7 of the Best 'Robbery' Moments as Curtain Falls on Legendary Bayern Munich Duo
Saturday's 5-1 win over Eintracht Frankfurt meant a lot more to Bayern Munich fans than simply wrapping up another Bundesliga title (their 29th to be precise) because it was Bavaria's last chance to wave goodbye to its two adopted sons, Franck Ribéry and Arjen Robben.
Between them, Bayern Munich's iconic duo have been the face of the Bundesliga for a generation, helping to define the club's most important era since back during their original glory days in the 1970s.
And much like fans today grow up learning about the club's great players like Franz Beckenbauer or Gerd Müller through the history books, Robben and Ribéry will act as the same immortalised heroes for tomorrows fanbase.
Here's a list of seven of the most memorable moments across the years from Robben and Ribéry, including a handful of the best ever goals from the Robbery partnership.
A Debut to Remember
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Arjen Robben's £22.5m move from Real Madrid was a real turning point for the club, as they'd more often than not spent their transfer windows poaching players from smaller clubs across the continent.
Despite his high-profile arrival, however, Robben actually started his first match against reigning Bundesliga champions VfL Wolfsburg on the bench, with manager Louis van Gaal preferring to start with a front three of Ivica Olic, Mario Gómez and Thomas Müller.
Robben was brought on to replace Hamit Altintop at half-time, and it took the flying Dutchman just over 20 minutes to score his first ever goal for the club with a deflected shot from an acute angle.
He went on to find the back of the net again just 12 minutes later, combining with fellow substitute Franck Ribéry to round off the scoring at the start of the 2009/10 season.
Record Number of Trophies
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Ribéry's last ever game for Bayern Munich was crowned by lifting his ninth Meisterschale, setting a new league and club record for the amount of Bundesliga titles won by any one player.
It was also his 23rd major honour for Bayern Munich, which has moved the former France international level with club legend Oliver Kahn as their most decorated player ever.
Ribéry can become Bayern Munich's most successful player outright if they beat RB Leipzig in the DFB-Pokal final this weekend.
The Perfect Counter-Attack
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Scoring goals on the final day of the season is hardly anything new for Ribéry, and while this season's strike was an outstanding solo effort, the Frenchman's effort against SC Freiburg two years showcased exactly what made Robbery so frightening for defenders.
From a Freiburg corner, the ball broke to Ribéry in Bayern's half and he lay the ball off for Robben to run the length of the pitch before finding himself past the defence and inside the penalty area on his weaker right foot.
Rather than take the shot on, Robben played the ball across the face of the goal with the outside of his left foot for Ribéry to slide across to finish off a move which he started just seven seconds earlier.
That Volley Against Manchester United
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If you're from outside of Germany, then it won't be surprising to think of Arjen Robben wonder strike against Manchester United in the Champions League quarter-finals.
At the business end of his first season at Bayern Munich, and having scored in his previous two knockout stages matches against Fiorentina, Robben was actually forced to miss their first leg against United - where Ivica Olic's 92nd-minute goal secured a win - due to a muscle strain.
Wayne Rooney's away goal in Munich gave Manchester United hope and their quick start at Old Trafford put Sir Alex Ferguson's side firmly in the driving seat, at one point leading 4-2 on aggregate.
Olic scored on the stroke of half-time to leave Bayern Munich needing just one more goal to progress to go through on the away goals rule, but despite Manchester United seeing Rafael sent off, it wasn't until 15 minutes before the final whistle that Robben stepped up for the winner.
Manager van Gaal was already preparing to bring on Hamit Altintop in Robben's place, but just two minutes before the Turk would come off the bench, Bayern Munich's unmarked Dutch winger volleyed a Ribéry corner past his international teammate Edwin van der Sar and into the back of the net.
It was a goal which was decisive in booking Bayern Munich's place in the semi-finals and eventually the final - their first since 2001 - where José Mourinho's Inter returned the trophy to Italy for the third time in that decade.
The Champions League Final
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While there have certainly been more beautiful goals from Robbery over the years, none have been as important as Arjen Robben's strike against Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League final at Wembley.
Most people forget that Franck Ribéry even had a part to play in the match-winning goal, but it was the Frenchman's clever backheel - which was slightly deflected by Łukasz Piszczek's heel - that put the ball in the path of Robben to nonchalantly nudge the ball past Roman Weidenfeller.
Having been defeated in the final to Chelsea just 12 months earlier and to Inter a few seasons before, Robben's goal to clinch the Champions League will understandably be remembered as one of Bayern Munich's most iconic goals for eternity.
It was a strike that also helped cement manager Jupp Heynckes in the history books, as Bayern Munich's win in the DFB-Pokal final against Stuttgart secured a treble for the club after an outstanding 2012/13 season.
Deserving the Ballon d'Or
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Just how close can someone come to winning the Ballon d'Or without ever getting their hands on one? Just ask Franck Ribéry, circa 2013.
It wasn't just an unbelievable season for Bayern Munich, as Ribéry was at the peak of his powers and had been the jewel of European football throughout the calendar year, but still the Frenchman found himself sitting behind Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi in the rankings for the Ballon d'Or.
"It was a difficult period, it was incomprehensible," Ribéry told Canal +. "I had won every trophy, I couldn't have done more. For me, it was like a robbery, an injustice.
"I didn't have my whole country behind me. I saw with my own eyes French people who wanted Cristiano to win. Did the Portuguese want Ribéry or Messi to win? Impossible. Do you think in Argentina they wanted Ribéry or Ronaldo to win? Impossible."
Just four per cent separated Europe's best players that year, with Ronaldo (27.99%) winning just his second individual award ahead of Messi (24.72%) and Ribéry (23.36%).
Signing Off in Style
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For anyone even remotely connected with Bayern Munich, Saturday's match against Eintracht Frankfurt was an emotional rollercoaster.
It was a chance for Ribéry, Robben and even Rafinha to have one final farewell at the Allianz Arena, although Bayern Munich's Brazilian defender wasn't able to have a late cameo due to Renato Sanches' introduction after a first-half injury.
Kingsley Coman was replaced just after the hour mark by his compatriot Ribéry and the veteran winger was joined by Robben on the pitch just a few minutes later, coming on for Serge Gnabry.
Within 10 minutes of Robbery being introduced, both players found themselves on the scoresheet, goals which were met with the biggest cheers from the Allianz Arena of the entire season.
Even though Robben finished the game with somewhat of a sour face - he missed chances to take his Bundesliga goal tally to 100 - it was a perfect send off for Bayern Munich's iconic duo as the club wrapped up their 29th league title.
