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Gerd Müller

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For other people named Gerd Müller, see Gerd Müller (disambiguation).
Gerd Müller
Personal information
Full name Gerhard Müller
Height 1.76 m (5 ft 9+1⁄2 in)[1]
Position(s) Striker
Team information
Current team
 Bayern Munich II
(Assistant Manager)
Youth career
1960–1963 1861 Nördlingen
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1963–1964 1861 Nördlingen 32 (51)
1964–1979 Bayern Munich 453 (398)
1979–1981 Fort Lauderdale Strikers 80 (40)
Total 565 (489)
International career
1966 West Germany U-23 1 (1)
1966–1974 West Germany 62 (68)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Template:Foreignchar Gerhard "Gerd" Müller (German pronunciation: [ˈɡɛʁt ˈmʏlɐ]; born 3 November 1945 in Nördlingen) is a former (West) German football player and one of the most prolific goalscorers of all time.

With national records of 68 goals in 62 international appearances, 365 goals in 427 Bundesliga games and the international record of 66 goals in 74 European Club games, he was one of the most successful goalscorers of his era. Müller is now 8th on the list of all time international goalscorers despite playing fewer matches than every player in the top 15. His nicknames are “Bomber der Nation” (the nation's Bomber) and “kleines dickes Müller” (Small fat Müller, declension intentionally wrong).

In 1970 Müller was elected European Footballer of the Year after a successful season at Bayern Munich and scoring 10 goals at the 1970 FIFA World Cup. Before the goal scored by Ronaldo against Ghana in the Round of 16 of the 2006 FIFA World Cup, Müller held the all-time goal-scoring record in the tournament, with a 14-goal total.

Career

Bayern Munich

Born in Nördlingen, Germany, he began his football career at the TSV 1861 Nördlingen. Müller joined FC Bayern Munich in 1964 where he teamed up with future stars Franz Beckenbauer and Sepp Maier. The club, which would go on to become the most successful German club in history was then still in the Regionalliga Süd (Regional League South), which was one level below the Bundesliga at the time. After one season, Bayern Munich advanced to the Bundesliga and started a long string of successes. With his club, Müller amassed titles during the 60s and 70s: He won the German Championship four times, the German Cup four times, the European Champions' Cup three times, the Intercontinental Cup once, and the European Cup Winners’ Cup once. A supremely opportunistic goal-scorer, he also became German top scorer seven times and European top scorer twice. Müller scored 365 goals in 427 Bundesliga matches for Bayern Munich, almost 100 goals more than the second most successful Bundesliga scorer, Klaus Fischer. He holds the single-season Bundesliga record with 40 goals in season 1971–72. He scored 68 goals in 62 German Cup games. His 66 goals in his 74 appearances at European cups are still a record.

Müller autographing a football in 1967. To his left are Sepp Maier and Franz Beckenbauer.

National team

Müller scored 68 goals in 62 games for West Germany. His international career started in 1966 and ended on 7 July 1974 with the win of the World Cup at his home stadium in Munich. He scored the winning goal for the 2-1 victory over the Netherlands in the final. His four goals in that tournament and his ten goals at the 1970 FIFA World Cup combined made him the all-time highest FIFA World Cup goalscorer overall at the time with 14 goals; his record stood until the 2006 tournament, coincidentally held in Germany, when it was broken by Brazilian forward Ronaldo on 27 June 2006 playing against Ghana and was equaled by his countryman Miroslav Klose in 2010; As of the end of the 2006 tournament, Ronaldo has scored 15 goals in four World Cups. Müller also participated in the 1972 European Championship, becoming top scorer with four goals (including two in the final) and winning the Championship with the German team.

