Toni Turek

Anton Turek (18 January 1919 – 11 May 1984) was a German footballer who played as a goalkeeper.

Toni Turek

Turek in 1954
Personal information
Full name	Anton Turek
Date of birth	(1919-01-18)18 January 1919
Place of birth	Duisburg, Germany
Date of death	11 May 1984(1984-05-11) (aged 65)
Place of death	Neuss, West Germany
Height	1.81 m (5 ft 11 in)
Position(s)	Goalkeeper
Youth career
1929–1936	Duisburger SV
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1936–1941	TuS Duisburg 48/99
1941–1943	TSG Ulm 1846
1943–1946	TuS Duisburg 48/99
1946–1947	Eintracht Frankfurt	22	(0)
1947–1950	TSG Ulm 1846	65	(0)
1950–1956	Fortuna Düsseldorf	133	(0)
1956–1957	Borussia Mönchengladbach	4	(0)
International career
1950–1954	West Germany	20	(0)
Medal record Representing  West Germany FIFA World Cup Winner 1954 Switzerland
* Club domestic league appearances and goals

Bronze statue by Toni Turek next to the Merkur Spiel-Arena in Düsseldorf-Stockum.

Career

Born in Duisburg, Turek started his career at Duisburger Sportverein, but he soon moved to TuS Duisburg 48/99. He first came to the attention of later West Germany national team coach Sepp Herberger was on 27 September 1936, when West Germany played a preparation game against Luxembourg in Krefeld. Before that game, the youth teams of Krefeld and TuS Duisburg 48/99 had met with the 17-year-old Turek standing in the Duisburg goal. During World War II Turek was lucky things did not turn out worse for him as a shell splinter struck through his helmet.^[1]

In 1950 Turek transferred to Fortuna Düsseldorf. Between 1950 and 1954 he played 20 games for the West Germany national team.^[2] He played in "The Miracle of Bern" 1954 FIFA World Cup final against Hungary and won the Championship.^[3]

After a fine save from a very close shot by Nándor Hidegkuti, he was described by the sports reporter Herbert Zimmermann with the words "Toni, you're a football God".^[4][5] He later had to apologize for that comment because the church complained about the comparison of a football player with God.

Death

Turek died in Neuss in 1984.^[4] He had been paralyzed from the waist down since August 1973.^[6]

Legacy

He has received numerous honours and is still highly regarded in Germany, especially in the Rhineland.^[7]