If Oldřich Nejedlý had delivered the post
locate the quickest route to goal. With
he won them over with his performances
with the same speed that he displayed
visions of letters and cards now firmly in
and silenced his critics, who naturally had
when skinning opponents on the football
the back of his mind, his focus was on
nothing but praise for a striker whose
pitch, the good citizens of Prague would
dispatching the ball into the back of the
goals were instrumental in securing four
have received their mail almost as soon
net as elegantly and with as little bodily
league titles for Sparta.
as it left the sorting office. Whether it
contact as possible. It was a style of play
was letters for his round, goals for his
that he perfected down the years.
Nejedlý was also a man who avoided
club Sparta Prague or good cheer for his
confrontation at all costs, both on and
national team, Nejedlý certainly delivered.
off the pitch. Being prone to injury, tackling was not his thing: legend has it
Of course, this being the 1930s, it wasn’t always positive news that he distributed from his bulging sack every morning to the houses and flats of the Czechoslovakian
Nejedlý used his darting runs hither and thither to evade defenders’ lunges.
that he had osteoporosis, which would account for his avoidance of robust challenges. However, Nejedlý made a virtue out of necessity. Standing just
capital. At the end of the working day
1.74 metres (5 ft 8 ins) tall and weighing
though, he would swap his sack for
a mere 74 kilos (11 stone 9 lbs), Nejedlý
a sports bag and the postie’s furrowed
used his darting runs hither and thither to
brow would quickly be replaced by the
It wasn’t so straightforward at the start,
evade defenders’ lunges, the ball seem-
wide-eyed grin of a fanatical footballer.
however. Hailing from the village of
ingly glued to his feet.
DODGING DEFENDERS FOR FUN
team-mates on account of his provincial
ACE 1934 WORLD CUP MARKSMAN
Instead of finding the right address,
origins and was on the brink of quitting
Nejedlý’s contact-shunning approach
Nejedlý’s mission on the pitch was to
the national team in 1931. Nevertheless,
actually paid dividends throughout his
ullstein / Getty Images
Žebrák, he was initially snubbed by his
Hat-trick hero Nejedlý (left) scores his third goal to secure a 3-1 win for Czechoslovakia in the 1934 World Cup semi-final against Germany. FIFA 1904 /
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