Robert Schlienz (3 February 1924 – 18 June 1995) was a

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

football player. He is considered one of the best players ever to play for current

Bundesliga The Bundesliga (; ), sometimes referred to as the Fußball-Bundesliga () or 1. Bundesliga (), is a professional association football league in Germany. At the top of the German football league system, the Bundesliga is Germany's primary footba ...

side

VfB Stuttgart Verein für Bewegungsspiele Stuttgart 1893 e. V., commonly known as VfB Stuttgart (), is a German sports club based in Stuttgart, Baden-Württemberg. The club's football team is currently part of Germany's first division, the Bundesliga. VfB S ...

. He also played three times for his national side. Growing up in Zuffenhausen (it was incorporated into Stuttgart in 1931), his youth club was local FV Zuffenhausen. In 1942, his side won the Junior Championships of the state of

Württemberg Württemberg ( ; ) is a historical German territory roughly corresponding to the cultural and linguistic region of Swabia. The main town of the region is Stuttgart. Together with Baden and Hohenzollern, two other historical territories, Württ ...

. Late in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, he was called up into the

Wehrmacht The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the ''Heer'' (army), the '' Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmacht''" replaced the previo ...

, fighting on the Eastern Front. After being shot into the jaw, he was dismissed and sent back home. In the 1944/45 season, he began playing, initially as a "guest player", for VfB Stuttgart. The war had taken five vital players from FV Zuffenhausen, which left the club unable to compete. Thus, Schlienz joined VfB permanently in the summer of 1945, as the Stuttgart-Bad Cannstatt club took part in the newly founded semi-professional Oberliga Süd (South) from October 1945. In 1945–46, Schlienz, playing as centre forward, scored 46 goals in 30 games, becoming the record goal scorer in the Oberliga. But on 14 August 1948, he lost his left forearm (it had to be amputated) in a car accident travelling to a VfB cup match in Aalen. Devastated, he thought his career was finished, but his coach, Georg Wurzer, encouraged him to continue his career. Wurzer now positioned him in offensive midfield, as an inside forward, instead of centre forward. Schlienz made his comeback on 5 December 1948, against Bayern Munich. Despite being handicapped, he was now captain and playmaker at VfB Stuttgart, leading the team to win the German Championship twice in 1950 and 1952 (runner-up in 1953, losing to

1. FC Kaiserslautern 1. Fußball-Club Kaiserslautern e. V., also known as 1. FCK, FCK (), FC Kaiserslautern () or colloquially Lautern (), is a German sports club based in Kaiserslautern, Rhineland-Palatinate. In addition to football, the club also operates in sev ...

) and the

German Cup The DFB-Pokal ( is a German knockout football cup competition held annually by the German Football Association (DFB). Sixty-four teams participate in the competition, including all clubs from the Bundesliga and the 2. Bundesliga. It is considere ...

twice in 1954 and 1958. In 1955 and 1956, he earned three caps for (West) Germany under the famous coach

Sepp Herberger Josef "Sepp" Herberger (28 March 1897 – 28 April 1977) was a German football player and manager. He is most famous for being the manager of the West German national team that won the 1954 FIFA World Cup final, a match later dubbed '' The Mir ...

. He ended his career in 1960 and subsequently moved to the village of

Dettenhausen Dettenhausen is a municipality in the district of Tübingen in Baden-Württemberg in Germany. Dettenhausen is a village in the administrative district (Kreis) of Tübingen, in the Schönbuch Nature Park. It is located 11 km north of Tübingen ...

, about 20 miles south of Stuttgart, where he died and was buried in 1995. VfB Stuttgart named their reserves stadium in Bad Cannstatt after him almost immediately after his death.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Schlienz, Robert 1924 births 1995 deaths VfB Stuttgart players Germany international footballers German footballers Association football forwards Association football defenders Association footballers with limb difference German Army personnel of World War II Footballers from Stuttgart