International goals

Scores and results table. Germany's goal tally first:
# Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1. 8 April 1967 Dortmund, Germany  Albania 1-0 6-0 UEFA Euro 1968 qualifying
2. 8 April 1967 Dortmund, Germany  Albania 2-0 6-0 UEFA Euro 1968 qualifying
3. 8 April 1967 Dortmund, Germany  Albania 3-0 6-0 UEFA Euro 1968 qualifying
4. 8 April 1967 Dortmund, Germany  Albania 6-0 6-0 UEFA Euro 1968 qualifying
5. 27 September 1967 Berlin, Germany  France 4-0 5-1 Friendly
6. 7 October 1967 Hamburg, Germany  Yugoslavia 2-1 3-1 UEFA Euro 1968 qualifying
7. 13 October 1968 Vienna, Austria  Austria 1-0 2-0 FIFA World Cup 1970 qualifying
8. 23 November 1968 Nicosia, Cyprus  Cyprus 1-0 1-0 FIFA World Cup 1970 qualifying
9. 26 March 1969 Frankfurt, Germany  Wales 1-1 1-1 Friendly
10. 16 April 1969 Glasgow, Scotland  Scotland 1-0 1-1 FIFA World Cup 1970 qualifying
11. 10 May 1969 Nuremberg, Germany  Austria 1-0 1-0 FIFA World Cup 1970 qualifying
12. 21 May 1969 Essen, Germany  Cyprus 1-0 12-0 FIFA World Cup 1970 qualifying
13. 21 May 1969 Essen, Germany  Cyprus 7-0 12-0 FIFA World Cup 1970 qualifying
14. 21 May 1969 Essen, Germany  Cyprus 9-0 12-0 FIFA World Cup 1970 qualifying
15. 21 May 1969 Essen, Germany  Cyprus 12-0 12-0 FIFA World Cup 1970 qualifying
16. 21 September 1969 Vienna, Austria  Austria 1-1 1-1 Friendly
17. 22 October 1969 Hamburg, Germany  Scotland 2-1 3-2 FIFA World Cup 1970 qualifying
18. 3 June 1970 León, Mexico  Morocco 2-1 2-1 FIFA World Cup 1970
19. 7 June 1970 León, Mexico  Bulgaria 2-1 5-2 FIFA World Cup 1970
20. 7 June 1970 León, Mexico  Bulgaria 3-1 5-2 FIFA World Cup 1970
21. 7 June 1970 León, Mexico  Bulgaria 5-1 5-2 FIFA World Cup 1970
22. 10 June 1970 León, Mexico  Peru 1-0 3-1 FIFA World Cup 1970
23. 10 June 1970 León, Mexico  Peru 2-0 3-1 FIFA World Cup 1970
24. 10 June 1970 León, Mexico  Peru 3-0 3-1 FIFA World Cup 1970
25. 14 June 1970 León, Mexico  England 3-2 3-2 (a.e.t.) FIFA World Cup 1970
26. 17 June 1970 Estadio Azteca, Mexico City  Italy 2-1 3-4 (a.e.t.) FIFA World Cup 1970
27. 17 June 1970 Estadio Azteca, Mexico City  Italy 3-3 3-4 (a.e.t.) FIFA World Cup 1970
28. 9 September 1970 Nuremberg, Germany  Hungary 2-0 3-1 Friendly
29. 9 September 1970 Nuremberg, Germany  Hungary 3-1 3-1 Friendly
30. 17 October 1970 Cologne, Germany  Turkey 1-1 1-1 UEFA Euro 1972 qualifying
31. 17 February 1971 Tirana, Albania  Albania 1-0 1-0 UEFA Euro 1972 qualifying
32. 25 April 1971 Istanbul, Turkey  Turkey 1-0 3-0 UEFA Euro 1972 qualifying
33. 25 April 1971 Istanbul, Turkey  Turkey 2-0 3-0 UEFA Euro 1972 qualifying
34. 22 June 1971 Oslo, Norway  Norway 2-0 7-1 Friendly
35. 22 June 1971 Oslo, Norway  Norway 4-0 7-1 Friendly
36. 22 June 1971 Oslo, Norway  Norway 5-0 7-1 Friendly
37. 30 June 1971 Copenhagen, Denmark  Denmark 1-1 3-1 Friendly
38. 8 September 1971 Hanover, Germany  Mexico 2-0 5-0 Friendly
39. 8 September 1971 Hanover, Germany  Mexico 3-0 5-0 Friendly
40. 8 September 1971 Hanover, Germany  Mexico 5-0 5-0 Friendly
41. 10 October 1971 Warsaw, Poland  Poland 1-1 3-1 UEFA Euro 1972 qualifying
42. 10 October 1971 Warsaw, Poland  Poland 2-1 3-1 UEFA Euro 1972 qualifying
43. 29 April 1972 London, England  England 3-1 3-1 UEFA Euro 1972 qualifying
44. 26 May 1972 Munich, Germany  Soviet Union 1-0 4-1 Friendly
45. 26 May 1972 Munich, Germany  Soviet Union 2-0 4-1 Friendly
46. 26 May 1972 Munich, Germany  Soviet Union 3-0 4-1 Friendly
47. 26 May 1972 Munich, Germany  Soviet Union 4-0 4-1 Friendly
48. 14 June 1972 Antwerp, Belgium  Belgium 1-0 2-1 UEFA Euro 1972
49. 14 June 1972 Antwerp, Belgium  Belgium 2-0 2-1 UEFA Euro 1972
50. 18 June 1972 Brussels, Belgium  Soviet Union 1-0 3-0 UEFA Euro 1972 Final
51. 18 June 1972 Brussels, Belgium  Soviet Union 3-0 3-0 UEFA Euro 1972 Final
52. 15 November 1972 Düsseldorf, Germany   Switzerland 1-0 5-1 Friendly
53. 15 November 1972 Düsseldorf, Germany   Switzerland 2-0 5-1 Friendly
54. 15 November 1972 Düsseldorf, Germany   Switzerland 3-0 5-1 Friendly
55. 15 November 1972 Düsseldorf, Germany   Switzerland 5-0 5-1 Friendly
56. 28 March 1973 Düsseldorf, Germany  Czechoslovakia 1-0 3-0 Friendly
57. 28 March 1973 Düsseldorf, Germany  Czechoslovakia 2-0 3-0 Friendly
58. 5 September 1973 Moscow, USSR  Soviet Union 1-0 1-0 Friendly
59. 10 October 1973 Hanover, Germany  Austria 1-0 4-0 Friendly
60. 10 October 1973 Hanover, Germany  Austria 3-0 4-0 Friendly
61. 13 October 1973 Gelsenkirchen, Germany  France 1-0 2-1 Friendly
62. 13 October 1973 Gelsenkirchen, Germany  France 2-0 2-1 Friendly
63. 17 April 1974 Dortmund, Germany  Hungary 4-0 5-0 Friendly
64. 17 April 1974 Dortmund, Germany  Hungary 5-0 5-0 Friendly
65. 18 June 1974 Hamburg, Germany  Australia 3-0 3-0 FIFA World Cup 1974
66. 26 June 1974 Düsseldorf, Germany  Yugoslavia 2-0 2-0 FIFA World Cup 1974
67. 3 July 1974 Frankfurt, Germany  Poland 1-0 1-0 FIFA World Cup 1974
68. 7 July 1974 Munich, Germany  Netherlands 2-1 2-1 FIFA World Cup 1974 Final

