Rudi Assauer: Rudolf “Rudi” Assauer played 307 Bundesliga matches between 1964 and 1976 for Borussia Dortmund and Werder Bremen – not Schalke. After unsuccessful attempts as a coach, he became manager at Werder and Oldenburg before finally arriving at Schalke, where he worked in two separate spells. His second spell marked a high point in club history.
It began on 1 April 1993, and brought the 1997 UEFA Cup and the DFB-Pokal titles of 2001 and 2002. On 17 May 2006, Assauer stepped down as manager after the supervisory board withdrew its confidence. He later revealed in his autobiography that he was suffering from Alzheimer’s disease. He died from its effects on 6 February 2019.