ball first and flicked it up and to the side of the approaching Schumacher. Schumacher leapt into the air as the ball sailed past him, ultimately wide of the goal. Schumacher, still in the air, collided with Battiston. The resulting contact left Battiston unconscious, later slipping into a coma. Schumacher has always denied any foul intention regarding the incident, saying that he was simply going for the ball, as a goalkeeper is entitled to do. Others have alleged that he intentionally collided with Battiston. Battiston also lost two teeth and had three cracked ribs. He received oxygen on the pitch. Michel Platini later said that he thought Battiston had died, because "he had no pulse and looked pale". The Dutch referee Charles Corver did not award a penalty for the incident. Schumacher proceeded to take the goal kick and play resumed. West Germany would eventually go on to win the game on penalty kicks after the match was tied at 3–3. Schumacher caused more controversy after the game with his response to news that Battiston had lost two teeth: "If that's all that's wrong, tell him I'll pay for the crowns." Schumacher did visit Battiston in the hospital, and though the Frenchman felt his apology at the time was insincere, Battiston admitted that he had forgiven him by the time the two countries faced each other four years later in yet another World Cup semifinal. That match ended in a 2–0 victory for West Germany. A French newspaper poll asked which was the least popular man in France, and Schumacher beat Adolf Hitler into second. When West Germany and France met again in World Cup 1986, Battiston said that the incident was "forgiven and forgotten". However, he said that he was wary of getting "close to Schumacher" and said that he would hold a distance of at least 40 meters from the West German goalkeeper. Schumacher would mostly refrain from commenting on the incident. Coaching career As coach of SC Fortuna Köln he was sacked at half time by club chairman Jean Löring when his club was 0–2 behind against Waldhof Mannheim in December 1999. Autobiography In 1987, Schumacher's autobiography Anpfiff ("kick-off") was published in various countries, including France, where there was interest in Schumacher's comments on the Battiston incident. Schumacher maintained that his actions did not constitute a foul and that he was only trying to get the ball.