KARL-HEINZE RUMMENIGGE

Karl-Heinz "Kalle" Rummenigge (German: [ˌkaʁlˈhaɪ̯nts kalə ˈʁʊmənɪɡə]; born 25 September 1955) is a German former professional football player. Rummenigge was often seen as a complete and versatile forward. Rummenigge was renowned for his great speed and dribbling ability and could work well with another striker or on his own. He was also honoured twice as European Footballer of the Year.

He joined Bayern Munich in 1974, coming from the Westphalian amateur side Borussia Lippstadt, for a transfer fee of ca. €10,000. With Bayern he won the European Cup in 1975 and 1976. In 1975, he did not take part in the final of the competition, whilst in the year thereafter Rummenigge started up front and contributed to the defeat of AS Saint-Étienne. In the same year he became also part of the team that prevailed in the Intercontinental Cup finals against Cruzeiro EC. In the eighties, he found in midfielder Paul Breitner a congenial partner and he formed such a formidable one-two-punch that they were only called Breitnigge. won in this period the Bundesliga title in 1980 and 1981, and the DFB-Pokal in 1982 and 1984. A renewed triumph in the European Cup was denied, when the club lost the 1982 final narrowly against Aston Villa. In 1984, aged 29, he was sold for a record fee of €5.7m[1] to Inter Milan. Despite a notable beginning, in which he helped the team to compete until the end for the 1984–85 Scudetto, Rumenigge's career in Italy was mostly marred by injury problems. At the end of his contract in 1987, Rummenigge moved on to Swiss first division club Servette FC in Geneva, where he saw his career out.

With the West German national team he first took part in international competition during the 1978 World Cup in Argentina, where West Germany exited in the second group stage. In the 1980 European Championships, Rummenigge was named in the Uefa Team of the Tournament as West Germany defeated Belgium in the final by 2–1 and won the trophy. One of the favourites for the 1982 World Cup in Spain, Germany and Rummenigge didn't disappoint as he scored 5 goals and took them to the World Cup final, where they finished as runners up to Italy. The 1984 European championships was suprisingly one of the most unsuccessful undertakings of the German national team. West Germany was already ousted in the group stage. In the 1986 World Cup in Mexico, an ageing Rummenigge captained the side (brimming with new stars) to the final once again, where they lost to a Maradona-inspired Argentina 3-2.