Rotten luck ends Rottenberg's career
Wednesday 10 December 2008
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Silke Rottenberg has hung up her gloves (©Getty Images)
Former Germany goalkeeper Silke Rottenberg has retired from football at the age of 36 after being beset by a sequence of injuries with 1. FFC Frankfurt general manager Siegfried Dietrich saying it is "a great loss to women's football".
Unhappy ending
Rottenberg lost her place as Germany's No1 after tearing cruciate ligaments and was second-choice behind Nadine Angerer at the 2007 FIFA Women's World Cup in China. The 126-times capped goalkeeper officially retired from international football on 7 May this year, and played her last game for Frankfurt on 15 June, before undergoing surgery on her left foot from which she never quite recovered.
'A great loss'
No longer capable of playing without pain, she decided to quit with Dietrich saying of her: "Silke Rottenberg, a goalkeeper who has been outstanding for over a decade and who has made a name for herself in women's football worldwide with her personality, has ended her career. Her being forced to retire due to serious injuries is a great loss to women's football worldwide and in Germany."
Medal collection
Rottenberg won two Women's World Cup winners' medals in 2003 and 2007, and three UEFA European Women's Championships in 1997, 2001 and 2005. She also won the 2008 UEFA Women's Cup, four German league titles (1994, 1996, 2007, 2008), three national cups (1993, 2007, 2008) and was German Women's Player of the Year in 1998 and world female Goalkeeper of the Year in 2003. She won the Olympic footballing bronze in 2000 and 2004.
Coaching prospects
"I had a great time with the national team, all my clubs especially Frankfurt and will remain close to football. Talks are already being held and I am close to signing a contract," revealed Rottenberg who holds the highest possible coaching licence.
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