Euro 2008 Player Profile: Jens Lehmann

Name: Jens Lehmann
Team: Germany
Group: B; Austria, Croatia, Poland
Caps (Goals): 53 (0) as of May 7, 2008
DOB: November 10, 1968 (38 years old)
Position: Goalkeeper
Club Team: Arsenal, for the moment

Jens Lehmann, probable starting goalkeeper for Germany, is known affectionately (and not-so-affectionately) as “Mad Jens.”

He holds the record for number of sendings off for a Bundesliga goalkeeper with five, back when he played for Borussia Dortmund. But he was also instrumental in Germany’s strong finish in the 2006 World Cup, helping the team on its way to an unexpectedly strong third place finish. He gave a solid performance in the penalty shootout against Argentina in the quarterfinals, making two vital saves with the help of a cheat sheet that he kept inside his sock. (That cheat sheet was later auctioned off for 1 million Euros for a children’s charity.) Germany won the game, 4 penalties to 2.

In 2006, he became the first goalkeeper ever to be sent off in a Champions League final. And he set a record of 853 minutes in the Champions League without conceding a goal.

This is the dichotomy that is “Mad Jens” Lehmann.

He was displaced as starting goalkeeper at Arsenal this season by Manuel Almunia. Will this affect his chances of starting for the German team? Our Germany blogger Jan thinks not.

I think it’s just too late now to switch goalkeepers. And Jens was very solid in the few games he played for Arsenal recently. All the new keepers already lining up behind Jens will have to wait until after the Euros to challenge for the #1.

We’ll find out more when Germany coach Joachim Loew releases the team list next week.

His contract with Arsenal expired this year. Chances are high that Lehmann will be leaving Arsenal in the summer, possibly to go back to Germany. Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger said as much when Lehmann made what is expected to be his final appearance for Arsenal in May, 2008:

“I wanted the fans to say goodbye to Jens because of what he’s done for us. He’s not an easy character but you take that. He’s been fully committed and that’s easy to forget sometimes.

“In all his time here, I have not known Jens to not be fully committed for a single minute. That deserves a lot of respect. He was the best keeper in the Premier League. Jens has became better and better, because at the start he was a bit upset easily sometimes, when people walked on his toes at corners. But he got more controlled through his career. Jens was 38 this year - and at some stage in a club like ours you have to make a decision to change.”

To illustrate the complexities of Jens Lehmann, goalkeeper, I’d like to offer up two videos.

First the “Good Jens” video:

And then the “Mad Jens” video, which just happens to show one of my favorite sports moments ever. And not only that, it’s set to music:

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