| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | (1957-01-23)23 January 1957 (age 69) | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Waldbrunn,West Germany | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.82 m (6 ft 0 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Position | Centre back | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Youth career | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| –1975 | TSV Strümpfelbrunn | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 1975–1979 | Waldhof Mannheim | 144 | (16) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 1979–1981 | MSV Duisburg | 58 | (7) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 1981–1991 | 1. FC Köln | 291 | (20) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Total | 493 | (43) | |||||||||||||||||||||
| International career | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1983 | West Germany U21 | 2 | (1) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 1987 | West Germany Olympic | 2 | (0) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 1990 | West Germany | 1 | (0) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
| |||||||||||||||||||||||
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||||||||||||||||||||||
Paul Steiner (born 23 January 1957) is a German retired professionalfootballer who played mainly as acentral defender.
Born inWaldbrunn, Baden-Württemberg, Steiner began playing football in his hometown with TSV Strümpfelbrunn. He started his professional career in 1975, going on to spend four seasons in thesecond division withSV Waldhof Mannheim.
Steiner appeared in 349 games in theBundesliga, scoring 27 times from 1979 until 1991 withMSV Duisburg and1. FC Köln.[1] With the latter side, he was instrumental in five league finishes in the top three, also winning theGerman Cup in1983 and losing the1985–86 UEFA Cup toReal Madrid.
After retiring at 34, Steiner later worked as ascout for Köln'sRhine rival,Bayer 04 Leverkusen, before taking up the same role back at the former club.[2]
Steiner was one of the oldest debutants in theGermany national team, when he appeared as a 33-year-oldsubstitute in the finalfriendly match ahead of the1990 FIFA World Cup inItaly, againstDenmark atGelsenkirchen'sParkstadion on 30 May.[3] He was surprisingly selected for the World Cup squad in favour ofBayer Uerdingen'sHolger Fach, who had been the expected pick of coachFranz Beckenbauer asKlaus Augenthaler's understudy.[4]
Steiner was not recalled again after the tournament, where Germany defeatedArgentina in the final and he did not play a single minute.
Steiner was commonly quoted in Germany as stating in atalk show thathomosexuals were "too soft" for playing football.[5]
