Selecting an All-Time Bundesliga XI - But by Only Using One Player Per Club
By Ben Carter
Still twiddling your thumbs with nothing to do while we're all self-isolating?
Well, why not try to come up with your all-time Bundesliga XI, but there's a catch - you're only allowed to use one player from each club.
It sounds simple enough, doesn't it?
We're still banging our heads against the wall at 90min HQ over the player's we've left out here, so if you think you can come up with a better all-time Bundesliga XI then we'd love to see your teams on social media!
Drum roll please...
GK - Oliver Kahn (Karlsruher SC)
Yes, Oliver Kahn is most well-known for his time at Bayern Munich, but it was with hometown side Karlsruher SC where the German legend actually made a name for himself in the Bundesliga.
Kahn is one of just 11 players to make over 500 appearances in the top flight, sitting third on the all-time appearance chart behind Karl-Heinz Körbel (602) and Manfred Kaltz (581).
Sorry, Manuel Neuer. This one goes to Vol-Kahn-o.
CB - Jürgen Kohler (SV Waldhof Mannheim)
Rarely is a player remembered so fondly in two different countries, but Jürgen Kohler has achieved a hero status in both Germany and Italy.
The defender had spells at Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund, either side of a four-year stint at Juventus, where he lifted 11 major honours.
Just after his time at Waldhof Mannheim and Köln, Kohler was drafted into the Germany national team that lifted the World Cup in 1990.
CB - Franz Beckenbauer (Hamburger SV)
What can be written about Franz Beckenbauer that hasn't been said already?
The two-time Ballon d'Or winner basically invented his own position on the pitch and is unsurprisingly regarded as the best sweeper of all time, if not the best defender.
Beckenbauer was born and bred in Munich, but his last stint in Germany actually came on the other side of the country in Hamburg.
CB - Paul Breitner (Eintracht Braunschweig)
Okay, we're taking some creative licence with this one...
Paul Breitner wasn't a central defender in any shape or form, having his best days at left-back before moving into midfield to partner Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, but Der Afro was simply impossible to leave off our all-time Bundesliga XI.
Breitner was at his prime during Germany's golden era, going on to be snapped up by Real Madrid in the 1970s before returning to the Bundesliga to bring an outstanding 13-year career to an end.
RM - Andreas Möller (FC Schalke 04)
It's not too often you'll find someone who's played for bitter rivals Borussia Dortmund and Schalke, but even when you do, no one comes close to 'Andy' Möller.
The winger won everything that was on offer in club and international football, going on to represent his country at three World Cups and two European Championships, although Möller missed all three finals Germany reached in the 1990s.
CM - Matthias Sammer (VfB Stuttgart)
In 1996, Matthias Sammer pipped Ronaldo Nazário to the Ballon d'Or by one point - which remains the most closely contested instalment of the award.
Sammer is best known for the latter stage of his career at Borussia Dortmund, who he still works with to this day, but it was his time at VfB Stuttgart which convinced Italian giants Inter to sign the midfielder for £5.4m.
He came to prominence too late to be part of Germany's World Cup-winning team in 1990, but Sammer featured in two European Championship finals, scoring twice in 1996 as Die Mannschaft went on to lift the trophy.
CM - Lothar Matthäus (Borussia Mönchengladbach)
Lothar Matthäus has a highlight reel unlike anyone else. Made with equal parts aggression and elegance, the German midfielder is widely considered one of the greatest players of all-time - even (probably) by himself.
Matthäus joined a Borussia Mönchengladbach side who had just won five league titles at the end the Bundesliga's first full decade, but he went on to have prominent spells at Bayern Munich and Inter, eventually retiring at MetroStars (now New York Red Bulls) in the United States.
Germany have had more than their fair share of world-class midfielders over the years, but few would even be allowed to tie Matthäus' boot laces, let alone play alongside him.
LM - Hannes Löhr (1. FC Köln)
The late Johannes Löhr only sits 12th on the Bundesliga's all-time top-scoring charts, but the one-club man did all his work from out wide.
During the 1967/68 season, Löhr even scored more goals than the likes of Gerd Müller and Lothar Emmerich.
He made his breakthrough for FC Köln after they lifted the inaugural Bundesliga title, eventually winning one of his own in his last ever season as a professional footballer in 1978.
ST - Gerd Müller (Bayern Munich)
As far as penalty box strikers go, Gerd Müller was the best.
Der Bomber was one of the greatest goalscorers of all time, holding Germany's goalscoring record for almost 40 years - it was eventually surpassed by Miroslav Klose, although he needed more than twice as many games - as well as the World Cup record, which was surpassed by Ronaldo and Klose.
Müller didn't have the all-round ability of a Johan Cruyff, Eusébio or even some of his international teammates, but he did the simple things brilliantly.
He still holds the record as the Bundesliga's all-time top goalscorer - his tally of 365 is some 97 goals in front of the second-highest goalscorer.
ST - Robert Lewandowski (Borussia Dortmund)
Contrary to what this list might suggest, the Bundesliga actually has a rich and illustrious history when it comes to foreign players.
It just so happens that none of them are quite on par with Robert Lewandowski.
In the 2019/20 season alone, Lewandowski has overtaken German legends Jupp Heynckes and Manfred Burgsmüller to become the Bundesliga's third top scorer of all time, scoring 227 goals in just 313 appearances for Borussia Dortmund and Bayern Munich.
He's a player who might not be truly appreciated until after he's retired, but Lewandowski will undoubtedly go down as one of the greatest to ever play the game.
ST - Klaus Fischer (TSV 1860 Munich)
Even for fans outside Germany, Müller and Lewandowski are names which everyone knows.
The same can't be said for Klaus Fischer.
The Germany striker never played for one of the Bundesliga serial winners and is arguably the best player ever to never win a league title, but Fischer was still able to show off his goalscoring prowess throughout the 1970s and 80s.
Fischer had an incredibly long career given what a typical footballer's lifestyle was like at the time, eventually hanging up his boots as the league's sixth-most capped player and second-highest goalscorer in history.