Friday, May 18, 2012

Gerd Muller, best striker of EURO Cup 1972


     Gerd Muller the typical German striker scored the most number of goals in the fourth edition of EURO Cup held on Belgium on 1972. He guided his team West Germany (currently known as Germany) towards championship by scoring 4 goals on that tournament. He scored 2 goals against Soviet Union in the final of that tournament.
         West Germany reached the final for the first time by beating England in the quarter-finals and then the hosts, Belgium, in the semi-final. A 3-1 victory at Wembley in their first leg match against England allowed them to play out a goalless home leg and go through comfortably. Gerd Muller scored both goals for the Germans with a consolation goal from substitute Odilon Polleunis for the Belgians. In the final of EURO 1972 West Germany beat Soviet Union by a clear 3-0 margin, Gerd Muller was again the hero in the final by scoring two goals.
      Gerd Muller the Bayern Munich legend was known for his left foot & his bulldozing ability inside the 18 yard box. With national records of 68 goals in 62 international appearances, 365 goals in 427 Bundesliga games and the international record of 66 goals in 74 European Club games, he was one of the most successful goalscorers of his era. Muller  is now 8th on the list of all time international goalscorers despite playing fewer matches than every player in the top 15.
         He started his club career in 1861 Nordlingen, spent there for one season(1963-64) only, scored  51 goals in 31 matches. After that he joined in Bayern Munich, spent 16 years(1964-79) in Bayern, scored 398 goals in 453 matches. He ended his career in Fort Lauderdale Strikers of the North American Soccer League, scored 38 goals in 71 matches in 3 seasons(1979-81) timeperiod. He scored an overall 487 goals in 555 matches in his club football career.
            In 1970 Muller was elected European Footballer of the Year after a successful season at Bayern Munich and scoring 10 goals at the 1970 World Cup. Muller held the all-time goal-scoring record in the tournament with a 14-goal total, a record that stood for 32 years until it was broken by Brazil's Ronaldo against Ghana in the Round of 16 of the 2006 World Cup. In 1999, Muller was voted ninth place in the European player of the Century election held by the IFFHS and he was voted thirteenth in the IFFHS' "World Player of the Century" election.
       After Muller ended his career in 1982, he fell into a slump and suffered from alcoholism. However, his former companions at Bayern Munich convinced him to go through alcohol rehabilitation. When he emerged, they gave him a job as a coach at Bayern Munich II, where he still works to this day.

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