Jens Lehmann: Goalkeeper. Madman. Accountant.

European football has never truly begun until Jens Lehmann reaches back into the cobwebs of his mind and unleashes upon us a quizzical which leaves us thanking the football gods Jens has not yet decided to retire. Well, the European season has begun, as just after Stuttgart’s 2-0 loss to defending champeens Wolfsburg (away, it should be said), Jens took off his gloves and doffed spectacles and pocket protector, becoming the club’s unsolicited accountant and tranfer guru.

“Alex Hleb cost €2m, Pogrebniak €5m. Therefore the club still has €23m left from the €30m they received for Mario Gómez. It’s obvious that we should up the ante.”

You hear plenty of players moan for a new signing. What you don’t hear, however, is a breakdown in the press of just how much was spent and just how much the club has left for new blood.

It’s also worth noting Pogrebnyak’s fee was “undisclosed”, but said to be “in the region of €5m” according to Stuttgart’s suits. And knowing football businesspeople, “in the region of €5m” could mean “slightly less than Ronaldo and slightly more than Kaka”.

And it was a knee-jerk reaction as Stuttgart looked quite good until a goal well against the run of play and the second only coming once Stuttgart had gone down to 10 with Christian Trasch having broken his hand and no subs left.

But regardless, it’s good to see that Jens is back and exploring his post-career options – much to the chagrin of sporting directors the world over.

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Category: Bundesliga