Bernd Schuster (born 22 December 1959) is a German former professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...

of the late 1970s through early 1990s, who won club titles playing for the Spanish sides

Barcelona Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...

(1980–1988) and

Real Madrid Real Madrid Club de Fútbol (), commonly referred to as Real Madrid, is a Spanish professional Football club (association football), football club based in Madrid. The club competes in La Liga, th ...

(1988–1990). He played as a

midfielder In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in t ...

and was nicknamed "der Blonde Engel" (the Blond Angel). After retiring as a player, he managed a number of European clubs, including

, taking them to the league title in the 2007–08 season.

Club career

Schuster started his professional career with 1. FC Köln at age 18 in 1978 after a number of promising performances with the West German Under-18 National team. Schuster left Köln after the 1980 European campaign to sign with Spain's

FC Barcelona Futbol Club Barcelona (), commonly known as FC Barcelona and colloquially as Barça (), is a professional Football club (association football), football club based in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, that competes in La Liga, the top flight of ...

, where he flourished. During his career, he played for clubs

Atlético Madrid Club Atlético de Madrid, S.A.D. (; meaning "Athletic Club of Madrid"), commonly referred to as Atlético Madrid or simply Atlético, is a Spanish professional football club based in Madrid that plays in La Liga. The club play their home game ...

and

Bayer Leverkusen Bayer 04 Leverkusen, officially known as Bayer 04 Leverkusen Fußball GmbH () and commonly known as Bayer Leverkusen or simply Leverkusen, is a German professional football club based in Leverkusen, North Rhine-Westphalia. It competes in the B ...

. At his final team, the Mexican side Pumas de la UNAM he appeared in ten matches in spring 1997.

Barcelona

Schuster contributed significantly to FC Barcelona during the 1980s, playing as a midfielder and regularly scoring goals, as evidenced by his goal tally during this period. His club president Josep Lluís Núñez and some trainers like

Helenio Herrera Helenio Herrera Gavilán (; 10 April 1910 – 9 November 1997) was an Argentina, Argentine and naturalised France, French association football, football player and Manager (association football), manager. He is best remembered for his success ...

, Udo Lattek, Terry Venables and Luis Aragonés had difficult relations with him. While in Barcelona, though, he won the European Silver Ball in 1980 and the Bronze Ball in 1981 and 1985. At age 21, in 1981, he was badly injured on his right knee by

Athletic Bilbao Athletic Club (; ), commonly known as Athletic Bilbao (), or simply Athletic, is a professional Football club (association football), football club based in the city of Bilbao in the Southern Basque Country, Basque Country, Spain. They are known ...

defender Andoni Goikoetxea, who had a reputation for aggressive tackling, as noted in contemporaneous accounts. In 2024,

Pep Guardiola Josep "Pep" Guardiola Sala (; born 18 January 1971) is a Catalans, Catalan professional Manager (association football), football manager and former Football player, player from Spain who has been the manager of club Manchester City F.C., Ma ...

, was asked in an interview to name the five players he'd pick from football history to play in a five-a-side and, among them, picked Schuster, whom, he said, he used to watch as a ball boy at the stadium and "was completely in love" with his playing.

Real Madrid

Schuster's move to

was controversial due to the strong rivalry between Barcelona and Madrid. His style complemented the group of home-grown Madrid players known as la Quinta del Buitre, who were instrumental in the team's success in the Spanish Championship during the 1980s.

Atlético Madrid

Schuster signed with

in autumn 1990 and helped improve the performance of Atlético. His long precise passes helped restore Atlético Madrid as a prominent club.

Bayer Leverkusen

In 1993, Schuster returned home to Germany to play for three seasons with

. Despite his contributions, the club was unable to capture

Bundesliga The Bundesliga (; ), sometimes referred to as the Fußball-Bundesliga () or 1. Bundesliga (), is a professional association football league in Germany and the highest level of the German football league system. The Bundesliga comprises 18 teams ...

and German Cup titles but his performances led to discussions among fans and pundits about his potential inclusion in the 1994 World Cup squad. In the national TV-Station ARD "Goal of the year" election Schuster won the first three places in 1994. In the UEFA Golden Jubilee Poll to name the finest European players of the last five decades, Schuster finished 40th.

