Eike Immel

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Eike Immel
Personal information
Full name	Eike Immel
Date of birth	November 27, 1960
Place of birth	Stadtallendorf, Germany
Height	187 cm
Position	goalkeeper
Club information
Current club	retired
Professional clubs*
Years	Club	Apps (goals)
1978-1986 1986-1995 1995-1997	Borussia Dortmund VfB Stuttgart Manchester City	247 (0) 287 (0) 43 (0)
National team**
1980-1988	West Germany	19 (0)
* Professional club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of June 30, 1997. ** National team caps and goals correct as of June 30, 1997.

Eike Immel (born November 27, 1960 in Stadtallendorf) is a former German football player and manager.

A leading youth international goalkeeper for West Germany in 1978, Eike Immel was still seventeen years of age when he succeeded Horst Bertram as Borussia Dortmund's first-choice. He remained Dortmund's top choice until his 2 million Deutsche Mark transfer to VfB Stuttgart in 1986, the biggest fee ever paid for a goalkeeper in the history German football at that time. He served nine years as Stuttgart's regular goalkeeper, winning the Bundesliga title in 1992 and the UEFA Cup runner-up medal in 1989 with them.

His West Germany career lasted for just eight years due to his decision to retire from the West German team following the chance of competing with Bodo Illgner for the starting job after Immel had been the starting goalkeeper since Harald Schumacher's ban from the team in 1987. Consequently, Immel's 19th appearance in the semi-final of the 1988 UEFA European Football Championship at Volksparkstadion, Hamburg, remained his final cap for his country and made him missing out on the title winning 1990 FIFA World Cup squad for which Bodo Illgner then served as starting goalkeeper. The mentioned 1988 UEFA European Football Championship was Immel's fifth participation in a big international tournament, however it was the only one in which he got games as in the other four (1980 UEFA European Football Championship, 1982 FIFA World Cup, 1984 UEFA European Football Championship, 1986 FIFA World Cup) he was just understudy to Harald Schumacher. The son of a farmer later admitted his decision to retire from the international game at barely 28 and just because of getting competition from Bodo Illgner for the starting job was taken in wild haste.

Following his retirement from the game after a stay with Manchester City, whom he joined after his Stuttgart manager had preferred a younger goalkeeper in 1995, Eike Immel was working in a coaching role, like the goalkeeper coach he was under Christoph Daum at Fenerbahçe in 2005.

	West Germany squad - 1982 World Cup Runner-up
1 Schumacher | 2 Briegel | 3 Breitner | 4 K. Förster | 5 B. Förster | 6 Dremmler | 7 Littbarski | 8 Fischer | 9 Hrubesch | 10 Müller | 11 Rummenigge | 12 Hannes | 13 Reinders | 14 Magath | 15 Stielike | 16 Allofs | 17 Engels | 18 Matthäus | 19 Hieronymus | 20 Kaltz | 21 Franke | 22 Immel | Coach: Derwall

	West Germany squad - 1986 World Cup Runner-up
1 Schumacher | 2 Briegel | 3 Brehme | 4 Förster | 5 Herget | 6 Eder | 7 Littbarski | 8 Matthäus | 9 Völler | 10 Magath | 11 Rummenigge | 12 Stein | 13 Allgöwer | 14 Berthold | 15 Augenthaler | 16 Thon | 17 Jakobs | 18 Rahn | 19 Allofs | 20 Hoeneß | 21 Rolff | 22 Immel | Coach: Beckenbauer