MATTHIAS SAMMER
Matthias Sammer (German pronunciation: [maˈtiːas ˈzamɐ]; born 5 September 1967) is a retired German footballer and coach who last worked as sporting director of Bayern Munich. He played as a defensive midfielder, and later in his career as a sweeper.
Sammer started his career at Dynamo Dresden when he joined the club's youth team as a nine-year-old in 1976. After being deployed as a striker and then a left winger, he eventually found his place in central midfield during the 1987–88 season. n the 1988–89 season, Sammer was part of the Dynamo Dresden team which won the East German championship. The same season the club also reached the semi-final of the UEFA Cup where they were knocked out by West German club VfB Stuttgart. The following year Dynamo won the league and cup double, defending the DDR-Oberliga title and also winning the 1990 FDGB-Pokal. In the summer of 1990, Sammer joined VfB Stuttgart of the Bundesliga. Sammer scored 11 times in his debut season as Stuttgart finished sixth in the Bundesliga. The following year Sammer scored nine goals, helping Stuttgart to become the first champions of the reunified Germany. After two seasons at Stuttgart, Sammer joined Italian club Internazionale for the 1992–93 Serie A season. Though he was a success on the pitch, Sammer failed to adapt to the Italian lifestyle and returned to Germany in January 1993. In the winter break of the 1992–93 season, Sammer signed for Borussia Dortmund. He made 17 Bundesliga appearances in the second half of the season, scoring ten times. The following season, Sammer was moved from midfield into the libero position by Dortmund coach Ottmar Hitzfeld. This move proved to be successful as Dortmund won back-to-back Bundesliga titles in 1994–95 and 1995–96, two DFB-Supercups, followed by the 1996–97 UEFA Champions League, with Sammer lifting the European Cup as captain after beating Juventus 3–1 in the final at Munich's Olympiastadion. Soon after winning the Champions League, Sammer's career was cut short by injury.
In November 1986, Sammer made his debut for the full East Germany national football team in a UEFA Euro 1988 qualifier against France at Zentralstadion in Leipzig. After the reunification of Germany, he eventually debuted at a major tournament at Euro 1992, where the team was beaten in the final by Denmark. He was also selected for the 1994 FIFA World Cup, as Germany was surprisingly knocked out by the underdog Bulgaria at the quarter final stage. In UEFA Euro 1996, Sammer played in the libero role he had been converted to at Borussia Dortmund. He scored the opening goal in Germany's second group match against Russia and the winning goal against Croatia in the quarter-final. After Germany defeated the Czech Republic in the final, Sammer was named Player of the Tournament and went on to be the first defender since Franz Beckenbauer to win the Ballon D'or. He retired from the national team a year later.