International career

Schuster was part of the West Germany national team that won the 1980 UEFA European Football Championship in Italy, appearing in two of West Germany's four matches. His performances there helped him earn the Silver Ball Trophy honour as the Europe's second best player in 1980 behind Golden Ball winner, and West Germany team-mate Karl-Heinz Rummenigge. His refusal to take part in a match against

Albania Albania ( ; or ), officially the Republic of Albania (), is a country in Southeast Europe. It is located in the Balkans, on the Adriatic Sea, Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea, and shares land borders with Montenegro to ...

to be home for the birth of his second son David caused a sporting scandal at the time. Schuster retired from the West Germany national team at the age of 24, due to his repeated disagreements with the

German Football Association The German Football Association ( ; DFB ) is the governing body of Association football, football, futsal, and beach soccer in Germany. A founding member of both FIFA and UEFA, the DFB has jurisdiction for the German football league system and ...

, then national team manager Jupp Derwall, and teammates including Paul Breitner. According to Schuster, it was due to a major disagreement with the managements of both Barcelona and the West Germany national team on either side of a friendly match against Brazil. Overall Schuster won 21 caps for the then West Germany national team

Style of play

An intelligent and skillful player, Schuster is considered one of the best midfielders of his generation. Earlier in his career, Schuster operated as a box-to-box attacking midfielder with good creative abilities, good dribbling and good pace. Injuries at Barcelona would cause him to lose his pace, which led his coaches to move him to a deep-lying playmaking role, where his technique, vision and excellent passing abilities allowed him to excel at dictating the tempo of the game and provide chances for his teammates through short and long passes. He was also an expert free-kick taker and possessed a powerful shot that allowed him to score goals from a distance. Primarily a midfielder, Schuster was also capable of playing as a sweeper, a position that he played in his years as a youngster at Köln and at Real Madrid, where his creativity and technique allowed him to start attacks from the back. Schuster was also praised for his leadership skills and commanding presence on the pitch. Despite his talent as a player, Schuster struggled with injuries throughout his career and was known for his outspoken nature, which sometimes led to disagreements with coaches, players, and journalists. He was nicknamed "The Blonde Angel" because of his long blonde hair. Many coaches and players have praised Schuster's talent as a footballer. Schuster's first coach at Köln Hennes Weisweiler described him as the best player he ever coached, and believed he could have been Franz Beckenbauer's successor. An admirer of Schuster, Köln coach

Rinus Michels Marinus Jacobus Hendricus "Rinus" Michels (; 9 February 1928 – 3 March 2005) was a Dutch Association football, football player and coach. He list of one-club men in association football, played his entire career for AFC Ajax, Ajax, which he ...

lamented his departure to Barcelona, believing that it was impossible to find a perfect replacement for him. Atlético Madrid coach Luis Aragonés praised his reading of the game and ability to play the right pass at the right time.

Marcel Desailly Marcel David Desailly (; 7 September 1968) is a French former professional Association football, footballer, who played as a centre-back or defensive midfielder. During a successful career at club level, lasting from 1986 to 2006, Desailly won se ...

and

Xavi Xavi () is a Catalan given name, usually used as a nickname for Xavier. Notable people with the name include: Football * Xavi Hernández (born 1980), Spanish football manager and former player * Xavi Andorrà (born 1985), Andorran footballe ...

have cited Schuster as an idol.

Coaching career

Fortuna Köln

Schuster was the coach of Fortuna Köln between 1 July 1997 and 30 June 1998.

1. FC Köln

Schuster was coach of 1. FC Köln from 1 July 1998 to 30 June 1999. Schuster was unable to get the club promoted. In 2000, he applied for the manager job at Scottish club Dundee FC, but the Dundee chairman rejected his application.

Xerez

Schuster became coach of Xerez on 26 June 2001. Schuster coached the team successfully for two seasons. The second and third best seasons in the history of the club. However, he could not get the club promoted to

La Liga The Campeonato Nacional de Liga de Primera División, commonly known as the Primera División or La Liga, and officially known as LaLiga EA Sports for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Spain and the highest ...

Shakhtar Donetsk

In June 2003, he accepted a deal to coach Shakhtar Donetsk starting on 1 July 2003. Schuster established a club record number of consecutive victories. However, the team did not win the championship and did not reach the final round of the Champions League with a match against

Lokomotiv Moscow FC Lokomotiv Moscow (, ) is a Russian professional association football, football club based in Moscow. Lokomotiv have won the Russian Premier League on three occasions; the Soviet Cup twice; and the Russian Cup (football), Russian Cup a record ...

. Schuster was sacked on 5 May 2004, one week before his team played and won the Ukrainian Cup final in 2004.

Levante

Schuster returned to Spain in summer 2004 to coach Levante. Schuster was sacked on 1 May 2005. The sacking came with a 5-point advantage over the relegation zone with five matches remaining. However, Levante could not win a game and fell to the

Segunda División The Campeonato Nacional de Liga de Segunda División, commonly known as Segunda División or La Liga 2, and officially known as LaLiga HyperMotion for sponsorship reasons, is the men's second professional association football division of the Spa ...

again.

