František Plánička

František Plánička (; 2 June 1904 – 20 July 1996) was a Czech football goalkeeper and one of the most honoured players in the history of Czechoslovak football. He played all his career for Slavia Prague, during which time the club won the Czech league eight times and the Mitropa Cup once. He also became a member of the Czechoslovakia national team, where his first success as a young goalkeeper was helping Czechoslovakia to become runner-up in the Central European International Cup 1931–32 and later became captain during the World Cup finals of 1934 (where the Czechoslovakia team finished second) and 1938.

Plánička was a courageous player, to the extent that in Czechoslovakia's 1938 World Cup match against Brazil, he remained on the field despite having suffered a serious injury. This injury ended a career that saw him play a total of 1253 matches, in which he conceded only 1073 goals, an average of 0.86 goals per game. He was a goalkeeper of outstanding reflexes and shot-stopping abilities In 2003, he was cataloged as the greatest pre-war goalkeeper in Europe along with other notable keepers such as Ricardo Zamora and Gianpiero Combi.

Early life František Plánička was born on 2 July 1904 in the Prague district of Žižkov as the eldest of three children of carpenter Karel Plánička. However, he perfectly compensated for his small stature for a goalkeeper with cat-like agility and excellent observation, hence earning the nickname "Master of Robinsonades". Despite being of below-average height for a goalkeeper, at 1.74m (5 ft 8¾ in), he was an effective shot stopper, and his acrobatic style earned him the nickname The Cat of Prague.

In 1929, Plánička helped Slavia reach the final of the Mitropa Cup, which they lost to Hungary's Újpest 7–3 on aggregate. Three years later, Slavia reached the semifinals of the 1932 Mitropa Cup. In the first leg, they beat Juventus 4–0; in the second leg, Juventus had a 2–0 lead after which, according to RSSSF, Slavia resorted to obstruction and time wasting, which extended to the stands to the point that spectators started throwing stones on the pitch; one of the projectiles hit Plánička, causing him a serious injury. Slavia abandoned the pitch and the game stopped, and this led to their disqualification from the tournament.

Plánička also won six Bohemia cups (a domestic tournament) with Slavia, in 1926, 1927, 1928, 1930, 1932, and 1935. His only international title came in 1938, when his club finally won the Mitropa Cup. During his entire career, he played 1253 matches and let in 1073 goals, which means an average of 0.86 goals per game. but this claim is not in agreement with the majority of the other sources, which give a total of 1,235 matches, or 1,253 matches, which could well be a typo, but in details the total appears to be 1,253. Plánička was the national team captain 37 times, another record at the time.

1934 World Cup

Plánička helped Czechoslovakia qualify to the 1934 World Cup, and was the team's captain in the tournament. Despite not being able to keep a single clean-sheet throughout the tournament, he led his nation to victories over Romania in the first round, Switzerland in the quarterfinals, and Germany in the semifinals to advance to the final.

On 10 June 1934, Czechoslovakia played the final against hosts Italy, who also had one of the great goalkeepers of the time, Gianpiero Combi, as its captain. The Czechs took the lead in the 71st minute with a goal by Antonín Puč, but ten minutes later a shot by Raimundo Orsi beat Plánička for the equalizer, sending the match to extra time, where a goal by Angelo Schiavio gave the Italians the victory. The game was replayed two days later, and Czechoslovakia, without Plánička or forwards Nejedlý and Antonín Puč, lost 2–1 and was eliminated. He and Nejedlý ended up in the hospital due to broken bones and these injuries forced Plánička to retire from football. On 4 July 1970, Plánička played his last match in goal in a senior team of former internationals. At the time of his death, he was the last living member of the Czech squad at the 1934 World Cup and the last surviving player from either team to play in the final. Czech national team midfielder Karel Poborský attended his burial, postponing his contract signing with Manchester United, which was scheduled to happen the same day.

Honours Club SK Slavia Prague Czech league winner (8): 1925, 1928–29, 1929–30, 1930–31, 1932–33, 1933–34, 1934–35, 1936–37 Mitropa Cup winner: 1938

International Czechoslovakia FIFA World Cup Runner-up: 1934 Central European International Cup: Runner-up: 1927-30

Individual FIFA World Cup All-Star Team: 1934, 1938 FIFA World Cup Best Goalkeeper: 1938 UNESCO International Fair Play Award: 1985 Czech Fair Play Award: 1994