LOTHAR MATTHAUS

LOTHAR MATTHAUS

2. LOTHAR MATTHAUS West Germany

West Germany in 1990 were an awesome side, a blend of power and class, and at their heart stood Matthaus, their captain but also their embodiment, a indefatigable driving force who could also think and pass – and, as Yugoslavia discovered, shoot.
It may be that the World Cup has never seen a more complete series of performances from any player than those Matthaus produced in 1990.
In terms of how they are remembered, West Germany are unfortunate that they produced their best first. Yugoslavia were an excellent team, but West Germany destroyed them their first group game, winning 4-1.
Matthaus not merely negated Dragan Stojkovic, but also scored twice, first with a sharp turn and low arcing left-foot shot into the corner from just outside the box, and then with his right foot from slightly further out having surged from inside his own half.
He added another long-rage effort against the UAE, and then got the winner from the penalty spot against Czechoslovakia in the quarter-final.
Needless to say, he made no mistake in the shoot-out against England in the semi and, suffering an ankle injury, had the good sense to leave the converting of the winning penalty in the final to Andreas Brehme.