| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Full name | Karlheinz Helmut Förster | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Date of birth | (1958-07-25)25 July 1958 (age 67) | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Mosbach,West Germany | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Position | Centre-back | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Youth career | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Badenia Unterschwarzach | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Waldhof Mannheim | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| –1977 | VfB Stuttgart | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 1977–1986 | VfB Stuttgart | 311 | (22) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 1986–1990 | Marseille | 103 | (6) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Total | 414 | (28) | |||||||||||||||||||||
| International career | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1976–1978 | West Germany Amateur | 4 | (0) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 1978 | West Germany B | 2 | (0) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 1978–1986 | West Germany | 81 | (2) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||||||||||||||||||||||
Karlheinz Helmut Förster (born 25 July 1958) is a German former professionalfootballer who played as acentral defender.
The younger brother of another football defender,Bernd Förster, he was regarded as one of the world's top man-markers at his peak,[1] and played most of his career atVfB Stuttgart with Bernd. Both were crownedEuropean champions in1980.
Born inMosbach, Förster started playing professionally atVfB Stuttgart, which would be his only club in theGerman first division. He was instrumental in the club'spromotion in 1977, as he scored five times in 34 contests.[2]
In the topflight, Förster rarely missed a game, partnering siblingBernd in the backline. Both were instrumental in the club's1983–84 league conquest and he left the club in 1986, having played in more than 300 overall official matches. He was then bought by France'sOlympique de Marseille, for 3.5 millionDeutsche Mark.
Inhis third year withL'OM, already partnered by countrymanKlaus Allofs, Förster helped the side winthe double. Having retired at nearly 32, he later became a player's agent.[3]
Förster gained the first of his 81 caps for theWest Germany national team in a friendly withBrazil, on 5 April 1978,[4] not yet aged 20. From then onwards, he became an undisputed starter, appearing in all the matches at thevictorious Euro 1980 (completely neutralizingBelgium'sJan Ceulemans in the final) and the runner-up place at the1982 FIFA World Cup (also playing all the minutes).
At the latter competition, the pair of brothers (Bernd had already been an important figure in the continental win) became the first in German football history to take part in aWorld Cup final sinceOttmar andFritz Walter's appearances in the victorious1954 edition, and the first to be defeated.
Förster still played for his nation at theUEFA Euro 1984 and1986 World Cup, finishing second toArgentina in the latter. In Mexico 86, he took the role of man to man marker, neutralizingMexico'sHugo Sánchez at the quarterfinals andMichel Platini ofFrance at the semifinals.
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 17 October 1979 | Müngersdorfer Stadion,Cologne, West Germany |  Wales | 5–0 | 5–1 | UEFA Euro 1980 qualifying |
| 2 | 16 December 1984 | Ta' Qali National Stadium,Ta' Qali, Malta |  Malta | 1–1 | 3–2 | 1986 FIFA World Cup qualification |
VfB Stuttgart
Marseille
West Germany
Individual
Germany squads | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| International | |
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| People | |
