Two-footedness, physical strength and leadership
Six feet tall, fast, and as strong as an ox, the German footballer Rummenige was classed as one of the most talented attacking players of his generation.
He could play as a winger, as a second striker, or a flat-out centre forward. To all of those positions he brought great pace, and outstanding dribbling ability. Add the facts that he was a very fine header of the ball, had tremendous leadership qualities, was a natural goal scorer — and was TWO-FOOTED, and you can say with justification that “he had it all.”
Playing for Bayern Munich he won the Intercontinental Cup, two European Cups, as well as two league titles, and two domestic cups.
And he was twice elected European Footballer of the Year
Pele named him as one of the top 125 greatest living footballers. Twice elected European Footballer of the Year, he spent the greatest part of his club career with Bayern Munich for whom, from 1974 to 1984, he scored 162 goals.
His transfer to Inter Milan in 1984 netted a record €5.7 million transfer fee. Sadly, though, his time in Italy was blighted by a series of troublesome injuries.
I met him at Germany’s Euro training camp just outside Manchester — Mottram Hall to be precise. That was the year the Euro tournament was held in England.
He was a very soft-spoken man with excellent English. Our conversation, naturally enough, centred on the upcoming tournament. He thought Germany had a good chance of winning it, and of course, in the event, he was absolutely right.
Between 1976 and 1986 he played 95 times for West Germany, notching up 45 goals in international matches. In every respect he was a legend.
A charming man, he left me with warmest feelings of how nice it was to meet a legend that also happened to be a gentleman.
