1. FC Köln: Luca Kilian’s advisor with a cult Cologne history
Author: Herbert Bucco
1. FC Köln seems to have made a promising move with Luca Kilian. Consultant Pierre Esser arranged the deal. And there is a crazy, typical Cologne story to be told about him.
Cologne. When Luca Kilian (22) met SpVgg Greuther Fürth with 1. FC Köln on Friday evening, his advisor Pierre Esser (50) was once not in the stands. “You have to set priorities,” smiles the tall former goalkeeper, who instead played a friendly with the traditional team of 1. FC Köln.
But how does Esser get into the team of captain and organizer Stephan Engels (61), who does not tolerate any contradiction when the invitation comes? Read the crazy Cologne story of the advisor of Cologne’s defender jewel.
Pierre Esser chooses his name
Esser came in as Cengiz Dülgeroğlu Cologne to the world. The parents’ relationship quickly fell apart. “My mother found a new love in Belgium. I grew up with my grandparents, ”recalls Esser. He grew up in Höhenberg, Vingst and Kalk, and found his sporting home here Viktoria Cologne.
His grandparents apply for custody and are working to obtain German citizenship. “I’ve always felt more German than Turkish,” says Esser. At 14, the time has come, with the German passport he also takes his mother’s maiden name. He could choose his first name. “My sporty goalkeeper idol was Toni Schumacher. But who was called Toni in the 80s? I also chose the names of my other stars: Pierre Littbarski, ”says Esser.
The goalkeeping career does not lead him to FC, but to Fortuna Düsseldorf. There he can’t get past the towering Georg Koch (49). He finds his way to Galatasaray Istanbul through a middleman. “At that time I was accompanied by an ARD team with Jürgen Bergener. I had barely landed when I had to play. The next game I just sat on the bench, ”recalls Esser.
Turkish master with Gheorghe Hagi and Fatih Terim
The colleagues have illustrious names, the Romanian exceptional talent Gheorghe Hagi (56) or Gheorghe Popescu (54) played at Gala, but Esser has a difficult time with coach Fatih Terim (68). He becomes Turkish champion on the bench, even before the When colleagues win the UEFA Cup in their second year, it comes to a bang with the “Imperator”. “I couldn’t agree that I didn’t play. I told him that pretty clearly. It was then clear that I would never play him again. “
Esser is going back to Germany, ex-Kaiserslautern legend Hans-Peter Briegel (65) and coach Peter Vollmann (63) convince him to move to the ambitious third division club Eintracht Trier. Already in the third game there was a GAU: a fit injection bends his knee, the diagnosis: cruciate ligament rupture and cartilage damage, his career was over at the age of 28.
Pierre Esser: “Luca Kilian is in good hands with Baumgart”
Esser studied and became a consultant, now lives in Essen, married with two children. There he also works for the Coresport agency. That Luca Kilian at the 1. FC Köln landed, but had little to do with its Cologne past.
“There was no longer any prospect in Mainz, but he really wanted to stay in the top division. In Cologne with Steffen Baumgart he is in the right place, ”says Esser. For the player and the FC, the transfer could be a success story.
The fact that Esser is often back in his hometown and can have a coffee in Ehrenstrasse is of course not inconvenient for him. He enjoys the atmosphere in the Rhein-Energie-Stadion as often as possible – unless Stephan Engels and the old international are calling for a traditional kick …