Shock live on air: Kovac fights back tears after learning of his friend's death
A moment never to be forgotten
Niko Kovac fought back tears before cancelling a television interview the moment he learned of the tragic death of his close friend and former assistant Peter Hermann, live on German television.
The Borussia Dortmund manager, 54, was giving an interview to "Sky Sport Germany" following his side's 1-0 win over Stuttgart when the news reached him.
Presenter Sebastian Hellmann broke the news to him. Kovac was visibly, deeply affected.
Hellmann had received word mid-interview before relaying it to Kovac and analysts Lothar Matthaus and Julia Simic.
"This makes me feel a little short of breath," Kovac said. "A month or two ago I was still trying to talk to him, but that is no longer possible at all. Sadly his illness was incurable. I am extremely sad, a good person has left us."
When he had tried to reach his old friend earlier, Kovac explained, Hermann's daughter answered the call.
Hermann died at the age of 74 after a long battle with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, one of the neurodegenerative diseases.
He had worked as assistant to Jupp Heynckes when Bayern Munich won their first treble in 2013, then returned to the club when Heynckes came back in 2017. He stayed on for a further year when Kovac took charge of the team.
Across his career, Hermann served as assistant manager in more than 1,000 matches for various clubs, including Schalke, Hamburg, Bayer Leverkusen and Borussia Dortmund.
The blow ran deep. A shaken Kovac cancelled his media appearance on the Aktuelles Sportstudio programme on ZDF, as presenter Katrin Muller-Hohenstein revealed on Saturday evening.
Kovac fought back tears during the post-match press conference, saying: "From me and also from my brother, our deepest condolences to Peter's family. A great man has left us. Not only as an assistant manager in Munich, but also as an assistant manager when I was still a player at Leverkusen. It is a real shock."
