Robert Enke

German footballer (1977–2009)

Robert Enke (born 24 August 1977 in Jena, East Germany - died 10 November 2009, Neustadt am Rübenberge, Germany) was a German football player. He was a goalkeeper for the German football team.

Robert Enke
Enke training with Hannover 96 in 2008
Personal information
Full name Robert Enke[1]
Date of birth (1977-08-24)24 August 1977
Place of birth Jena, East Germany
Date of death 10 November 2009(2009-11-10) (aged 32)
Place of death Neustadt am Rübenberge, Germany
Height 1.86 m (6 ft 1 in)[2]
Position(s) Goalkeeper
Youth career
1985 BSG Jenapharm
1986–1995 Carl Zeiss Jena
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1995–1996 Carl Zeiss Jena 3 (0)
1996–1999 Borussia Mönchengladbach 32 (0)
1999–2002 Benfica 77 (0)
2002–2004 Barcelona 1 (0)
2003Fenerbahçe (loan) 1 (0)
2004Tenerife (loan) 9 (0)
2004–2009 Hannover 96 164 (0)
Total 287 (0)
National team
1997–1999 Germany U-21 15 (0)
1998 Germany Olympic 4 (0)
2000–2004 Germany B 2 (0)
2007–2009 Germany 8 (0)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only

Football career change

Enke started to play football at BSG Jenapharm Jena, a local club in his city. In 1985 he came to the youth teams of Jena's major football club, Carl Zeiss Jena. On 11 November 1995, at the age of 18, he played his first professional match for Jena in the German 2. Bundesliga. In 1996, he came to Borussia Mönchengladbach in the German Bundesliga.

From 1997 to 1999 he played in fifteen matches for the German under-21 national team. In 1999 he was nominated as one of three goalkeepers of the national team and he went to the FIFA Confederations Cup in the same year. After leaving Germany in 1999 and playing in Portugal, Spain and Turkey, he was not nominated.

In 2006, having played in Germany for two years, he was nominated as a stand-by goalkeeper for the world championships. After that he returned to the team, on 28 March 2007 he made his first match for the team (against Denmark). In May 2008 he became goalkeeper number two after Jens Lehmann who was already 38 years old. After UEFA Euro 2008, Jens Lehmann left the national team. On 8 October 2008, Enke broke his hand, so René Adler played his first match in the national team. Other goalkeepers who were tested were Manuel Neuer and Tim Wiese.

Enke's last club was Hannover 96. He had a contract until the year 2010. In 2007 he became team captain for the club. He had played eight matches for the national team. His last match for the national team was on 12 August 2009 against Azerbaijan, his last club match was on 8 November 2009 against Hamburg.

Private life change

Enke and his wife had a daughter who died in 2006. She was two years old. In 2009 they adopted another daughter.[3]

Death change

Enke died in the evening of 10 November 2009 when he was hit by a train near Neustadt am Rübenberge. His advisor said that Enke committed suicide.[3] The next day, there was a press conference with Enke's widow and his psychiatrist. They said that Enke had had a major depressive disorder (depression) since the year 2003.[4]

Club career statistics change

[5]

Club statistics League
SeasonClubLeague AppsGoals
GermanyLeague
1995–96 Carl Zeiss Jena 2. Bundesliga 4 0
1996–97 Borussia Mönchengladbach Bundesliga 0 0
1997–98 0 0
1998–99 32 0
PortugalLeague
1999–2000 Benfica Portuguese Liga 26 0
2000–01 26 0
2001–02 25 0
SpainLeague
2002–03 Barcelona La Liga 1 0
TurkeyLeague
2003–04 Fenerbahçe Süper Lig 1 0
SpainLeague
2003–04 Tenerife Segunda División 9 0
GermanyLeague
2004–05 Hannover Bundesliga 34 0
2005–06 32 0
2006–07 34 0
2007–08 34 0
2008–09 24 0
2009–10 6 0
Country Germany 200 0
Portugal 57 0
Spain 10 0
Turkey 1 0
Total 268 0

International career statistics change

Germany national team
YearAppsGoals
2007 1 0
2008 3 0
2009 4 0
Total 8 0

References change

  1. "Robert Enke" (in Turkish). Turkish Football Federation. Retrieved 3 October 2019.
  2. "Robert Enke". hannover96.de. Archived from the original on 26 October 2008. Retrieved 17 April 2009.
  3. 3.0 3.1 Robert Enke begeht Selbstmord, stern.de, 10 November 2009 (in German)
  4. Enkes Witwe spricht über Depressionen ihres Mannes, Spiegel Online, 11 November 2009 (in German)
  5. Strack-Zimmermann, Benjamin. "Robert Enke". www.national-football-teams.com.

Other websites change