Werner Liebrich (18 January 1927 – 20 March 1995) was a German footballer who played in the centre back position. He is notable for his role in the West Germany triumph in the 1954 FIFA World Cup, and spending his entire playing career of almost twenty years with hometown club 1. FC Kaiserslautern, with whom he also briefly coached.
Liebrich in 1954
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| Personal information | ||||||||||||||
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| Date of birth | (1927-01-18)18 January 1927 | |||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Kaiserslautern, Germany | |||||||||||||
| Date of death | 20 March 1995(1995-03-20) (aged 68) | |||||||||||||
| Place of death | Kaiserslautern, Germany | |||||||||||||
| Height | 1.76 m (5 ft 9 in) | |||||||||||||
| Position(s) | Defender | |||||||||||||
| Youth career | ||||||||||||||
| 1938–1943 | 1. FC Kaiserslautern | |||||||||||||
| Senior career* | ||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | |||||||||||
| 1943–1962 | 1. FC Kaiserslautern | 273 | (25) | |||||||||||
| International career | ||||||||||||||
| 1951–1956 | West Germany | 16 | (0) | |||||||||||
| Managerial career | ||||||||||||||
| 1965 | 1. FC Kaiserslautern | |||||||||||||
Medal record
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| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | ||||||||||||||
Liebrich was brought up in Kaiserslautern to a worker's family who were members of the Social Democratic German party SPD.[1]
At club level, Liebrich played solely for 1. FC Kaiserslautern, and breaking into the first team in the 1940s. He was in the 1950s part of the team that won the German championship in the 1951 and 1953 seasons.
He appeared sixteen times for the West Germany national team, and was a member of the West Germany team that won the 1954 FIFA World Cup, in which he played in the final.[2] He was the player who injured Hungarian team captain Ferenc Puskás during the two teams' first game in the tournament in the group stage. Puskás was forced to miss the next two matches in the tournament, but played in the final against Germany, not wholly fit, in which the Germans won 3–2, Hungary's first defeat in four years.[citation needed]
In 1950, A.C. Milan offered him a contract which he declined to stay at his hometown club.[1]
Apart from winning the German championship with Kaiserslautern in 1951 and 1953, the pinnacle of Liebrich's career were his defensive performances during the 1954 FIFA World Cup, especially in the quarter final against Yugoslavia. After the 1954 World Cup, one of his best performances came in the game against EnglandatWembley on 1 December 1954. He effectively marked English centre forward Ronnie Allen and also helped out covering Stanley Matthews.[citation needed]
Liebrich retired from playing in 1962, after nearly twenty years with his hometown club; however he came back for a coaching stint in the 1964–65 season and was celebrated as saving his club from relegation.[1]
In March 1995, Liebrich died of heart failure aged 68, in Kaiserslautern.
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