by Richard Leigh

Created on: November 24, 2009

Born in Jena, East Germany in August 1977, Robert Enke was a fantastic German international goalkeeper that last played for German Bundesliga side Hannover 96. Enke sadly committed suicide on November 10th 2009, and will forever be remembered by fans of German football as a very high quality goalkeeper.

Robert Enke's professional career started with his hometown side of FC Carl Zeiss Jena, and he then went on to enjoy a successful spell with Borussia Monchengladbach before moving away from Germany in 1999 to play for the Portuguese football team of Benfica. Enke built a great reputation as a player during his spell with Benfica, making 77 league appearances in three years with the club. There were many admiring Enke's fine talent during his time in Portugal, and his fantastic form for Benfica was rewarded in 2002 when he was offered a contract with Barcelona.

Unfortunately for Enke his time with Barcelona was to be quite frustrating and he found himself loaned out twice during his two year stint with the club, making just one league appearance for Barcelona. His first move saw him join Turkish team Fenerbahce, and the second a move to Tenerife. The move to Turkey didn't really benefit Enke, with Tenerife he was once again able to get back to his best however, with Robert Enke spending a rather happy half a season in the Spanish Segunda Division.

Having been able to find his form with Tenerife, in 2004 Robert Enke was to return to Germany, signing for German Bundesliga side Hannover 96 on a free transfer. With a string of fine performances Enke was really able to win the home fans over in Hannover, and in 2007 his fine talent was acknowledged on a national level as he made his full international debut against Denmark in March 2007. Jens Lehmann's retirement from international football after Euro 2008 gave Enke the opportunity to stake his claim as Germany's number one, and he went on to make a further seven appearances for Germany before his death in November 2009.

Robert Enke was a goalkeeper with a great reputation, and in his last full season in professional football he was proudly awarded as the best goalkeeper in the Bundesliga. It wasn't just Hannover 96 fans that loved Robert Enke but German football fans in general, and Robert Enke is without doubt a man that the footballing world will sorely miss.


Sources:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Enke

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