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Germany are one of the most successful footballing nations of all time. They are also the most consistent one and have performed exceptionally well in the major tournaments over the decades. They have won the FIFA World Cup 4 times and finished runners-up on 4 other occasions. They have also won the European Championship 3 times and finished runners-up on 3 other occasions. This incredible record makes Germany unrivalled in terms of continual success in football.
German football is known for its emphasis on team game and cohesion. Germany prefer to perform as a team and their enviable efficiency is not usually dependent on one or two individuals.
Still, over the years, they have produced some exceptional players who have become legends of the game over the course of time. Apart from winning tournaments and titles for their respective teams, those players have been able to impress millions of fans worldwide with their brilliant performances. We would like to discuss 5 such players in this article:
#5 Sepp Maier
The legendary German goalkeeper Sepp Maier was a jovial person off the field but a superb performer under the bar for Bayern Munich and the German national team. He appeared in 599 matches for Bayern after having graduated from the youth ranks of the club. He was the custodian of that brilliant Bayern side of the 1970s which conquered Europe and the world. Maier won 4 Bundesliga titles, 3 European Cups and 1 Cup Winners’ Cup for Bayern in his illustrious career.
Maier performed exceptionally well for the national side too. He won the World Cup with West Germany in 1974 and the European Championship in 1972. He was part of 4 World cup squads and won 95 caps for West Germany in a much-decorated career. Maier was a brilliant shot-stopper and became famous for his long kicks. He also had a calming influence on the defenders with his cool demeanour.
Maier is one of the most successful footballers of all time as he succeeded in winning the FIFA World Cup, European Championship and the European Cup. He remains the greatest goal-keeper Germany has produced.
#4 Karl-Heinz Rummenigge
Rummenigge was a versatile forward who could play in the wings as well as at the centre of the pitch. He was one of the finest players in the world during the late 1970s and early 1980s. Rummenigge started his career at Bayern and scored 217 goals in 422 matches for them in 9 seasons. He also won 2 European Cups and 2 Bundesliga titles with Bayern. Then, he made a move to Italy and spent 3 seasons with Inter Milan. He scored 42 goals in 107 matches with the Italian giants.
Rummenigge was also very successful with the German national team and scored 45 goals in 95 matches for them. He also won the European Championship in 1980 and finished runner-up in 1982 and 1986 with the national team. He won the Silver Boot by scoring 5 goals in the 1982 World Cup. He also won the prestigious Ballon d'Or in 1980.
Rummenigge could not win the World Cup but won 2 successive runner-up medals in the tournament. He still continues to be a part of Bayern Munich's top management and remains one of the most influential personalities in German football.
#3 Lothar Matthaus
Lothar Matthaus is one of the most successful footballers of all time. He remains a multiple record holder for his national side. He holds the record of participating in 5 world cups jointly with Antonio Carvajal, the Mexican goalkeeper. He has also played in 25 World Cup matches, the highest by any player in the history of the tournament. Matthaus finished runner-up in the 1986 World Cup with the West German team.
He, however, made amends in 1990 by lifting the trophy as the West German captain. He also played in the 1998 World Cup as a 37-year old veteran and held another record of being the oldest German player to appear in a World Cup match. He also won the European Championship with the German National team in 1980 and earned a record 150 international caps for his country.
Matthaus started his career with Borussia Monchengladbach and spent 5 seasons with the club before moving to Bayern Munich. He spent 4 seasons at Bayern and won the UEFA Cup with them. Matthaus then joined Inter Milan and won the Serie A and UEFA cup with the Italian club.
He joined Bayern Munich again in the early 1990s and spent 8 more seasons with the club until his retirement at the age of 39. In all, Matthaus amassed 782 caps in his club career and scored 204 goals. He also won 7 Bundesliga titles, 1 Serie A and 2 UEFA cups.
The versatile Matthaus was comfortable playing both as a defensive midfielder and an attacking one. He won the prestigious Ballon d'Or in 1990 because of his incredible performance during the 1989-90 season.
#2 Gerd Muller
Gerd Muller is the greatest goal-scorer in the history of football. Muller’s incredible tally of 68 goals in only 62 matches for West Germany is a testimony to his outstanding ability as a striker. He was also a very prolific scorer for his club Bayern Munich and remains the highest scorer in the history of Bundesliga with 615 goals in 636 matches.
Gerd Muller played in only 2 World Cups but scored an incredible 14 goals which make him the 3rd highest goal scorer in the history of the tournament. Quite possibly the greatest goal-scorer the world has seen, Muller was clinical inside the opposition penalty box. He scored 10 goals in the 1970 World Cup including 2 hat-tricks and won the prestigious Golden Boot, but West Germany lost to Italy in that unforgettable semi-final to bow out of the tournament.
However, Muller made up for that reversal in 1974 by helping his country win the World Cup as hosts. He scored 4 goals in the tournament including the vital equaliser against Holland in the final. Franz Beckenbauer, the German captain, hailed Muller as the most important member of the side. Muller also won 4 Bundesliga titles, 3 European Cups and 1 European Cup Winners' Cup for Bayern in the 13 seasons he spent with the club. Muller was rightly called " Der Bomber" or " The Bomber" because of his clinical approach as a striker.
#1 Franz Beckenbauer
Franz Beckenbauer is popularly known as “Der Kaiser” meaning the “the Emperor” in German and the epithet could not have been bestowed on a more deserving man. Beckenbauer’s regal looks, his elegant distribution, clean tackling and leadership on the pitch made him a football royalty.
Arguably the greatest defender to have played the game, Beckenbauer could have played as a midfielder too. He used to play as a sweeper or “libero” and popularised the playing position with his performances. He used to sweep the ball out of his own penalty box after a fellow defender had tackled it and then create moves by passing the ball to the advancing midfielders.
Beckenbauer made his mark in the 1966 World Cup as a 21-year-old, playing for the then West Germany. West Germany lost to England 2-4 in the final under controversial circumstances. In the 1970 World Cup, he battled with a broken arm in an unforgettable semifinal match against Italy which West Germany went on to lose 3-4.
However, he was 3rd time lucky as West Germany went on to lift the 1974 World Cup as hosts. They beat a very formidable Dutch side 2-1 in the final in Munich. Beckenbauer was the captain of that side. Before the World Cup glory, he had led West Germany to their triumph in the Euro 1972.
Beckenbauer played for German giants Bayern Munich for a major part of his career. In 13 years with Bayern, he won 3 consecutive European Cups and 4 Bundesliga titles. He also won 2 Ballon d'Or trophies.
After making more than 400 appearances for Bayern and attaining more than 100 caps for the West German national team, Beckenbauer retired from international football and went to the United States to play for New York Cosmos in an endeavour to popularize and promote the game there.
He came back to West Germany three years later, joined Hamburger SV and won a Bundesliga with them. Later, Beckenbauer went on to win the World Cup as the manager of the West German national team in 1990.
“Der Kaiser” also became the president of Bayern Munich and continues to be a patron of the club. He is the embodiment of the efficiency and success that German football is so famous for.
