23 October 1971 - Those Sheets Need Cleaning Now

On 23 October 1971, Bundesliga leaders Schalke visited defending champions Borussia Mönchengladbach and were crushed, 7-0.

Gladbach had won the league the previous two seasons, but started the day five points behind Schalke. Schalke's run to the top was driven by their strong defense, who had surrendered only three goals so far that season and had just completed their seventh straight clean sheet. But it did not take long for Gladbach to end that streak, as striker Jupp Heynkes scored after only four minutes (pictured).

It was the start of a long day for Schalke keeper Norbert Nigbur, who picked the ball out of his net another four times in the first half alone after goals from Günter Netzer (5'), Hartwig Bleidick (23'), another from Heynckes (29'), and one from Ulrik Le Fevre (36').

With the margin stretched to 5-0 at the break, the match was effectively over as a contest, but Gladbach were not done. In the 52nd minute, Le Fevre scored another by juggling the ball over two Schalke defenders before slamming the ball into the net with a right-footed volley. Netzer then completed the rout with a 64th-minute strike to extend the final margin to 7-0.

As impressive as the victory was, it fell short of the record at the time, set by Gladbach with an 11-0 win over Schalke in 1967 (they beat their own record in 1978 by beating Borussia Dortmund 12-0). Schalke went on to finish as runners-up to Bayern Munich in the league that season, while Gladbach finished in third.

9 May 1945 - Heynckes The Hometown Hero

On 9 May 1945, striker Josef "Jupp" Heynckes was born in Mönchengladbach where he went on to become his home team's all-time top scorer.

Heynckes made his professional debut in 1964 with Borussia Mönchengladbach, then in the second-tier Regionalliga West. But his 23 goals in 25 league appearances that first season helped the club earn promotion to the Bundesliga for the following season. He played only two more season there before transferring to Hannover in 1967.

He did well at Hannover, scoring 35 goals in three seasons, but returned to Gladbach for the 1970-71 season which ended with them as league champions. Additional titles followed in 1975, 1976, and 1977--along with the 1975 UEFA Cup--as Heynckes established himself as one of the world's premier strikers. He was the league's top scorer in 1974 and 1975, with 30 and 29 goals, respectively. He retired from playing in 1978 having scored a club record total of 292 goals in 400 appearances for Gladbach (plus another 35 in 101 appearances for Hannover).

He moved immediately into management, taking charge of Gladbach from 1979 to 1987, then again from 2006 to 2007 . His resume includes a long list of other teams, including Athletic Bilbao (twice), Schalke, Benfica, and Real Madrid (with whom he won the Champions League in 1998). He had three separate stints in charge of Bayern Munich, where he won three Bundesliga titles (1989, 1990, and 2013) and another Champions League trophy (2013).

29 April 1978 - It Was A Hell Of An Effort, Though

On 29 April 1978, Borussia Mönchengladbach beat Borussia Dortmund by the Bundesliga record margin of 12-0. And it still wasn't enough.

Gladbach had dominated the league over the previous few years, winning the title in 1970, 1971, 1975, 1976, and 1977. But going into the final day of the 1977-78 season, they were sitting in second place behind Köln. The two teams were level on points, but Köln had a ten-goal advantage in differential and were playing their final match of the season away at the league's last-place team, St. Pauli.

A crowd of 38,000 people showed up at Gladbach's Rheinstadion and watched as the hosts gave their best effort to retain the title. Going up against Dortmund's second-choice keeper, Peter Endrulat--who had reportedly been told earlier in the day that the club was not going to renew his contract--Gladbach built a 6-0 lead by the break with goals from Jupp Heynckes (1', 12', 32'), Carsten Nielsen (13'), Karl Del'Haye (22'), and Herbert Wimmer (38').

At the break, Dortmund manager Otto Rehhagel asked Endrulat if he wanted to come out of the game, but the keeper gamely chose to play on. He later said he wished he hadn't, as Heynckes (59', 77'), Nielsen (61'), Del'Haye (66'), Ewald Lienen (87'), and Christian Kulik (90') proceeded to add another six goals to Gladbach's tally. The 12-0 scoreline remains the highest margin of victory in Bundesliga history, beating the previous record set by Gladbach in their 11-0 win over Schalke in 1967.

Unfortunately for Gladbach, twelve goals weren't enough, as Köln beat St. Pauli 5-0 to preserve a three-goal differential over Gladbach and take the title.