Getafe

Schuster moved to

Getafe Getafe () is a municipalities in Spain, municipality and a city in Spain belonging to the Community of Madrid. , it has a population of 180,747, the region's sixth most populated municipality. Getafe is located 13 km south of Madrid's city c ...

in the summer of 2005. Schuster led them to their best season in team history under his guidance. Schuster coached Getafe in their second successful season and the team did even better, seventh in

. Getafe also secured entry to the 2007–08 UEFA Cup as a result of reaching the final of the

Copa del Rey The , commonly known as , or (in English) the Spanish Cup or King's Cup, and formerly known as Copa del Presidente de la República (1932–1936) and Copa del Generalísimo (1939–1976), is an annual knockout football competition in Spanis ...

after overcoming a 5–2 first leg semi-final defeat against

, beating them 4–0 in the second leg.

Real Madrid

Schuster was appointed coach of

on 9 July 2007. As manager, he made a successful start with Real Madrid, taking them to top of the La Liga standings. Attacking football returned again to the

Santiago Bernabéu stadium Santiago Bernabéu Stadium (, ) is a retractable roof association football, football stadium in Madrid, Spain. With a seating capacity of around 83,000 following its extensive renovation completed in late 2024, the stadium has the second-largest ...

with Madrid having the strongest offence, not beaten at home from the start of the league and defeating their arch rival

at their home ground Camp Nou, increasing their lead to seven points between them and second place (Barcelona). The team qualified to the second round of the

UEFA Champions League The UEFA Champions League (UCL) is an annual club association football competition organised by the UEFA, Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) that is contested by List of top-division football clubs in UEFA countries, top-divisio ...

leading their group which contained Olympiacos, Werder Bremen and

Lazio Lazio ( , ; ) or Latium ( , ; from Latium, the original Latin name, ) is one of the 20 Regions of Italy, administrative regions of Italy. Situated in the Central Italy, central peninsular section of the country, it has 5,714,882 inhabitants an ...

. He changed Real Madrid's style of play, switching from the defensive football during the reign of

Fabio Capello Fabio Capello (; born 18 June 1946) is an Italian former professional association football, football manager (association football), manager and player. As a player, Capello represented SPAL, AS Roma, Roma, AC Milan and Juventus FC, Juventus. H ...

to fast paced, attacking football. After losing 2–1 to Roma in the second leg of the UEFA Champions League which meant the elimination of Real Madrid, many doubted that Schuster would continue to be Madrid's coach, but the club denied the allegations. On 4 May 2008, Schuster guided Real Madrid to their 31st title with three games to spare. On 18 May 2008, Schuster's

achieved the highest point total (85 points) a record that was set by rivals Barcelona. He went on to win the

Supercopa de España The Supercopa de España, also known as the Spanish Super Cup, is a super cup tournament in Football in Spain, Spanish football. Founded in 1982 Supercopa de España, 1982 as a two-team competition, the current version has been contested since 2 ...

. Although enjoying a successful season with Madrid, Schuster had frequent confrontations with the media. Sometimes refusing to answer questions, making controversial or sarcastic statements and walking out of press conferences. On 9 December 2008, Schuster stepped down as coach after a 4–3 defeat to

Sevilla FC Sevilla Fútbol Club () is a Spanish professional association football, football club based in Seville, Andalusia, that competes in La Liga, the Spanish football league system, top flight of Spanish football. The club was formed on 25 January ...

, and speaking out publicly about his team standing no chance of beating Barcelona (Coached by Pep Guardiola at the time) in the El Clásico derby match. He was replaced by Juande Ramos.

Beşiktaş

On 10 June 2010, Turkish club Beşiktaş announced that Schuster had agreed to become the club's new coach on a two-year contract. Among his first signings for the club were Portuguese winger Ricardo Quaresma, Roberto Hilbert and former Real midfielder Guti, who was coached by Schuster at Madrid. Later he bolstered the squad with three additional Portuguese stars Simão Sabrosa, Hugo Almeida and Manuel Fernandes. Schuster resigned on 15 March 2011 from Beşiktaş following a series of poor results. His tenure was marked by notable media interactions, including walking out of press conferences. He was criticised by the Turkish media for trying to implement a reckless attacking style of play.

Málaga

Schuster became head coach at

Málaga Málaga (; ) is a Municipalities in Spain, municipality of Spain, capital of the Province of Málaga, in the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia. With a population of 591,637 in 2024, it is the second-most populo ...

on 12 June 2013. In May 2014 his contract was terminated after he failed to achieve a top-half position in the league.

