Ulrich Borowka - Iron Foot: the Axe played 239 times in the Werder shirt. From 1987 to 1995 the tackle-happy and hard-shooting defender formed the wall in front of Bremen's goal, giving opponents little room and using every means available. Back in his Gladbach days he had greeted Olaf Thon with the words, I'll break both your legs right now.
The point was clear even if he never made good on the threat. With Werder he became German champion in 1988 and 1993 and won the DFB Cup in 1991 and 1994. His career peaked with the Cup Winners' Cup in Lisbon in 1992, by which time he was already a Germany international. After retirement came the fall: alcoholism, violence, rehab, and finally a book in which he admitted he had already been an alcoholic while still an active player.
Brave, but his past kept catching up with him. Even twice the DFB reportedly struck him from lists for honoring former cup heroes, which he publicly complained about in late 2019.