Guys in Disguise; Ron-Robert Zieler

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Ron-Robert Zieler was a fresh World Cup winner when he joined Leicester from Hannover in 2016. Claudio Ranieri decided to use close to £3million to lure the German international to Leicester. Kasper Schmeichel and Ben Hamer were the two other alternative goalkeepers, so this looked a strange move from start.

The idea of giving Kasper Schmeichel more competition and bring in Ron-Robert Zieler on false ideas of how far he was from taking the first team place from the Dane, made the move look a total waste for both player and club.

Zieler made 9 league appearances for Leicester in one season and was also involved in one Champions League game, the 2-1 win at home vs. Club Brugge. He made a total of 13 appearances. After just one season at the club, he was sold to Stuttgart.

This is was in real a bit unfair, as Zieler, with a past at Man Utd and Northampton (loan), before his time with Hannover, had probably set his sights on becoming a first choice in Premier Leauge football, but it was never to be.

Zieler is still in the game, back at Hannover, joining them in 2019, after three years with Stuttgart. Being part of a great generation of German goalkeepers, having Marc-Andre ter Stegen and Manuel Neuer to compete with, Zieler was limited to just 6 German full caps.

At the age of 34, Zieler was last summer linked with a possible move to Liverpool, to become the understudy of Alisson Becker, but nothing happened. Zieler is at present playing for Hannover in Bundesliga 2. So far played 17 games this season, adding up a tally of 284 league appearances for his club, in total in two periods. He has also represented Köln on loan, making one single first team appearance, in the 2020/21 season.

FACTFILE

• Full Name: Ron-Robert Zieler
• Position: Goalkeeper
• Date of Birth: 12.02.1989
• Birthplace: Köln
• Nation: Germany
• Caps / Goals: 6/0
• Major Career:
  • 2008-10, Man Utd (0/0)
  • 2010-16, Hannover (185/0)
  • 2016-17, Leicester City (9/0)
  • 2017-19, Stuttgart (68/0)
  • 2019->, Hannover (99/0)
• Links: Wikipedia

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