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| Wednesday, 11 November 2009 10:49 |
Benfica mourn the death of Robert EnkeGerman goalkeeper passes away at 32 years of age The death of former Benfica goalkeeper Robert Enke has led to an immediate reaction in Enke, just 32 years old, played for Benfica for three seasons at the turn of the millennium and club president, Luis Filipe Vieira, issued an official message of condolences on the Lisbon club’s website:
“There is news in life, the brutality of which leaves us in shock, and the death of Robert Enke definitely falls into that category.
Nobody is ever prepared to face the physical disappearance of somebody we lived alongside and who we have fond memories of. But when the tragedy strikes somebody of the age of Robert Enke the frustration is even greater.
I would like to express our heartfelt sadness at his disappearance to his family and all those who knew him.”
Gomes tributeBenfica’s current captain Nuno Gomes, a team-mate of Enke during his Benfica years, said, “I can’t believe he has died. It’s a tremendous loss for worldwide football, and the loss of a rare person in our times. It’s extremely sad news. He was a kid when he arrived at Benfica, but he made a huge effort to learn our language and did so in no time. He was a youngster with a will to win and to learn. A man with a capital ‘M’.”
Born on 24 August 1977, Robert Enke was contracted by Benfica from Borussia Moenchengladbach, and had the difficult task of succeeding Michel Preudhomme, widely acknowledged as one of the best goalkeepers in the history of the club.
Enke soon won over the fans with his solid displays and went on to play 93 times for the Eagles, working under the orders of Jupp Heynckes, Jose Mourinho, Toni and Jesualdo Ferreira.
One of those former coaches, Toni, yesterday emphasised the “extremely caring” character trait of the German, who “was always ready and willing to help out others.” While living in
Upon leaving Benfica, the goalkeeper moved to
But off the field Enke had to deal with the trauma of the death of his two-year old daughter, which appears to lie behind the tragedy.
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may he RIP.