23 October 1971 - Those Sheets Need Cleaning Now

On 23 October 1971, Bundesliga leaders Schalke visited defending champions Borussia Mönchengladbach and were crushed, 7-0.

Gladbach had won the league the previous two seasons, but started the day five points behind Schalke. Schalke's run to the top was driven by their strong defense, who had surrendered only three goals so far that season and had just completed their seventh straight clean sheet. But it did not take long for Gladbach to end that streak, as striker Jupp Heynkes scored after only four minutes (pictured).

It was the start of a long day for Schalke keeper Norbert Nigbur, who picked the ball out of his net another four times in the first half alone after goals from Günter Netzer (5'), Hartwig Bleidick (23'), another from Heynckes (29'), and one from Ulrik Le Fevre (36').

With the margin stretched to 5-0 at the break, the match was effectively over as a contest, but Gladbach were not done. In the 52nd minute, Le Fevre scored another by juggling the ball over two Schalke defenders before slamming the ball into the net with a right-footed volley. Netzer then completed the rout with a 64th-minute strike to extend the final margin to 7-0.

As impressive as the victory was, it fell short of the record at the time, set by Gladbach with an 11-0 win over Schalke in 1967 (they beat their own record in 1978 by beating Borussia Dortmund 12-0). Schalke went on to finish as runners-up to Bayern Munich in the league that season, while Gladbach finished in third.

9 May 1945 - Heynckes The Hometown Hero

On 9 May 1945, striker Josef "Jupp" Heynckes was born in Mönchengladbach where he went on to become his home team's all-time top scorer.

Heynckes made his professional debut in 1964 with Borussia Mönchengladbach, then in the second-tier Regionalliga West. But his 23 goals in 25 league appearances that first season helped the club earn promotion to the Bundesliga for the following season. He played only two more season there before transferring to Hannover in 1967.

He did well at Hannover, scoring 35 goals in three seasons, but returned to Gladbach for the 1970-71 season which ended with them as league champions. Additional titles followed in 1975, 1976, and 1977--along with the 1975 UEFA Cup--as Heynckes established himself as one of the world's premier strikers. He was the league's top scorer in 1974 and 1975, with 30 and 29 goals, respectively. He retired from playing in 1978 having scored a club record total of 292 goals in 400 appearances for Gladbach (plus another 35 in 101 appearances for Hannover).

He moved immediately into management, taking charge of Gladbach from 1979 to 1987, then again from 2006 to 2007 . His resume includes a long list of other teams, including Athletic Bilbao (twice), Schalke, Benfica, and Real Madrid (with whom he won the Champions League in 1998). He is currently in his third stint as manager of Bayern Munich, where he won the Bundesliga in 1989 and 1990.

29 April 1978 - It Was A Hell Of An Effort, Though

On 29 April 1978, Borussia Mönchengladbach beat Borussia Dortmund by the Bundesliga record margin of 12-0. And it still wasn't enough.

Gladbach had dominated the league over the previous few years, winning the title in 1970, 1971, 1975, 1976, and 1977. But going into the final day of the 1977-78 season, they were sitting in second place behind Köln. The two teams were level on points, but Köln had a ten-goal advantage in differential and were playing their final match of the season away at the league's last-place team, St. Pauli.

A crowd of 38,000 people showed up at Gladbach's Rheinstadion and watched as the hosts gave their best effort to retain the title. Going up against Dortmund's second-choice keeper, Peter Endrulat--who had reportedly been told earlier in the day that the club was not going to renew his contract--Gladbach built a 6-0 lead by the break with goals from Jupp Heynckes (1', 12', 32'), Carsten Nielsen (13'), Karl Del'Haye (22'), and Herbert Wimmer (38').

At the break, Dortmund manager Otto Rehhagel asked Endrulat if he wanted to come out of the game, but the keeper gamely chose to play on. He later said he wished he hadn't, as Heynckes (59', 77'), Nielsen (61'), Del'Haye (66'), Ewald Lienen (87'), and Christian Kulik (90') proceeded to add another six goals to Gladbach's tally. The 12-0 scoreline remains the highest margin of victory in Bundesliga history, beating the previous record set by Gladbach in their 11-0 win over Schalke in 1967.

Unfortunately for Gladbach, twelve goals weren't enough, as Köln beat St. Pauli 5-0 to preserve a three-goal differential over Gladbach and take the title.