Manuel Neuer

Manuel Neuer (born 27 March 1986) is a German professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for and captains both Bundesliga club Bayern Munich and the Germany national team. He is one of the greatest goalkeepers of all time. He has won numerous awards, including the FIFA World Cup Golden Glove, the UEFA Champions League Goalkeeper of the Season, and the German Footballer of the Year award. He is known for his athleticism, his ability to come off his line, and his distribution skills. He is also a very good shot-stopper, and he has made some incredible saves over the years. Neuer started his career at Schalke 04 where he won the DFB-Pokal and DFL-Ligapokal. In 2011, he signed for Bayern Munich and has since won 28 trophies, including eleven Bundesliga titles and two UEFA Champions League titles in 2013 and 2020, both as part of trebles. In 2014, Neuer finished third in the voting for the FIFA Ballon d'Or award behind Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi.

### Early life

Neuer began playing soccer before he was five years old. He initially wanted to play outfield in matches. His idol, however, was the local FC Schalke 04 goalkeeper Jens Lehmann, whom Neuer followed into the club’s second team when he made his debut in the Regionalliga Nord during the 2003–04 season. By the 2006–07 season, Neuer was becoming a first-team regular in the Bundesliga. He helped Schalke win two domestic cup trophies (2005 and 2011) and took international honors for his country at the under-18 (2004) and under-21 levels. At 6 feet 4 inches (1.93 meters) tall, Neuer was an imposing figure in the goal.

### Footballing career

Manuel Neuer is one of the greatest goalkeepers in the history of the sport. He has won numerous individual and team awards, and he has helped his clubs and country win some of the biggest trophies in the world. Neuer began his professional career at Schalke 04 in 2006. He quickly established himself as one of the best goalkeepers in the Bundesliga, and he helped Schalke win the 2009-10 Bundesliga title and two DFB Cups. In 2011, Neuer moved to Bayern Munich. He has been the starting goalkeeper for Bayern ever since, and he has helped the club win ten Bundesliga titles, six DFB Cups, two UEFA Champions League titles, and the 2013 FIFA Club World Cup. Neuer has also been a key player for the Germany national team. He was the starting goalkeeper for the team that won the 2014 FIFA World Cup, and he was named the best goalkeeper of the tournament. He also helped Germany win the 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup. On 24 September 2020, Neuer saved a one-on-one chance from Sevilla's Youssef En-Nesyri in the 87th minute in the 2020 UEFA Super Cup, which Bayern Munich won 2–1 after extra-time. Six days later, Neuer won the German Super Cup. On 21 October 2020, Neuer reached his 200th clean sheet with Bayern in 394 matches in a 4–0 win over Atlético Madrid in the 2020–21 UEFA Champions League. His record surpassed Sepp Maier (199 clean sheets in 651 games), with only Oliver Kahn (247 clean sheets in 632 matches) ahead of Neuer. On 28 August 2021, Neuer had his 205th clean sheet in Bundesliga in 441 matches, breaking Oliver Kahn's record of 204 clean sheets in 557 matches. Neuer's 300th Bundesliga victory came in his 447th Bundesliga game on 23 October 2021. Bayern won the Bundesliga during the 2021–22 season with three games to spare. After the season, Neuer extended his contract with Bayern Munich until 2024. In the beginning of the 2022–23 season, he kept clean sheets in all his three matches in the Champions League, and four in 12 Bundesliga appearances. Neuer is known for his athleticism, his ability to come off his line, and his passing skills. He is also a very good shot-stopper. Neuer has revolutionized the position of goalkeeper and has set a new standard for what is expected of a modern goalkeeper.

### **Honors**

Appearances: 717+ appearances

International appearances: 117 appearances

Goals: 0 goals

**Schalke 04**

* DFB-Pokal: 2010–11
* DFL-Ligapokal: 2005

**Bayern Munich**

* Bundesliga: 2012–13, 2013–14, 2014–15, 2015–16, 2016–17, 2017–18, 2018–19, 2019–20, 2020–21, 2021–22, 2022–23
* DFB-Pokal: 2012–13, 2013–14, 2015–16, 2018–19, 2019–20
* DFL-Supercup: 2012, 2016, 2018, 2020, 2021, 2022
* UEFA Champions League: 2012–13, 2019–20
* UEFA Super Cup: 2013, 2020
* FIFA Club World Cup: 2013, 2020

**Germany U21**

* UEFA European Under-21 Championship: 2009

**Germany**

* FIFA World Cup: 2014; third place: 2010

**Individual**

* Fritz Walter Medal U19 Silver: 2005
* *kicker* Goalkeeper of the Year: 2006–2007, 2010–11, 2013–14, 2014–15, 2015–16, 2016–17, 2019–20, 2020–21, 2021–22
* Footballer of the Year in Germany: 2011, 2014
* Germany national team Player of the Year: 2020
* ESM Team of the Season: 2011–12, 2012–13, 2014–15
* UEFA European Championship Team of the Tournament: 2012
* UEFA European Under-21 Championship All-time Dream Team
* IFFHS World's Best Goalkeeper: 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2020
* IFFHS World's Best Goalkeeper of the Decade: 2011–2020
* Best European Goalkeeper: 2011, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2020
* IFFHS Men's World Team: 2020
* FIFA FIFPro World 11: 2013, 2014 2015, 2016
* UEFA Team of the Year: 2013, 2014, 2015, 2020
* UEFA Champions League Final Fan's Man of the Match: 2013
* UEFA Champions League Squad of the Season: 2013–14, 2015–16, 2019–20
* UEFA Champions League Goalkeeper of the Season: 2019–20
* The Best FIFA Men's Goalkeeper: 2020
* FIFA World Cup All-Star Team: 2010
* FIFA World Cup Golden Glove: 2014
* FIFA World Cup All-Star Team: 2014
* FIFA World Cup Dream Team: 2014
* AIPS Athlete of the Year: 2014
* AIPS Europe Athlete of the Year – *Frank Taylor Trophy*: 2014
* Bundesliga Team of the Season: 2012–13, 2013–14, 2014–15, 2015–16, 2016–17, 2020–21, 2021–22
* *kicker* Bundesliga Team of the Season: 2010–11, 2019–20, 2020–2021
* Ballon d'Or Dream Team (Silver): 2020
* IFFHS World Team of the Decade: 2011–2020
* IFFHS UEFA Team of the Decade: 2011–2020

**Orders**

* https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c9/Silbernes\_Lorbeerblatt\_ribbon.png/50px-Silbernes\_Lorbeerblatt\_ribbon.png Silbernes Lorbeerblatt: 2010, 2014
* https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fb/DE-NW\_Der\_Verdienstorden\_des\_Landes\_Nordrhein-Westfalen\_BAR.png/50px-DE-NW\_Der\_Verdienstorden\_des\_Landes\_Nordrhein-Westfalen\_BAR.png Order of Merit of North Rhine-Westphalia: 2019
* https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/79/DE-BY\_Der\_Bayerische\_Verdienstorden\_BAR.png/50px-DE-BY\_Der\_Bayerische\_Verdienstorden\_BAR.png Bavarian Order of Merit: 2021