League final and the German Cup final. After our bitter defeat to Manchester United, we had the Cup final a week later. We weren't mentally up for it, and of course we lost. It could have been the greatest season ever at the club, featuring a championship, the Cup and the Champions League. But we went out and won the Champions League in 2001, even though I thought we'd have to wait 30 years for another shot at the final."
fcbayern.de: Elber the footballer was a perfect fit at Bayern. How did Elber the Brazilian like Munich?
Elber:
"I loved it, I really loved it! It was wonderful. Munich was like Brazil to me. I learnt to appreciate the German mentality, I went skiing with my family or on trips with friends. We still have many really close friends in Munich. Even now, when I arrive at the airport, I say to myself: 'Oh, I'm home.' I love the feeling of knowing every nook and cranny, knowing where, how, when and what's going on."
fcbayern.de: Even so, Giovane Elber and Munich parted company in 2003. Did you ever settle in Lyon?
Elber: "No, I never called Lyon my home."
fcbayern.de: And what of the future after you stop playing? Will you become a coach?
Elber: "I don't know what will happen, but I definitely won't enter coaching. A coach has to be a very hard character, and I'm not that. Mr Hoeneß once suggested to me I could work for Bayern after I stop playing. Once I've hung up my boots, I'll sit down with the general manager and we'll see what happens. But I'm still playing football for now."
fcbayern.de
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A true legend.
Thats why even without Marquez or Dos Santos or any other mexican who is in Barcelona (many mexicans there), the Barcelona Fan Base in mexico will still be there just like the Real Madrid fanbase is still in there . 
