Coach Marco Rose of Bundesliga club RB Leipzig has responded to hate chants against East Germany during the 5:1 win at 1 FC Cologne with a fiery appeal. "The people who don't know that well over there with us should come," said Rose, who was born in Leipzig during the GDR era. "There are a lot of cool people there. Just like here. There are a few idiots. Just like here. So in the end, everything is actually very, very similar. That's why we tore down the wall at some point, even in people's minds."
In the end, he "didn't want to read too much into it" and above all "wanted to unite and not divide. That's why it's important that we try to classify this." The score had just been 5:1 in an emotional game, "and a lot of people out there have the right attitude and mindset. We should take a leaf out of their book and perhaps correct the others a little."
Cologne's managing director Christian Keller had strong words against the chants. "We also had an anti-discrimination match day today. All the more reason to wonder what's going on in some people's heads," he said. "Such chants are not acceptable. It's only a minority. But it's a shame that this minority exists."
