Duisburg goalkeeper Mark Flekken produced an all-time blooper on Saturday vs. Ingolstadt. Photo by TF-Images/TF-Images via Getty Images)
Goalkeeper gaffes are nothing new in football, but the manner in which Duisburg goalkeeper Mark Flekken covered himself in shame on Saturday might just be a sporting first.
In his side's 2. Bundesliga match against Ingolstadt, the Dutch keeper went from hero to zero in a matter of seven minutes, stopping a penalty in the 11th minute before conceding a goal so cringeworthy it will be played on loop in blooper reels for years to come.
After an Ingolstadt goal kick, Ingolstadt quickly worked the ball down field and sent a dangerous aerial ball into the box. With Ingolstadt forward Stefan Kutschke right on his back, Duisburg centre-back Gerrit Nauber raced to the ball and headed comfortably back towards his goalkeeper. One problem. Goalkeeper Flekken was nowhere to be seen, and Kutschke taps in from point-blank range with the goal completely unguarded.
Do you ever just forget you're playing football? Because same. pic.twitter.com/A6NxYQpxNN
— FourFourTwo âš½ï¸ (@FourFourTwo) February 24, 2018
But where was Flekken? Well, it appears the Dutchman was a bit parched and had chosen to go for an ill-timed drink from his water bottle!
On replay, you can see that Flekken completely turns his back to play and goes for a drink, not realising his mistake until the ball is already across the goal line. In utter embarrassment, Flekken remains rooted to the ground at the back of his goal, mirroring a goalkeeper glitch from a video game.
Flekken's teammates will likely never let him live this moment down, but the good news for him is that Duisburg still won by a score of 2-1. Flekken was a good sport after the match, saying "The next games, I do not put my drinking bottle in the goal".
Probably a good idea, Mark.