Everyone at Arsenal Football Club was devastated to hear about the death of Alex Manninger, our former goalkeeper, aged 48.
Alex joined us in the summer of 1997 from AK Graz in his native Austria, just after his 20th birthday, and learned his trade under the watchful eye of the experienced David Seaman, John Lukic and goalkeeping coach Bob Wilson.
He settled quickly into life at Highbury and was an instant hit with teammates and club staff. Warm-hearted, respectful and eager to embrace his opportunity in north London, he loved being part of Arsenal Football Club, learning our history and traditions and embracing our values. He supported every aspect of the club and attended a number of Arsenal Women games when not on duty with the men’s squad.
His talent was obvious, and early in his Arsenal career, Lukic said: “Alex is special. As a goalkeeper you can instinctively tell if a goalie has got it or not and Alex has it by the lorry load.”
He made his debut for us on October 14, 1997 in a 4-1 League Cup victory over Birmingham City and played a second match in the competition the following month, a 1-0 victory over Coventry City. But when Seaman suffered an injury in January, there was a requirement for Alex to step in to what was an altogether more pressurised situation. And he was magnificent.
Taking the gloves for an FA Cup fourth round match against Middlesbrough at the Riverside Stadium on January 24, which we won 2-1, he played a series of 13 matches, during which he kept six consecutive clean sheets in the Premier League – a then club record – the last of which was the titanic 1-0 win at Old Trafford as Arsène Wenger’s team chased down Manchester United and ultimately overtook them to win the league. His performances earned him the Premier League Player of the Month award for March 1998 and his league debut that season also made him the first Austrian to play in the competition.
In the FA Cup, he was also between the posts for an away win against Crystal Palace and an epic quarter-final victory over West Ham, where his penalty shoot-out heroics at Upton Park propelled us into the final four of the competition. We went on to win the first league and cup ‘double’ of Wenger’s tenure that season and the manager acknowledged Alex’s contribution to one of the club’s greatest ever seasons by playing him in one final league match of the season in May against Liverpool, after the title was secured.
For the following three campaigns, Alex continued to provide excellent back-up to Seaman, featuring in the 1999/00 UEFA Cup and 2000/01 FA Cup campaigns, when we reached the final of both competitions.
After four seasons and 63 matches for us – with 22 clean sheets – the Austria international headed to Fiorentina in Italy on loan for 2001/02, before leaving us on a permanent basis in 2002 for Espanyol in Spain. He subsequently headed back to Italy to play for Torino, Bologna, Brescia, Siena and Juventus before four seasons in Germany with Augsburg, with a final campaign of his career back in the Premier League as part of Liverpool’s goalkeeping unit in 2016/17.
After his football career, Alex used the joinery qualifications he had gained before his time with Arsenal to run a home renovation business, as well as coaching goalkeeping to local youngsters near his home in Salzburg.
Everyone at Arsenal would like to extend their deepest condolences to the Manninger family. Rest in Peace, Alex.
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David Seaman pays tribute to Alex Manninger
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