Dalian Yifang

On 19 March 2018, Chinese Super League team Dalian Yifang officially appointed Schuster as the coach. He was replaced by Choi Kang-hee in 2019.

Personal life

During his time as a player, Schuster and his wife Gaby were celebrities in Germany. Gaby was publicly known for her outspoken nature, especially during her time managing Schuster's career. During the Schusters' stay in Spain, she was also notorious for her often public comments directed towards FC Barcelona coach Udo Lattek and national coach Jupp Derwall when her husband played for them. The couple have four children. In 2008, Schuster separated from Gaby Schuster. In 2012, after his divorce, he married Elena Blasco, a Spanish lawyer.

Career statistics

Club

International

Managerial

Honours

Player

Barcelona *

: 1984–85 *

: 1980–81, 1982–83, 1987–88 * European Cup Winners' Cup: 1981–82 * Copa de la Liga: 1983 *

European Cup The UEFA Champions League (UCL) is an annual club association football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) that is contested by top-division European clubs. The competition begins with a round robi ...

runner-up: 1985–86 Real Madrid *

: 1988–89, 1989–90 *

: 1988–89 *

: 1989 Atlético Madrid *

: 1990–91, 1991–92 West Germany *

UEFA European Championship The UEFA European Football Championship, less formally the European Championship and informally the Euro or Euros, is the primary association football tournament organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA). The competition ...

1980 Events January * January 4 – U.S. President Jimmy Carter proclaims a United States grain embargo against the Soviet Union, grain embargo against the USSR with the support of the European Commission. * January 6 – Global Positioning Sys ...

Individual * UEFA European Championship Team of the Tournament:

Ballon d'Or The Ballon d'Or (; ) is an annual association football, football award presented by French magazine ''France Football'' since 1956 Ballon d'Or, 1956 to honour the player deemed to have performed the best over the previous season. Conceived ...

runner-up:

; third place:

1981 Events January * January 1 ** Greece enters the European Economic Community, predecessor of the European Union. ** Palau becomes a self-governing territory. * January 6 – A funeral service is held in West Germany for Nazi Grand Admiral ...

1985 The year 1985 was designated as the International Youth Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** The Internet's Domain Name System is created. ** Greenland withdraws from the European Economic Community as a result of a n ...

*''Sport Ideal European XI'': 1980 * Guerin Sportivo All-Star Team: 1980, 1981 *

: Don Balón Award for Best Foreign Player: 1985, 1991 * '' kicker''

Team of the Season: 1993–94 *

Goal of the Year (Germany) The Goal of the Year in Germany is, like the '' Goal of the Month'' ( Tor des Monats), the ''Goal of the Decade'' and ''Goal of the Century'', an individual football award selected by spectators of the '' Sportschau'' ( ARD German TV), among spect ...

: 1994

Manager

Getafe *

runner-up: 2006–07 Real Madrid *

: 2007–08 *

2008 2008 was designated as: *International Year of Languages *International Year of Planet Earth *International Year of the Potato *International Year of Sanitation The Great Recession, a worldwide recession which began in 2007, continued throu ...

Individual *

: Miguel Muñoz Trophy for Best Coach of the Year: 2006

References

External links

* * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Schuster, Bernd 1959 births Living people Footballers from Augsburg West German men's footballers German men's footballers Men's association football midfielders FC Augsburg players 1. FC Köln players FC Barcelona players Real Madrid CF players Atlético Madrid footballers Bayer 04 Leverkusen players Club Universidad Nacional footballers Bundesliga players La Liga players Liga MX players Germany men's youth international footballers Germany men's under-21 international footballers Germany men's international footballers UEFA Euro 1980 players UEFA European Championship–winning players German expatriate men's footballers German expatriate sportspeople in Spain German expatriate sportspeople in Mexico Expatriate men's footballers in Spain Expatriate men's footballers in Mexico German football managers SC Fortuna Köln managers 1. FC Köln managers Xerez CD managers FC Shakhtar Donetsk managers Levante UD managers Getafe CF managers Real Madrid CF managers Beşiktaş J.K. managers Málaga CF managers Dalian Professional F.C. managers 2. Bundesliga managers Segunda División managers Ukrainian Premier League managers La Liga managers Süper Lig managers Chinese Super League managers German expatriate football managers German expatriate sportspeople in Ukraine German expatriate sportspeople in Turkey German expatriate sportspeople in China Expatriate football managers in Spain Expatriate football managers in Ukraine Expatriate football managers in Turkey Expatriate football managers in China West German expatriate sportspeople in Spain West German expatriate men's footballers