LOTHAR MATTHAUS

Not only is Fourfourtwo’s columnist a legend himself, but he also played against the very best. He identifies some of the greatest players of our lifetime, featuring Hristo Stoichkov, Ronaldinho and his old pal Gazza

When Fourfourtwo magazine was launched in 1994, there were four players I considered the best in the world: Roberto Baggio, Romario, Bebeto and Hristo Stoichkov.

Romario reminded me of Gerd Muller – he wasn’t tall or a great header of the ball, but he was a penalty-box player. Like Muller, he could turn in the box. You didn’t know whether he’d turn left or right. He was short but so strong – you thought that maybe he was overweight, but he wasn’t. His body shape was important for his game.

Stoichkov wasn’t a typical player either – not always very elegant like Baggio, but defenders weren’t used to playing against a guy like him. Again, he was just so physically strong and he wasn’t afraid to take you on, one on one. He was one of the greatest players around, and not just because of the free-kick he scored for Bulgaria against my Germany team at the World Cup.

He was great off the field, too – a very funny guy who became a colleague not only to his team-mates, but also to those who played against him. I faced him when he was at Barcelona and we developed a good friendship. We still meet today sometimes – he lives in Miami, and when I’m over in the States or we’re at a UEFA or FIFA event, we’re always happy to see each other.

After 1994, I played against other great players too, like Zinedine Zidane in the 1996 UEFA Cup Final when he was still at Bordeaux. He was on the way to becoming a big star, and he’s really one of the legends of the game now. He had everything – movement, technique, an excellent passing game, and he scored goals as well.

I also played against Ronaldinho, in the Confederations Cup in Mexico in 1999. He was only 19, and I was 38 – old enough to be his father! We lost 4-0 that day, and he did things with the ball that I’d never seen before. His ball control was fantastic.

I saw a picture from that game recently: he was stood behind me and you’d think he was a kid from the streets, he looked so young. He was skinny, but it was really difficult to get the ball off him because he’d move right, then go left again so quickly.

I played against many good English players, too. David Beckham made the difference for Manchester United against Bayern Munich in the 1999 Champions League Final with his crosses for the two goals. He maybe wasn’t one of the greatest players like Zidane or Ronaldinho, and never won the Ballon d’or. He was more of a story in football, but he made good long passes, corners and free-kicks – that was David Beckham.

I really liked playing against Paul Gascoigne. He was like me, always giving his best for his team, and he was aggressive as well – sometimes without control!

But he wasn’t someone who’d try to do something behind the back of the referee. He did things face-to-face, he was always correct with you. I played against him in charity games too, and he was always the man who made the atmosphere in the restaurant and the party afterwards – he motivated us to drink a little bit more than normal! I like Paul a lot.

I played alongside many excellent players, too. Matthias Sammer was a great footballer and Stefan Effenberg was the same. I played with Sammer at the 1994 World Cup, then he won the Ballon d’or in 1996 after helping Germany win the Euros. Jurgen Klinsmann was the captain of that side, but the face of the team was Sammer. He was the leader, the man who set the tempo.

Oliver Kahn was the best goalkeeper in the world for a period, and the most crazy keeper I ever saw. He was eating the grass, eating the ball, eating the players from the other team – he was full of fire in every situation!

In the modern era, Miroslav Klose, Philipp Lahm and Manuel Neuer have been Germany’s best players. Right now, it’s Toni Kroos – just look at the titles he’s won, although we have talented young players coming through like Leroy Sané as well.

Football has definitely changed since 1994. At the beginning of my career, the fast players were only on the wings – in the centre, players were more technical. Now, you need speed in every position. Without that, you cannot get results in 2019.

“I LIKED PLAYING AGAINST GASCOIGNE. HE COULD BE AGGRESSIVE, SOMETIMES WITHOUT CONTROL, BUT HE’D NEVER DO SOMETHING BEHIND THE REFEREE’S BACK”