Tobias Rau

Tobias Rau (born 31 December 1981) is a German former professional footballer who played as a left back.

Tobias Rau
Rau in 2015
Personal information
Full name Tobias Rau
Date of birth (1981-12-31) 31 December 1981
Place of birth Braunschweig, West Germany
Height 1.77 m (5 ft 10 in)
Position(s) Left back
Youth career
1986–1996 Sportfreunde Ölper
1996–1999 Eintracht Braunschweig
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1999–2001 Eintracht Braunschweig 60 (1)
2001–2003 VfL Wolfsburg 48 (1)
2003–2005 Bayern Munich 13 (0)
2005–2009 Arminia Bielefeld 32 (0)
Total 153 (2)
International career
2002 Germany U21 9 (1)
2003 Germany 7 (1)
2005 Germany Team 2006 1 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

In a career blighted by injuries, he retired from professional play at only 27.

Club career

Wolfsburg

Rau was born in Braunschweig, Lower Saxony. After making his professional debut at the third level of the German league pyramid with hometown club Eintracht Braunschweig,[1] he moved to the professionals with VfL Wolfsburg.

Rau amassed 52 official appearances for the latter side.[2] His Bundesliga debut came on 18 August 2001, starting and featuring 52 minutes in a 1–1 home draw against SC Freiburg.

Bayern Munich

In June 2003, Rau's solid performances caught the attention of powerhouse FC Bayern Munich. However, several serious injuries[3] and stiff competition from Frenchmen Willy Sagnol and Bixente Lizarazu[4] restricted his chances to 19 games across all competitions (with a further eight for the reserve team).[2]

Arminia Bielefeld

In the summer of 2005, Rau signed with Arminia Bielefeld, where he would also be a backup and suffer severely with injuries – only an average of eight league matches in four years – being released on 30 June 2009[5] before announcing his retirement on 6 July.[6]

International career

Rau played seven times for Germany, all in 2003.[7] His debut came on 12 February in a friendly with Spain played in Palma, Majorca, and his only goal contributed to a 4–1 home defeat of Canada on 1 June.[8]

Personal life

In July 2009, shortly after retiring, Rau announced his return to school to start a career as a teacher despite having offers from clubs abroad and from the 2. Bundesliga.[9][10]

Rau returned to playing football in 2012, joining Kreisliga amateurs TV Neuenkirchen.

Career statistics
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition[2][11]
Club Season League National Cup Continental Total
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Eintracht Braunschweig 1999–2000 Regionalliga Nord 261——261
2000–01 Regionalliga Nord 340——340
Total 601——601
VfL Wolfsburg 2001–02 Bundesliga 22110—231
2002–03 Bundesliga 27020—290
Total 49130—521
Bayern Munich 2003–04 Bundesliga 80201[lower-alpha 1]0110
2004–05 Bundesliga 50102[lower-alpha 1]080
Total 1303030190
Bayern Munich II 2003–04 Regionalliga Süd 20——20
2004–05 Regionalliga Süd 5010—60
Total 7010—80
Arminia Bielefeld 2005–06 Bundesliga 14020—160
2006–07 Bundesliga 5010—60
2007–08 Bundesliga 10020—120
2008–09 Bundesliga 3000—30
Total 32050—370
Arminia Bielefeld II 2006–07 Oberliga Westfalen 40——40
2007–08 Oberliga Westfalen 10——10
Total 50——50
Career Total 1662120301812
  1. Appearance(s) in the UEFA Champions League

References
  1. Arnhold, Matthias (15 July 2022). "Tobias Rau - Matches and Goals in Bundesliga". RSSSF.com. Retrieved 6 August 2022.
  2. "Tobias Rau » Club matches". World Football. Retrieved 4 March 2021.
  3. "Rau ruled out for Bayern". UEFA. 6 April 2005. Retrieved 25 November 2009.
  4. "Vom Shootingstar zum Lehrling" [From shooting star to apprentice]. Die Welt (in German). 15 June 2003. Retrieved 29 December 2016.
  5. "Rau verlässt Arminia Bielefeld" [Rau leaves Arminia Bielefeld)] (in German). Deutsche Fußball Liga. 30 June 2009. Retrieved 30 June 2009.
  6. "Die harte Reise ist vorbei" [The hard journey is over]. Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (in German). 25 December 2009. Retrieved 29 December 2016.
  7. Arnhold, Matthias (15 July 2022). "Tobias Rau - International Appearances". RSSSF.com. Retrieved 6 August 2022.
  8. "Germany topples Canada in men's soccer friendly". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. 1 June 2003. Retrieved 18 December 2015.
  9. "Lehrer statt Fußballprofi" [Teacher instead of football pro] (in German). Focus. 13 August 2009. Retrieved 19 August 2009.
  10. "Sprung ins Lehramt" [Leap into teaching]. Die Zeit (in German). 13 August 2009. Retrieved 19 August 2009.
  11. "Rau, Tobias". National Football Teams. Retrieved 4 March 2021.
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