Editing Günter Netzer (section)

== Club career ==

=== Borussia Mönchengladbach ===
Netzer, the son of a greengrocer,<ref name="Netzer, der ewige Spielmacher"/> played for 1. FC Mönchengladbach from the age of eight until 19 before switching to city rivals [[Borussia Mönchengladbach]] in 1963.<ref name="Netzer wird 65">{{cite web|url=http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,,4681197,00.html|title=Günter Netzer – Der "Rebell am Ball" wird 65|first=Calle|last=Kops|work=[[Deutsche Welle]]|date=14 September 2009|access-date=13 July 2010|language=de}}</ref> He scored on his debut against [[Rot-Weiß Oberhausen]], and quickly established himself as a first team regular, helping the club win promotion to the [[Bundesliga]] in 1965.

Netzer played for Borussia, managed by [[Hennes Weisweiler]], until 1973.<ref name="Netzer wird 65"/> In his 230 Bundesliga games for them, he scored 82 goals.<ref>{{Cite web | url = https://www.rsssf.org/players/netzerdata.html | title = <nowiki>Günter Theodor Netzer - Matches and Goals in Bundesliga</nowiki> | first = Matthias | last = Arnhold | date = 31 August 2012 | access-date = 25 September 2012 | publisher = Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation}}</ref> The era also saw one of the most competitive rivalries in the [[Bundesliga]]'s history between [[Borussia Mönchengladbach]] and [[FC Bayern Munich|Bayern Munich]]. Bayern Munich had stars [[Franz Beckenbauer]], [[Gerd Müller]], [[Hans-Georg Schwarzenbeck]], [[Paul Breitner]] and [[Sepp Maier]] on their side while Mönchengladbach had [[Berti Vogts]], [[Herbert Wimmer]], [[Jupp Heynckes]], [[Rainer Bonhof]] and Netzer. When they achieved their first successes the average age of both teams was 21.

With Borussia Mönchengladbach he won the Bundesliga in [[1969–70 Bundesliga|1970]] and [[1970–71 Bundesliga|1971]] (the first Bundesliga club to win back-to-back championships), and the [[DFB-Pokal]] in [[1972–73 DFB-Pokal|1973]].<ref name="Netzer wird 65"/> The final was a famous match against [[1. FC Köln]] in which he started as a sub – it is said because he had told his manager of his intention to move to Spain after the season – and went onto the pitch during extra time on his own authority, simply telling the coach ''"I'll go and play now"'' whilst removing his tracksuit.<ref name="Netzer wird 65"/><ref name="Netzer feierte 65. Geburtstag">{{cite web|url=https://www.derwesten.de/sport/fussball/gladbach/Guenter-Netzer-feierte-seinen-65-Geburtstag-id213929.html|title=Günter Netzer feierte seinen 65. Geburtstag|work=[[Westdeutsche Allgemeine Zeitung]]|date=17 September 2009|access-date=13 July 2010|language=de|archive-date=27 May 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160527043556/https://www.derwesten.de/sport/fussball/gladbach/guenter-netzer-feierte-seinen-65-geburtstag-id213929.html|url-status=dead}}</ref> He then went on to score the winning goal three minutes later, with only his second possession of the ball.<ref name="Netzer wird 65"/> By then Netzer had achieved a certain pop star-like popularity because of his good looks, flowing blond hair, and perceived rebel personality and playboy lifestyle. Netzer was voted [[Footballer of the Year (Germany)|German Footballer of the Year]] twice, in 1972 and 1973, by the country's football journalists.<ref name="ARD-Sportschau"/> 

=== Real Madrid ===
[[file:Autogrammstunde mit Fußballspieler Günter Netzer (Kiel 66.107).jpg|thumb|Netzer signing autographs in 1975]]
When [[Johan Cruyff]] joined [[FC Barcelona]] in 1973, [[Real Madrid C.F.|Real Madrid]] needed to respond in kind. So [[Santiago Bernabéu Yeste|Santiago Bernabéu]] signed him and [[Paul Breitner]] a year later. Netzer was the first German player to play for the club.<ref>{{cite news |last= Carotenuto|first= Angelo|date= 29 June 2016|title= Guenter Netzer: "Il vostro segreto si scoprirà ma Conte mi fa impazzire"|trans-title= Netzer: "We will discover your secret, but I go crazy for Conte"|url= http://www.repubblica.it/sport/calcio/2016/06/29/news/guenter_netzer_il_vostro_segreto_si_scoprira_ma_conte_mi_fa_impazzire_-143068897/|language= it|location= Repubblica.it|access-date= 2 August 2017}}</ref> He played in Spain until 1976, winning [[La Liga]] in [[1974–75 La Liga|1975]] and [[1975–76 La Liga|1976]] and the [[Copa del Rey]] in 1974 and 1975. After his three-year spell in the Spanish capital, Netzer joined [[Grasshopper Club Zürich]], where in 1977 he finished his playing career.<ref name="Netzer wird 65"/>