Peter Meyer (footballer) explained

Peter Meyer
Height:1.78 m
Birth Date:1940 2, df=yes
Birth Place:Düsseldorf, Germany
Position:Striker
Youthclubs1:Wersten 04
Years1:1960–1967
Clubs1:Fortuna Düsseldorf
Caps1:174
Goals1:119
Years2:1967–1970
Clubs2:Borussia Mönchengladbach
Caps2:19
Goals2:19
Clubs3:VfL 06 Benrath
Clubs4:Viktoria 02
Nationalyears1:1967
Nationalteam1:Germany
Nationalcaps1:1
Nationalgoals1:0

Peter Meyer (born 18 February 1940, in Düsseldorf) is a retired German football player. He spent four seasons in the Bundesliga with Fortuna Düsseldorf and Borussia Mönchengladbach.[1] He also represented Germany once, in a UEFA Euro 1968 qualifier against Albania.

Career

Fortuna Düsseldorf

Meyer started his career at Wersten 04 and TuRU Düsseldorf before joining Fortuna Düsseldorf in 1960.[2] He played in the 1961–62 DFB-Pokal final with the club, losing 2–1 to 1. FC Nürnberg. In 1966, he helped Fortuna reach the Bundesliga for the first time, scoring twice in a 5–1 victory against Kickers Offenbach in the Aufstiegsrunde, securing the club's promotion on goal average. He appeared 25 times and scored eight goals during the following season in the Bundesliga, but could not prevent Fortuna from being relegated at the end of the campaign. Meyer was not offered a new contract following Fortuna's relegation, and was free to look for a new club.[3] With a total of 119 goals in 174 league games between 1960 and 1967, he is the club's record goalscorer.[4]

Borussia Mönchengladbach

After initially agreeing terms with MSV Duisburg, Meyer opted to sign for Borussia Mönchengladbach after being persuaded to join the club by Günter Netzer, who showed up at the car workshop that Meyer worked at. He debuted on 19 August 1967 against Schalke 04, scoring a hat trick in a 4–3 away win, and went on to score 19 goals for the club in the first half of the 1967–68 Bundesliga season. He was subsequently selected by Helmut Schön to play for West Germany in their decisive Euro 1968 qualification match against Albania in Tirana. West Germany failed to qualify after drawing the match 0–0, and the game became known as the "Disgrace of Tirana".[5]

Injury and retirement

In January 1968, during a training match played in Duisburg, Meyer broke his tibia and fibula following a collision with his own goalkeeper Volker Danner. Meyer never fully recovered from the injury, and required a second operation after returning to training too soon after the incident. He made a brief comeback in August 1969, starting in a league match against Bayern Munich, but was substituted at half-time, and never made another appearance in the Bundesliga.[6] He left the club at the end of the 1969–70 season and dropped into amateur football, joining VfL Benrath in the Verbandsliga Niederrhein,[7] followed by Viktoria 02 before deciding to retire.

Honours

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Meyer, Peter . de . kicker.de . 14 August 2012.
  2. Web site: Peter Meyer wird 65 – Fortunas ehemaliger Rekordstürmer feiert Jubiläum. Düsseldorfer Turn- und Sportverein 1895 e.V.. 23 September 2013. de. 17 February 2005.
  3. Web site: Hoffenheim suffer the curse of Meyer . ESPN . Uli . Hesse-Lichtenberger . 10 February 2009 . 23 September 2013.
  4. Web site: Mai. Theo. Draufgänger mit großem Torinstinkt. DerWesten. WAZ New Media GmbH & Co. KG. 23 September 2013. de. 18 February 2010.
  5. Web site: Hackett. Robin. Euro qualification shocks. ESPN. 26 September 2013. 7 October 2010.
  6. Web site: Peter Meyer: das Schlitzohr, das von der Eckfahne traf. RP Online. Rheinische Post Mediengruppe. 23 September 2013. Grulke. Thomas. de. 28 January 2013.
  7. Web site: Keine Feier ohne Meyer. Borussia VfL 1900 Mönchengladbach GmbH. 24 September 2013.