Fort Lauderdale Strikers

After his career in the Bundesliga he went to the United States, where he joined the Fort Lauderdale Strikers of the North American Soccer League in 1979. He played three seasons with this team, scoring 38 goals, and once reaching, but losing, the league final in 1980. He was a 2nd-team NASL All Star in 1979.

Life after football

After Müller ended his career in 1982, he fell into a slump and suffered from alcoholism. However, his former companions at Bayern Munich convinced him to go through alcohol rehabilitation. When he emerged, they gave him a job as a coach at Bayern Munich II, where he still works to this day. There is also a collection of apparel released by sporting giants Adidas under the Gerd Müller name. It is part of the adidas originals series. In July 2008, the Rieser Sportpark, in Nördlingen, where Müller had begun his career, was renamed the Gerd-Müller-Stadion in his honour.

Playing style

In his book "Brilliant Orange: The Neurotic Genius of Dutch Football", David Winner writes, "Müller was short, squat, awkward-looking and not notably fast; he never fit the conventional idea of a great footballer, but he had lethal acceleration over short distances, a remarkable aerial game, and uncanny goalscoring instincts. His short legs gave him a strangely low center of gravity, so he could turn quickly and with perfect balance in spaces and at speeds that would cause other players to fall over. He also had a knack of scoring in unlikely situations."

Honors

Titles with Bayern Munich

Titles with the national team

Personal honours

Career statistics

Template:Football player statistics 1 Template:Football player statistics 2 |- |1964-65||rowspan="15"|Bayern Munich||||26||33||colspan="2"|-||colspan="2"|-||26||33 |- |1965-66||rowspan="14"|Bundesliga||33||15||6||1||colspan="2"|-||39||16 |- |1966-67||32||28||4||7||9||8||45||43 |- |1967-68||34||19||4||4||8||7||46||30 |- |1968-69||30||30||5||7||colspan="2"|-||35||37 |- |1969-70||33||38||3||4||2||0||38||42 |- |1970-71||32||22||7||10||8||7||47||39 |- |1971-72||34||40||6||5||8||5||48||50 |- |1972-73||33||36||5||7||6||12||44||55 |- |1973-74||34||30||4||5||10||8||48||43 |- |1974-75||33||23||3||2||7||5||43||30 |- |1975-76||22||23||6||7||6||5||34||35 |- |1976-77||25||28||4||11||4||5||33||44 |- |1977-78||33||24||3||4||6||4||42||32 |- |1978-79||19||9||2||4||colspan="2"|-||21||13 Template:Football player statistics 2 |- |1979||rowspan="3"|Fort Lauderdale Strikers||rowspan="3"|NASL||27||19||colspan="2"|-||colspan="2"|-||27||19 |- |1980||36||16||colspan="2"|-||colspan="2"|-||36||16 |- |1981||17||5||colspan="2"|-||colspan="2"|-||17||5 Template:Football player statistics 3453||398||62||68||74||66||589||532 Template:Football player statistics 480||40||colspan="2"|-||colspan="2"|-||80||40 Template:Football player statistics 5533||438||62||68||74||66||669||572 |}

See also

References

  1. ^ "Gerd Müller" (in German). fussballdaten.de. Retrieved 17 December 2008.
Preceded by FIFA World Cup Golden Shoe
1970 		Succeeded by
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Gerd_Müller&oldid=371878860"