After a promising start to his career, Robert Enke signed for Barca in 2002 after rejecting interest from Arsenal, Atletico, Man United.
On his debut, Barca were knocked out of the Spanish Cup by a 3rd division side. Teammate Frank de Boer publically criticized him for his game.
From being a promising talent, he soon became Barca's 3rd keeper, behind Valdes and Roberto Bonano. He moved to Fenerbahce in Turkey on loan next season.
On his only game, Fener lost 3-0. His own fans threw lighters and bottles at him during the game, blaming him for the loss.
This reaction jarred him so much, he cut his loan short and almost quit football. He joined Tenerife in the Spanish 2nd division, performed strongly, and moved back to his native Germany, where he was voted best keeper in the league for Hannover. In 2007, he was Germany's no. 1.
His form made his teammates elect him club captain. He was part of the national setup. He won goalkeeper of the year again in 2008. He made his final appearance in a 2-2 draw at home to Hamburg in 2009. Two days later, he stood in front of a train crossing and committed suicide.
It later emerged that Enke had been suffering from depression for 6 years. In his eearly years (Benfica) he suffered from panic attacks. He lost his daughter, Lara, in 2006. He played through all of that, while getting trolled from his own fans at every club he tried to call home
To people regularly advocating Kepa kill himself, that he should "get shanked," that he "can't catch feelings, leave alone a ball." Remember what words like yours did to a professional footballer who was only trying to do his job.
Criticize a player, by all means. But the anger ends the next day and we look forward to the next game. Imagine getting heckled, trolled, abused for weeks after messing up at a job you love. Being reminded of that makes you more liable to repeat it again. That shows we are human.
So the next time you type in anger, remember the power your sentiments hold. Doesn't matter if you have three followers or three million. You are responsible. Don't do to someone what you wouldn't want the world doing to you. Cheers.
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