Franz Beckenbauer
Franz Beckenbauer
Franz Anton Beckenbaueris a German former professional footballer and manager. Early in his playing career he was nicknamed Der Kaiserbecause of his elegant style, dominance and leadership on the field, and also as his first name "Franz" is reminiscent of the Austrian emperors. He is widely regarded to be one of the greatest players in the history of the sport. A versatile player who started out as a midfielder, Beckenbauer made his name as a central defender. He is often...
NationalityGerman
ProfessionSoccer Player
Date of Birth11 September 1945
CityMunich, Germany
CountryGermany
It would make me a lot happier if I could meet up again next year with as many friends as possible from all over the world who I've met during my career. That's where the great opportunity lies, for me personally, in our role as World Cup host.
We are the last remaining country to allow ourselves two breaks in the season. You just have to look at England, Italy and Spain, they play right through the season. We on the other hand take six weeks off in the winter until the end of January, and that is a luxury.
The one who’s really, really impressed me is Benedikt Höwedes because he’s playing out of position. He’s never played at left back before in his life but he’s having a first-rate World Cup. So, the most astonishing player for me is Höwedes.
It's quite possible that Beckham suffers from a mental block at big tournaments
George Best was one of the most talented players of all time and probably the best footballer who never made it to a major world final.
The World Cup tournament overall and, naturally, the new stadiums at its heart, are the ideal platform to portray Germany as a positive and exceptional location, and above all of course, as a highly capable economic location.
He has been named as the heir apparent of the great Argentine hero, Diego Maradona, by journalists, players, and Maradona himself, alike. I'd personally put him in a drawer of my bedside table.
Penalty shooting is always an uncertain affair because there is a lot of luck involved.
Possession means nothing when the opponent takes its chances
Messi is a genius. He has everything. When I watch him, I see a player who is very, very, skilful, very clever and his left foot is like Diego Maradona's.
The trouble for today's footballers is they have too many distractions. We used to get our old players coming to watch training with football magazines in their hands. Now, more often than not, they are checking the share prices.
As someone who played a team sport, I feel a bit uncomfortable being ranked as an individual so high
We should not compare humans to God, but Messi is a godly player.
There's only one possibility: win, draw or loose.