Description RENÉ ADLER (born 15 January 1985 in Leipzig) is a German footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Bayer Leverkusen and the German national team. CLUB CAREER Adler has been a club captain at all levels of competition and at the German Under-19 championships he was one of the star players of the tournament, attracting attention from clubs such as Feyenoord, Arsenal and Chelsea. Due to his good performances, Rudi Völler nominated Adler to his first senior appearance against Werder Bremen. He made his Bundesliga debut in dramatic fashion on 25 February 2007 against league leaders Schalke 04. With starting goalkeeper Butt serving a suspension, Adler saved ten shots on goal, repelling Schalke's repeated attacks. A breakaway goal by Stefan Kießling in the 85th minute gave Leverkusen a 1-0 upset victory. Leverkusen manager Michael Skibbe praised Adler's "world-class saves". His strengths are his quick reactions. He stopped Schalke's record of 13 games unbeaten, Stuttgart's record of five games unbeaten and Hamburg's four-game winning spree with a saved penalty kick against Rafael van der Vaart. INTERNATIONAL CAREER Adler has made four appearances for the German U-21 team under the leadership of Dieter Eilts. He was part of the German team that finished as runners-up in Euro 2008. He made his debut for Germany on 11 October 2008 in a FIFA World Cup 2010 qualifier against Russia. He had his latest appearance in a match against Russia.
