German icon of shining individual brilliance
Whatever anyone says, the fact remains that Uwe Seeler of Germany ticks all the boxes when it comes to the word “phenomenon”.
Outside various football stadiums around the world there are statues of some of the great footballers that played there. Outside the Volksparkstadion in Hamburg is a gigantic bronze statue of Uwe Seeler’s right foot!
Uwe was born in Hamburg in 1936, followed his father in playing for his local club, never played for any other club in his long career, and scored over 500 goals for Hamburg. He came third in the 1960 Ballon d’Or poll behind Ferenc Puskas, and Luis Suarez of Spain.
There were numerous occasions on which Seeler had the opportunity to move abroad. But he turned down all the offers, including one from Inter Milan; and yet he was one of the game’s greatest ever players. As well as the 507 goals he scored for Hamburg, he scored 43 for Germany over the course of his 72 appearances. And of course he captained West Germany all the way to the World Cup Final in 1966. That match was won by England under the captaincy of Bobby Moore and in front of 96,000 fans at Wembley.
Physically Seeler was on the short side, had a receding hairline, and what was described as “an ox-like frame.” Even as a young player “he looked like an old-fashioned player, and played like one, too.”
German author Uli Hesse said, “He could explode over the crucial first yards, and perform scissors and bicycle kicks without batting an eyelid…”
He retired in 1972 — this one-club legend of Hamburg with the devastating shooting power in his fabled right foot.
When I met him I found his English to be patchy at best, but Bert Trautmann acted as voluntary interpreter. One thing that struck me was that Seeler was a very jolly man, the twinkle in whose eyes never dimmed for a moment. I was glad to have met him.
