[4] He won eight full international caps for the Germany national team between the 1999 Confederations Cup and his death in 2009, and was part of the squad which finished as runners-up in Euro 2008.

He was given the opportunity after the club suffered two consecutive fiascos against Duisburg and Bochum, prompting coach Eberhard Vogel to drop the former first-choice goalkeeper Mario Neumann for the youngster Enke.

[7]: 54  The club plummeted to the foot of the league where they remained from October until their eventual relegation (Rainer Bonhof was manager from November onward).

Despite these problems, Enke's performances gained him the admiration of Encarnados (reds) fans, as well as interest from clubs like Arsenal,[11] Atlético Madrid[12] and Manchester United chasing him.

[13] After contract talks with Benfica stalled, Enke took up the offer of Spanish giants Barcelona and moved on a free transfer in June 2002 on a three-year deal.

His debut set the mark, as the club was humiliatingly knocked out of the Spanish Cup by third flight Novelda CF at the first hurdle on 11 September 2002 and was criticised by teammate Frank de Boer in public for his part in their exit.

He did manage to sample some European action during his spell though as he made two UEFA Champions League appearances, against Club Brugge and Galatasaray in the group stage.

[citation needed] After a four-month spell back at Barcelona, but outside the first team squad, Enke dropped down to the Spanish Segunda División when he was loaned to CD Tenerife in January 2004 for the remainder of the season.

His career enjoyed its greatest success and stability, as he became firmly established as the club's first choice and was voted the best goalkeeper in the league by his fellow professionals in kicker magazine.

His performances there convinced former national team coach Erich Ribbeck to include him in the squad for the 1999 Confederations Cup, although he did not feature in any games.

He succeeded in breaking into the squad shortly after, under new coach Joachim Löw, in being chosen for a friendly against Georgia, and, after first choice Jens Lehmann caught the flu, again against Cyprus.

With the international retirement of previous number one Jens Lehmann at Euro 2008, Enke was poised to make the position his own and played in several World Cup 2010 qualifiers.

[23] Prior to his death, Enke was expected to be Germany's number one goalkeeper at the 2010 World Cup, ahead of Manuel Neuer.

[32] On the night of 10 November 2009, at the age of 32, Enke died by rail suicide, standing in front of a regional express train at a level crossing in Eilvese, Neustadt am Rübenberge.

[37] Many fans immediately flocked to Hannover 96's AWD-Arena home to lay flowers and light candles and sign the book of condolences upon news breaking.

[41] As a further mark of respect for their former team mate, the players of Hannover 96 displayed the number one in a circle on the breast of their jerseys, as approved by the DFL as a subtle tribute, for the rest of the 2009–10 Bundesliga season.

[43] Over the months after Enke's death, the number of railway suicides increased dramatically,[44] not only in Germany but, later research showed, several other nearby countries.

It was noted that coverage of Enke's suicide had many elements that researchers believe may encourage others to move forward with planned suicides: detailed descriptions of how he did it, down to the exact location, images of grieving fans leaving memorials at the stadium, and speculation as to whether his continuing despondence over his daughter's death or a football setback motivated him.

[44][46][47] Ronald Reng's biography A Life Too Short: The Tragedy of Robert Enke (2011) won the William Hill Sports Book of the Year in 2011.