 Manuel Neuer of Schalke 04 |
"Manuel Neuer has very much potential"
Jens Lehmann, former Schalke and Germany goalkeeper
"He is world class"
Mirko Slomka, former Schalke coach
"Manuel is a fantastic goalkeeper. I'd like someone to show me a better keeper in Germany"
Marcelo Bordon, Schalke captain
Considered to be one of the most talented young German keepers, Manuel Neuer is a promising candidate to succeed his hero and idol as a child, Jens Lehmann.
Neuer won the starting position at Schalke 04 on November 2006, when coach Mirko Slomka sprang a monumental surprise in the run-up to a crunch home clash against Bayern Munich, dropping experienced first-choice keeper Frank Rost and installing Neuer in his place.
The Royal Blues drew 2-2 with the champions, the first match in a storming undefeated run that has yielded 32 of a possible 36 points since then with Neuer having picked the ball from the back of his net on just eight occasions and has kept the same number of clean sheets.
On 5 March 2008, in the first knockout round of the UEFA Champions League, Neuer performed a world-class display against FC Porto where he pulled off many crucial saves throughout the 120 minutes of regular time to force a penalty shoot-out.
And he capped his magical performance with two penalty saves as he denied spot-kicks from Bruno Alves and Lisandro López, emulating Lehmann when he starred in the UEFA Cup final against Inter Milan at the San Siro to lead Schalke to the title.
Neuer is a local boy, born and bred in Gelsenkirchen and he used to stand on the terraces and watch Lehmann play for his local team.
"I used to get there a long time before kick-off, because I wanted to watch Jens Lehmann warm up," Neuer recalls. "Lehmann has always been one of my role models."
Neuer appeared at every youth level for Schalke, before signing professional forms in 2005.
The coaching staff were rewarded in spades for their faith in the young lad, leaving Schalke general manager Andreas Müller to describe the custodian as "an exceptional talent."
Alongside lightning-quick reflexes and a commanding penalty-box presence, Neuer is no slouch with the ball at his feet. "He's the kind of keeper who gets involved. When he trains as an outfield player, you hardly notice the difference," Slomka observes.
He was one of only three Bundesliga players to play every single minute in the Bundesliga 2007/08 season. Neuer is also one of the two goalkeepers to get an assist - the others being René Adler of Leverkusen and Bayern's Michael Rensing.
Neuer has been a regular for the Germany U-21s since making his debut in a 2-2 draw with the Netherlands on 15 August 2006.
He has rapidly become a crowd favourite as he was voted Schalke's Player of the Year in a vote organised by the official fan-club. "This award means a lot to me. To be chosen by the fans is always something special," he said.
Full name: Manuel Neuer
Date of birth: March 27, 1986
Birthplace: Gelsenkirchen, Germany
Nationality: German
Height: 1.92 m
Weight: 85 kg
Club: Schalke 04
Position: Goalkeeper
Number: 1
Honours:
German Bundesliga Goalkeeper of the Year (2007)
Related entries:
Technorati tags: Germany Schalke Manuel Neuer
Neuer won the starting position at Schalke 04 on November 2006, when coach Mirko Slomka sprang a monumental surprise in the run-up to a crunch home clash against Bayern Munich, dropping experienced first-choice keeper Frank Rost and installing Neuer in his place.
On 5 March 2008, in the first knockout round of the UEFA Champions League, Neuer performed a world-class display against FC Porto where he pulled off many crucial saves throughout the 120 minutes of regular time to force a penalty shoot-out.
And he capped his magical performance with two penalty saves as he denied spot-kicks from Bruno Alves and Lisandro López, emulating Lehmann when he starred in the UEFA Cup final against Inter Milan at the San Siro to lead Schalke to the title.
Neuer is a local boy, born and bred in Gelsenkirchen and he used to stand on the terraces and watch Lehmann play for his local team.
"I used to get there a long time before kick-off, because I wanted to watch Jens Lehmann warm up," Neuer recalls. "Lehmann has always been one of my role models."
The coaching staff were rewarded in spades for their faith in the young lad, leaving Schalke general manager Andreas Müller to describe the custodian as "an exceptional talent."
Alongside lightning-quick reflexes and a commanding penalty-box presence, Neuer is no slouch with the ball at his feet. "He's the kind of keeper who gets involved. When he trains as an outfield player, you hardly notice the difference," Slomka observes.
He was one of only three Bundesliga players to play every single minute in the Bundesliga 2007/08 season. Neuer is also one of the two goalkeepers to get an assist - the others being René Adler of Leverkusen and Bayern's Michael Rensing.
Neuer has been a regular for the Germany U-21s since making his debut in a 2-2 draw with the Netherlands on 15 August 2006.
He has rapidly become a crowd favourite as he was voted Schalke's Player of the Year in a vote organised by the official fan-club. "This award means a lot to me. To be chosen by the fans is always something special," he said.
Full name: Manuel Neuer
Date of birth: March 27, 1986
Birthplace: Gelsenkirchen, Germany
Nationality: German
Height: 1.92 m
Weight: 85 kg
Club: Schalke 04
Position: Goalkeeper
Number: 1
Honours:
German Bundesliga Goalkeeper of the Year (2007)
Did you like our post? If so, please subscribe to our RSS feed to receive more updates. Thank you for reading!
Related entries:
Technorati tags: Germany Schalke Manuel Neuer
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
0 comments for this post