Horst Hrubesch

Horst Hrubesch (German: [ˈhɔʁst ˈʁuːbɛʃ]; born 17 April 1951) is a retired German football player who is still active as a manager. His nickname was Das Kopfball-Ungeheuer (the Header Beast) for his heading skills as a centre-forward.

Club career

Hrubesch was a late bloomer. He played in small clubs until the age of 24 when he was signed by Rot-Weiss Essen. There he played well enough that in 1978 Hamburger SV (HSV) bought him. At Hamburg he blossomed into one of the most productive forwards of the Bundesliga with 96 goals in only 159 matches and was soon called up for the West German national team. Hrubesch formed an attacking partnership with fellow HSV player Manfred Kaltz, a right wingback whose crosses Hrubesch often headed into the goal.

International career

West Germany's match-winning hero in the UEFA Euro 1980 Final in Rome against Belgium, Hrubesch scored two goals, the second a trademark bullet header, in the 89th minute. It was a day of redemption for the big Hamburger SV centre forward who a few weeks earlier had hobbled around the field with an ankle injury as his club lost the European Champion Clubs' Cup final to Nottingham Forest FC. A latecomer to the international scene, Hrubesch had only been called into the West Germany squad after Klaus Fischer broke his leg, and the game against Belgium was only his fifth international appearance. He would win just 21 caps in all, the last of them in the 1982 FIFA World Cup final. A German champion three times, he also won the European Cup with Hamburg in 1983, captaining the team to a 1–0 win against favourites Juventus in the Athens final.

His other great success apart from the victory in the European Championship in 1980, was winning the Champions Cup against Juventus in 1983. He also was German champion in 1979, 1982 and 1983. He scored 136 goals in 224 games in the Bundesliga and was capped 21 times.

He is also famous for having scored the winning penalty which knocked France out of the 1982 FIFA World Cup semi-finals after an epic game which was tied 3–3 after extra-time. Irish television commentator Jimmy Magee during the shoot-out coined the nickname that made Hrubesch best known in the English-speaking world: "The man they call 'The Monster'."

Coaching career

Club football

Hrubesch started his coaching career with Rot-Weiss Essen He was there between 1 July 1986 and 14 September 1987. His first match was a 2–0 loss against Rot-Weiß Oberhausen on 25 July 1986. He had won two of nine league matches and a first round exit from the cup before leaving the club. His final match was a 3–1 loss to Rot-Weiß Oberhausen on 13 September 1987. He won 16 of his 47 league matches. Hrubesch then took over VfL Wolfsburg for the 1988–89 season. In the cup, he had a draw and a loss. This includes a 1–1 draw and a 6–1 loss against to Eintracht Frankfurt. Hrubesch then took over Swarovski Tirol from 1 January 1992 to 30 June 1992. His first match was a 2–0 win against Austria Salzburg. Hrubesch took over at Hansa Rostock between 4 January 1993 and 26 June 1993. His first match was a 3–0 loss to Waldhof Mannheim on 6 February 1993. Hrubesch took over as head coach of Dynamo Dresden on 22 November 1994 and was there until 1 March 1995. He failed to win any of his five matches. His first match was a 1–1 draw against Karlsruher SC on 26 November 1994. Dynamo Dresden also lost a 2–1 to Bayern Munich, 1–1 draw against Bayer Leverkusen, 1–0 loss to Werder Bremen, and a 2–0 loss to VfL Bochum. Hrubesch was head coach of Austria Wien for the 1995–96 season. His first match was a 4–0 win against Vorwärts Steyr on 2 August 1995. Hrubesch was head coach of Samsunspor for the 1997–98 season. Samsunspor finished second in Group 6 of the UEFA Intertoto Cup, three points behind Hamburger SV. Their record was three wins and a loss. In the league, they finished with a record of 14 wins, seven draws, and 13 losses in 34 matches.

International football

Hrubesch was head coach of Germany's B team from 22 March 1999. He was appointed assistant coach of Germany's A team on 8 May 2000. The coaching staff was reconstructed on 26 March 2002 with Uli Stielike becoming the new head coach of Germany's B team. In 2008, Hrubesch won the European Championship with the Germany U–19 team. On 9 January 2009, Hrubesch was named interim coach of the Germany U–21 team. Rainer Adrion was unavailable to become the permanent head coach until the summer. In June 2009, he guided Germany to the final of the 2009 UEFA Under-21 Championships where they defeated England Under 21's by 4–0. On 11 November 2009, it was announced that he will begin to work as U-19 coach of the DFB. He returned to the Germany U–21 team after Rainer Adrion was sacked on 21 June 2013.

At the 2016 Summer Olympics, he was the coach when Germany won the silver medal.

Career record

As of 17 March 2015

Honours

As a player

• 1982 FIFA World Cup runner-up
• UEFA Euro 1980 champion
• European Cup winner: 1982–83
• European Cup finalist: 1979–80
• UEFA Cup finalist: 1981–82
• Bundesliga champion: 1978–79, 1981–82, 1982–83
• Bundesliga runner-up: 1979–80, 1980–81

Individual

• Bundesliga Torschützenkönig: 1981–82

As a coach

• 2008 UEFA European Under-19 Football Championship
• 2009 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship
• Football at the 2016 Summer Olympics: Silver medal