Alex Manninger

Alexander Manninger was born on 4 June 1977 in Salzburg, Austria. Before becoming a professional footballer he trained as a carpenter and gained joinery qualifications, which he put to use again after he retired. He joined the youth set-up of SV Austria Salzburg as a boy in 1984 and progressed through the club and the regional youth academy in Salzburg.

Manninger was promoted to Austria Salzburg's first-team squad for the 1995 to 1996 season, where under coach Otto Baric he was third-choice goalkeeper behind Otto Konrad and Herbert Ilsanker. To gain experience he was loaned to SK Vorwarts Steyr for the autumn of 1995, and his performances there, including against Grazer AK, earned him a move to Graz for 1996 to 1997. At 19 he starred for Grazer AK in a UEFA Cup tie against Inter Milan at the San Siro, a display that made him known in Austria as the hero of San Siro and opened the door to a career abroad.

Arsenal signed Manninger in the summer of 1997 for a reported 15 million schillings, making him the first Austrian to play in the Premier League. He made his debut on 14 October 1997 in a 4-1 League Cup win over Birmingham City. When David Seaman was injured in January 1998, Manninger played a run of 13 matches, starting with an FA Cup win at Middlesbrough. He kept six consecutive Premier League clean sheets, then a club record, ending with the 1-0 win at Old Trafford that swung the title race, and was named Premier League Player of the Month for March 1998. In the FA Cup quarter-final replay at West Ham he saved Eyal Berkovic's penalty in the shoot-out. Arsenal won the Double, and he was granted a league winner's medal by special dispensation. He remained Seaman's deputy until 2001, making 64 appearances for the club.

Manninger spent 2001 to 2002 on loan at Fiorentina, making 24 Serie A appearances. In July 2002 he signed a four-year deal with Espanyol, but the Barcelona club released him two months later without a first-team appearance. He joined Torino in January 2003, then Bologna, from where he was loaned to Siena for 2004 to 2005. After a season back at Red Bull Salzburg he returned to Siena permanently and made around 70 appearances over two seasons. In summer 2008 he moved briefly to Udinese before Juventus signed him in August 2008 as cover for Gianluigi Buffon. He made his Juventus debut on 21 September 2008 at Cagliari under Claudio Ranieri and, during Buffon's long injury, was named by La Gazzetta dello Sport as the best goalkeeper of the first half of the 2008 to 2009 season. He made about 40 appearances for Juventus and left after their 2011 to 2012 Serie A title.

After four months without a club, Manninger joined Bundesliga side FC Augsburg in November 2012 as cover for the injured Simon Jentzsch. He debuted against Bayern Munich in the DFB-Pokal on 18 December 2012 and in the Bundesliga at Fortuna Dusseldorf on 20 January 2013. On the last day of that season he saved a penalty in a 3-1 win over Greuther Furth that helped keep Augsburg in the top flight. He made 38 competitive appearances for Augsburg before leaving in 2016. In July 2016 he signed a short-term contract with Liverpool under Jurgen Klopp, playing in pre-season friendlies, and announced his retirement on 25 May 2017 after 22 years as a professional.

Manninger made his senior debut for Austria under Otto Baric in a 0-0 friendly against Sweden in August 1999. A serious shoulder injury in a World Cup qualifier against Northern Ireland on 13 October 2004 kept him out for months. He was second choice behind Jurgen Macho at Euro 2008, which Austria co-hosted, and became first choice again under Karel Bruckner. He retired from international football on 5 August 2009 with 33 caps.

Manninger was married to Emily, and the couple had two young sons, Alexander and Nicolas. After retiring he ran a home renovation business using his joinery training, was involved in furniture and property, and coached young goalkeepers near his home in Salzburg. He loved golf and fishing, a passion David Seaman said he had introduced him to during their Arsenal days. Former team-mates described him as reserved, gentle and fiercely professional.

On 16 April 2026, at about 8.20am local time, Manninger's car was hit by a Salzburger Lokalbahn railcar at an unguarded level crossing in Pabing, Nussdorf am Haunsberg, and dragged along the track. He was alone in the car and, according to local reports, on his way to go fishing. Paramedics freed him and used a defibrillator, but he could not be revived. The train driver was unhurt. Arsenal, Juventus, Liverpool, Fiorentina, FC Augsburg, Red Bull Salzburg and the Austrian Football Association all paid tribute, and Fiorentina held a minute's silence before their Conference League match against Crystal Palace that evening. Gianluigi Buffon and David Seaman wrote personal tributes. A public farewell was held at the Salzburg-Maxglan cemetery funeral hall on 28 April 2026, with wreaths from Juventus and Augsburg, and the burial took place privately. A minute's silence was also held before Austria's friendly against Tunisia in Vienna on 1 June 2026.

Former Austria goalkeeper Otto Konrad called Manninger probably the most successful Austrian goalkeeper of all time, having played for some of Europe's biggest clubs alongside Seaman and Buffon. He is remembered at Arsenal for his part in the 1998 Double, at Juventus for covering Buffon with distinction, and at Augsburg for helping the club survive in the Bundesliga.