Manuel Neuer

Manuel Peter Neuer (German pronunciation: [ˈmaːnu̯eːl ˈnɔʏ.ɐ, -ɛl -]; born 27 March 1986) is a German professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for and captains Bundesliga club Bayern Munich. Considered one of the best goalkeepers in the world, and one of the greatest goalkeepers of all time, Neuer has been described as a "sweeper-keeper" because of his playing style and speed when rushing off his line to anticipate opponents, going out of the penalty area. He was named the best goalkeeper of the decade from 2011 to 2020 by IFFHS.

Neuer started his career at Schalke 04 where he won the DFB-Pokal and DFL-Ligapokal, and was appointed club captain in 2010. In 2011, he signed for Bayern Munich and has since won 30 trophies, including twelve Bundesliga titles and two UEFA Champions League titles in 2013 and 2020, both as part of trebles, being the only goalkeeper in history to achieve the European treble twice, additionally winning the second as club captain. In 2014, Neuer finished third in the voting for the FIFA Ballon d'Or award behind Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi. He was awarded the Best European Goalkeeper a record five times, and the IFFHS World's Best Goalkeeper a joint-record five times, alongside Gianluigi Buffon and Iker Casillas. He was also named the Best FIFA Goalkeeper in 2020.

Neuer has set numerous records in the Bundesliga. He has the most clean sheets recorded in the competition, with 224. He also holds the most clean sheets in a single season, with 21 in the 2015–16 campaign. Furthermore, he was the fastest player to reach 100 Bundesliga clean sheets, doing so after only 183 appearances. Neuer is the only goalkeeper in Bundesliga history with more than 100 appearances to have conceded fewer goals than matches played.

A former Germany youth international, Neuer made his debut for the senior team in 2009, and was first-choice goalkeeper for the 2010 FIFA World Cup. Four years later, Neuer won the 2014 tournament with Germany as well as the Golden Glove award for being the best goalkeeper in the tournament, and was named in its All-Star Team and Dream Team. Serving as captain from 2017 to 2023, he also represented his country at the World Cups in 2018 and 2022, as well as at the UEFA European Championships in 2012, 2016, 2020 and 2024, after which he retired from international football. Neuer is the fifth-most capped German international of all time, and holds the team's record for most appearances at European Championships and at international tournaments.

Neuer played for Schalke 04 II during 2003–04, 2004–05, 2006–07, 2007–08 and 2008–09. Neuer progressed through every age group at his hometown club, Schalke 04, and signed professional terms in 2005. Neuer did not make any first team appearances during the 2005–06 season. However, he was on the bench several times and won the 2005 DFL-Ligapokal as an unused substitute. He made his Bundesliga debut with Schalke when he came on as a substitute for the injured Frank Rost on matchday 2 of the 2006–07 season. The 20-year-old eventually won the starting position when Rost was surprisingly dropped for the clash against Bayern Munich. Neuer managed to secure a 2–2 draw against the defending champions. He made 27 league appearances during the 2006–07 season. Despite his young age, he was widely tipped to be a potential successor to his former idol Jens Lehmann in the future for the Germany national team.

Neuer started the 2007–08 season by playing in three matches in the German League Cup. On 5 March 2008, in the first knockout round of the UEFA Champions League against Porto, he almost single-handedly kept Schalke in the game with several saves, forcing the game into penalties. He then saved penalties from Bruno Alves and Lisandro López to help Schalke advance to the quarter-finals. He was shortlisted for the 2007–08 UEFA Club Goalkeeper of the Year award; he was the youngest as well as the only Bundesliga goalkeeper on the list. He was one of only three Bundesliga players to play every minute in the 2007–08 season. He finished the season by making 50 appearances in all competitions.

In the 2008–09 season, Schalke finished eighth in the league table and missed out on a Europa League spot. However, his showing at the 2009 UEFA European Under-21 Championship sparked interest from Bayern Munich, with Bayern chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge declaring interest in signing the young goalkeeper. Schalke's new manager Felix Magath, however, insisted that Neuer would play for Schalke in the next season. In November, he was the only German goalkeeper in the list of five nominated goalkeepers for the UEFA Team of the Year. Neuer finished the 2009–10 season with 39 appearances.

For the 2010–11 season, Neuer was appointed captain and led the team to its first Champions League semi-final appearance to play against Manchester United. He also won the DFB-Pokal in his final season with the club, as Schalke defeated MSV Duisburg 5–0. On 20 April 2011, he announced that he would not be extending his contract with Schalke, which was set to expire at the end of the 2011–12 season. Neuer finished the season with 53 appearances.