Facts about Lothar Matthaus, the midfield engine

, a German football director and retired professional, was born on March 21, 1961, in Erlangen. After leading

to supremacy in the 1990 FIFA World Cup, he was voted European Footballer of the Year and World Soccer Player of the Year.

He was also voted as FIFA World Player of the Year for the first time a year back, and he is the only German to do so. He participated in five FIFA World Cups (1982, 1986, 1990, 1994, and 1998), more than every other player on the pitch in professional soccer, and he holds the world record for most World Cup games played by a single player (25 games).

He has earned UEFA Euro 1980 and participated in the UEFA European Football Tournaments in 1984, 1988, and 2000. He was named German Player of the Year for the second time in 1999, at the age of 38, after winning the title in 1990.

The first fact is about Lothar Matthaus’ playing style as the retired Germany champion had everything, including right-footed goals, left-footed goals, and direct free-kick goals, as well as a broad range of passing and the potential to float past defenders.

He was the great Diego Maradona's "absolute opponent," and he enjoyed having remarkable talent for constantly changing and developing his playing.

Facts about Lothar Matthaus:

Lothar Matthaus is recognized as one of the finest box-to-box midfield players, strong playmakers, and most astute breakers in the sport's history.

Lothar Matthaus early life

Lothar Herbert Matthaus was born in Erlangen, West Germany, on March 21, 1961, to Heinz and Katharina Matthaus.

Lothar Matthaus parents

 precise profession is unspecified. Now, Lothar Matthaus’ age is 60 years old.

The fact about

Lothar Matthaus’ childhood

is that He demonstrated an initial interest in the sport, as did most professional football players who began playing for their country, and he soon started to play for FC Herzogenaurach. And though it was a small club, it was here that he learned the complexities of soccer.

He started studying as an interior designer after finishing his education, which he accomplished successfully while focusing a considerable portion of his time on soccer.

The growing man's career was quickly apparent to be on the playing field, not really in the design and decor business. In 1979, he entered into a contract with German top division team Borussia Monchengladbach at the age of eighteen and began his professional soccer journey.

Two years previous to his arrival, the team had secured the German league title and offered an outstanding chance.

Lothar Matthaus personal life

An important

fact about Lothar Matthaus

is that he married five times and has 4 children. Silvia gave birth to two daughters Alisa (born 1986) and Viola (born 1992) in his first relationship, which continued from 1981 to 1992. (born 1988).

He married the Swiss model and TV host Lolita Morena in 1994, and they have a son named Loris (born 1992). In 1999, the couple got divorced.

He dated Marijana Kosti, a 31-year-old Serbian fashionista, while training FK Partizan in Belgrade, and they married on November 27, 2003. It was also her third marriage. The two had split up by late 2007, and she had filed for divorce.

Their divorce was finalized in late January 2009, after a year-long legal battle over wealth separation in Salzburg, Austria (their previous residence). Matthäus, 47, married Kristina Liliana Chudinova, a 21-year-old Ukrainian model, in December 2008. The event took place in Las Vegas.

They had met a year before at the Munich Oktoberfest tasting event. The couple lived in Tel Aviv, Israel, where Liliana studies journalism at a major college; but, by early 2010, they had separated and were living separately.

The noticeable fact about Lothar Matthaus current life is that he and his wife Anastasia Klimko reside in Budapest, Hungary, with their son Milan (born April 2014).

Matthäus appears in the FIFA series of games by Electronic Arts; he had been on the cover of the Dutch version of FIFA 2001, and he also appears in FIFA 14, FIFA 15, FIFA 16, and FIFA 17 Ultimate Team Legends.

Matthäus was also featured prominently in EA's Euro 2000 video game's opening video sequence, with Paul Oakenfold converting the actual Matthäus into an immersive digital player that he manages in the game with his turntables.

Lothar Matthaus professional career

Lothar Matthaus began his soccer career with a local youth club, FC Herzogenaurach, before moving to

, one of the top teams in Europe at the time.

In fact, Matthaus started off his professional career for the German side Borussia Monchengladbach and emerged as one of the most promising young players in the country. Matthaus was first called up to the West German national squad in 1980, and was part of the winning squad during the UEFA European Championships in 1980 in Italy.

Matthäus subsequently embarked on a coaching career. However, he had limited success, and his tenures with a series of clubs were brief.

Lothar Matthaus club career

Matthäus earned his pro debut for Borussia Mönchengladbach in 1979, and just a year after, he made his international debut. He transferred to

in 1984 in the first of two trips with the iconic German

squad (1984–88, 1992–2000).

He claimed five German league titles alongside Bayern (1985, 1987, 1994, 1997, and 1999), as well as the UEFA Cup in 1996, the West German and German trophies in 1986, and the UEFA Cup in 1998.

