Oliver Kahn Biography and Wallpapers

Oliver Kahn Biography

Oliver Kahn Biography – Introduction
Oliver Kahn might not have the lightning reflexes of Iker Cassilias or the flair of Peter Schmeichel, but his bulky frame, strength, anticipation and presence in goal, made him one of the top goalkeepers of our times and, as many suggest, of all times.

I'm not sure if a comparison between Oliver Kahn and say, Lev Yashin, Gordon Banks or Andoni Zubizareta are in place, since they're different types of goalkeepers. Oliver Kahn is the type of keeper you need to have in the team not only because he is a great shot stopper, but also because of his impressive presence in the team's defense.

He's a modern goalkeeper, that coordinates his defenders very well and he also has the strength of character to make himself heard and respected by his teammates, which is an extraordinary feat considering he's playing together with world class superstars at Bayern Munich and the German national team.

Since he's approaching the end of his career, I decided to write up a short Oliver Kahn biography, to get you accustomed with this great figure in modern soccer.

Oliver Kahn Biography – Karlsruher SC
Oliver Kahn entered the world of professional soccer in 1987, when he was just 18. Karlsruher SC took him on as a reserve keeper and he had to wait 3 hard years to get a real chance at the first team, since until then he only played sporadically and mostly in unimportant matches. But in 1990, he was given the chance to play match by match and he didn't kick that chance away as so many goalkeepers do.

Actually, he helped Karlsruher become one of the top teams in Germany and lead them through a great UEFA Cup run in 1993-94, where the small Bundesliga side managed to get to the semi-finals, smashing Valencia 8-3 on aggregate on the way there.

His performance brought him in the eyes of Bayern Munich and despite the fact that he had some great 6 years with the Karlsruher side, when giants Bayern put an offer on your table it's hard to resist.

Oliver Kahn Biography – Bayern Munich
Doing a retrospective through this Oliver Kahn biography, you'll notice that he played for Bayern for 13 seasons already! And despite being 38 now, he shows no signs that he wants to retire yet. With over 400 games played for Bayern, it's not far fetched to say that he's already considered a legend there, next to other huge names such as Beckenbauer.

With Bayern, Oliver Kahn lived the best time of his career but also his worst nightmare. Winning the Bundesliga 7 times in his time with Bayern, the German Cup 5 times, the UEFA Cup once and finally, the UEFA Champions League in 2001, you could say he had a very successful time with Bayern.

But like I said, he also participated in one of Bayern and German football's worst nightmares, namely the 1999 Champions League final. Oliver Kahn & Bayern Munich played against Manchester United and had a 1-0 advantage.

With Kahn in goal, it seemed like enough to get them through the final. But amazingly, Manchester United scored two goals in injury time and left some nasty marks in Kahn's morale. After all, it's not every day you lose the most important club competition in 2 minutes, after you lead 1-0.

Oliver Kahn Biography – Conclusion
At 38 years of age, most players, even goalkeepers, decide to hang up their soccer boots, but not Oliver Kahn. He said he wants to finish his contract with Bayern Munich, a contract that spans for another season (2007/08) but he did not say that he will retire afterwards or not. For all we know, we might as well see Oliver Kahn play for Germany in yet another World Cup in 2010.

Oliver Kahn Wallpapers