Former Germany and Manchester City goalkeeper Bert Trautmann has died at the age of 89, the German Football Association has announced.
Trautmann made a name for himself in England with City after originally arriving as a prisoner of war. He played more than 500 times for the club between 1949 and 1964 while he was bestowed with an honorary OBE for his work in promoting Anglo-German post-war relations.
Trautmann was an FA Cup winner with City in 1956, playing the final 17 minutes of the 3-1 win against Birmingham at Wembley with a broken neck.
After his playing days, Trautmann moved into management with Stockport before returning to his native Germany in 1967 to coach Preussen Munster.
Having survived two heart attacks, Trautmann passed away at his home in La Llosa, near Valencia, on Friday morning.
Wolfgang Niersbach, the president of the German FA, said: "Bert Trautmann was an amazing sportsman and a true gentleman. He went to England as a soldier, and thus a war enemy, and he became a celebrated hero there. He was a legend.
"We were in very close contact since 1996, when he was part of our official delegation when we won the European Championships in England. The DFB had invited him to Nuremberg in October, but he turned down the invitation because it was the same time he wanted to celebrate his 90th birthday. That makes this news even more surprising."
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