Thread on the career of Karl-Heinz Rummenigge because a lot of people on here don't know how good he was.

Karl-Heinz "Kalle" Rummenigge was born in 1955 in the town of Lippstadt in North Rhine-Westphalia. He joined the youth academy of his local team Borussia Lippstadt in 1963 and stayed until 1974.

Rummenigge was a very good all-rounded forward. He could play as a lone number 9, as a second striker or anyone in attack really thanks to his immense pace and dribbling ability.

Kalle was ofc a great finisher. A forward with great attacking instincts and an eye for goal, he scored over 200 goals for Bayern in his 10 years in the Bavarian capital.

Bayern bought KHR from Lippstadt for 11,000€ in 1974. Kalle later in his life described this move as a big risk. He immediately showed flashes of his talent but at the end of the day scored just 6 goals in 28 games in all competitions. He did however win the European Cup.

To be fair to him he was just 19 years old and played for the best team in the world at the time. Not scoring that many goals in his early career is no surprise. Despite that he was still a useful player in Dettmar Cramer's side.

The season after that (1975-76) he scored 13 times in 50 games in all competitions and started in the European Cup final as Bayern won 1-0 vs ASSE. Fun fact, he was nervous before the final and drunk a glass of brandy to prepare himself.

He showed further improvement in the 1976-77 Bundesliga season scoring double digits (12 goals) for the first time in his top flight career. The 22 year old was starting to really establish himself.

His performances earned him a spot in West Germany's 1978 World Cup team. The reigning champions started well, beating Mexico with KHR scoring twice. Kalle scored again to make it 1-0 vs Austria but his team lost 3-2 and were knocked out.

One of the main contributors to Germany's misfortunes was the fact that Franz Beckenbauer and Gerd Müller, 2 greats that led West Germany to the top in 1974, had retired from international play.

Rummenigge's development continued as he beat his personal best of 12 goals by scoring 14 during the 1978-79 Bundesliga season. Bayern finished 4th and qualified for Europe. Much better than 12th and 7th the previous 2 years.

The 1979-80 season was even better. Bayern had a very decent squad boasting the likes of Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, Paul Breitner, Klaus Augenthaler and Dieter Hoeneß.

Kalle scored 26 goals in the Bundesliga, helping his side lift the Meisterschale, and 5 in 10 games in Europe as Bayern reached the semifinals of the UEFA Cup. The link-up play between him and Breitner was the stuff of legend.

In the 1980 European Championship, KHR was an important player for Germany. He scored the winner against Czechoslovakia and help West Germany progress to the next round of the tournament which they went on to win by beating Belgium 2-1 in the final.

Apart from the 2 trophies it was a great season for Kalle individually. He was the Bundesliga's top scorer, made the European Championship Team of the Tournament and won the German Footballer of the Year award.

Oh and he also won the 1980 Ballon d'Or. That's good I guess.

During the 1980-81 season Kalle scored 39 goals in 45 games in all competitions as Bayern won the Bundesliga and reached the semifinals of the European Cup.

It was yet another great individual year for Rummenigge. He was the Bundesliga top scorer (29 goals) and won his 2nd Ballon d'Or.

In the 1981-82 season Bayern reached the European Cup final. KHR scored 6 goals in 9 European Cup games but the Bavarians lost the final to Aston Villa.

Rummenigge also shined in the 1982 World Cup. He scored 5 goals including a game changing strike against France in the semifinals. West Germany lost against Italy in the final.

Kalle's efforts won him both the 1982 World Cup Silver Shoe and the Bronze Ball. He also made the tournaments All-Star team.

Kalle however didn't go the whole 1981-82 season trophyless. He helped Bayern win the DFB Pokal. He scored 7 goals in 7 games in that cup run including a goal in the final as Bayern came back from 2-0 down against Nürnberg to claim the trophy.

The 1982-83 was tough for Bayern. Rummenigge scored 20 goals in the league, just 3 off top scorer Rudy Völler, but the Bavarian side crashed out of the cup early and finished 4th in the league.

Bayern, despite Breitner's recent retirement, saw great improvement during the 1983-84 season thanks to the return of legendary coach Udo Lattek. Bayern missed out on the league title by a single point and won the Pokal.

Rummenigge under Lattek was incredible. He became the league's top scorer for the 3rd time in his career (26 goals in 29 games). He also scored a hattrick in a 6-6 draw vs Schalke in the Pokal semis and a brace in the replay as Bayern won 3-2 and made the final.

After that Bayern sold Karl-Heinz Rummenigge to Inter for a then world record transfer fee of 5.7 million€. Bayern president Uli Hoeneß recalls that Bayern at the time had many debts but thanks to the revenue of that move they were once again in the green.

In his first season it Italy, Kalle struggled with injuries but still scored 18 goals in 44 games in all competitions as Inter finished just 5 points off first place and made the UEFA cup and Coppa Italia semifinals.

During the 1985-86 season, despite further injury issues, Kalle scored 18 goals in 39 games in all competitions as Inter once again reached the UEFA Cup semis. Their league form however wasn't good enough, they finished 6th.

He reached the final of the 1986 World Cup with Germany and scored in the final vs Argentina but the Germans lost 3-2.

During the 1986-87 season the injuries got worse. He played just 14 league games and left Inter at the end of the season.

He played for Servette in the Swiss League for 2 years before retiring in 1989.

In 1991 Bayern brought in Rummenigge and Beckenbauer as club vice presidents and in 2002 Kalle became the club's chairman. Under his and Uli Hoeneß's supervision Bayern became the dominant force we know today.

In conclusion, Karl-Heinz Rummenigge is one of the best players in the history of the game. He scored 217 goals for Bayern (only Gerd Müller and Robert Lewandowski have more) and 45 goals in 95 games for Germany.

He won 2 Bundesliga titles, 2 Pokal trophies, 2 European Cups and the Intercontinental Cup with Bayern along with the European Championship with Germany.

He won 2 Ballon d'Ors, became the Bundesliga top scorer 3 times, the European Cup top scorer once and made Kicker's Bundesliga team of the season 8 times.

His direct approach has made him a controversial figure amongst fans and media. One thing is certain though, the man is a winner and a leader of men and his success on and off the pitch show that.

End of thread. Thank you for reading and have a good day/night wherever you are.