Through 1988 to 1992, he was a member of Inter Milan, where he won the Italian division and the UEFA Cup.

Borussia Mönchengladbach

Matthäus traveled over 450 kilometers northwest to the squad he had followed as a teenager, owing to family ties, at the end of his developmental years with Bavarian club Herzogenaurach – who embodied a town of just over 20,000 inhabitants.

A youth from Erlangen wouldn't have wished for a better start in the top league than with Borussia Mönchengladbach in 1979.

Gladbach had claimed five German league trophies, two UEFA Cups, and finished second in the European Cup in the past decade, thanks to key players like Günter Netzer and Jupp Heynckes. Gladbach's battle with Bayern Munich in the 1970s was legendary, but their daring central defender quickly etched his signature into the annals of football history.

The 18-year-old soon established himself at the center of the Foals' midfield under the tutelage of Heynckes, who had recently taken over as Gladbach boss following his retirement.

Over his first season, he earned 41 starts and scored six goals, one of which came versus Eintracht Frankfurt in the first leg of the 1979/80 UEFA Cup final. Matthäus played all games, however the Eagles took the second leg 1-0 on away goals to take the battle.

The

fact about Lothar Matthaus

’ Gladbach career is that he remained a central part for Gladbach for the next four years, with the squad only finishing higher than seventh until the 1983/84 season, where they were the third of three competitors at the top that finished on the same level.

The central midfielder scored 11 league goals in a season in which Gladbach finished second on goal difference, but not until he was benched for a game against Mannheim late in the season.

Bayern Munich

Matthäus eventually won his first cup since returning to Bavaria that season. In his first year at Bayern, he scored 16 goals in 33 league matches as the club won the title, and he scored in double figures in both of the next two seasons as his new squad won a hat-trick of Bundesliga competitions.

Matthäus also captained Bayern in the 1987 European Cup final in Vienna versus

, in which they led for most of the game but were defeated by two late goals. In that year, West Germany awarded him the captaincy for the first time.

Inter

When he and Bayern Munich colleague Andreas Brehme entered

in 1988, they would have even more prosperity. Matthäus earned Serie A in 1989 under Giovanni Trapattoni, who later went on to manage Bayern Munich. He also appeared in a two-legged UEFA Cup final in 1991.

The Germans netted in the first leg, just as they did in 1980. Unlike eleven years ago, his team held on in the return leg to defeat

in the end.

The important

fact about Lothar Matthaus

international career is that the two-time German Player of the Year celebrated his grandest glory in between those two titles at Inter. Matthäus captained West Germany at the 1990 World Cup, scoring three goals in the group phase just months before independence.

Back to Bayern Munich

In 1992, he returned to Bayern Munich, where he claimed four German league cups, two DFB-Pokals, one UEFA Cup, and got to the final of the European Cup for the second time in 1999. Matthäus' only significant club football honor, for matches in which he participated, was the UEFA Champions League.

The fact about Lothar Matthaus’ Champions League final with Bayern is that He notably came within two minutes of winning the Champions League in 1999, only to see his dreams crushed when Manchester United netted two last-minute goals in the final when he was substituted in the 80th minute of the game when the team was only leading 1–0.

Matthäus quickly pulled his runners-up medal after receiving it as the two teams went to claim their rewards. It was his second final defeat in similar conditions; in the 1987 match, Bayern had led 1–0 for the majority of the game before two late goals won FC Porto the victory.

Bayern would win the Champions League in 2000–01 and the Intercontinental Trophy during in the year after Matthäus quit. His final official match for Bayern was a Champions League game versus Real Madrid in Munich on March 8, 2000, that Bayern won 4–1.

New York MetroStars

The retiring midfield star transferred from German champion club to the American MetroStars of Professional Soccer in New York City during the 1999–2000 campaign. Through March to October 2000, he appeared in the United States before retiring from pro sports.

He flew to St.Tropez after his time with the MetroStars because he was expected to be rehabilitating his injury. He admitted in 2011 that going to New York was a career mistake.

Lothar Matthaus international career

Matthäus initially joined the West German senior squad in 1980, and was a member of the champion team at UEFA Euro 1980 in Italy. He also appeared in two matches at the 1982 FIFA World Cup in Spain, as a replacement in group stage games versus Chile and the notorious Disgrace of

match versus

.

West Germany made it to the final, but were defeated 3–1 by Italy at the Santiago Bernabeu Arena in Madrid. He was also a permanent member of the national team for the 1986 World Cup in Mexico, where he scored the game-winning goal versus

in the round of 16.

The fact about Lothar Matthaus’ time in that tournament is that Despite the fact that he had tremendous ball playing abilities, he was appointed by manager Franz Beckenbauer to tag Argentina's Diego Maradona in the central at the Azteca Stadium in Mexico City. Despite Matthäus' efforts to prevent Maradona from scoring any goals, West Germany was defeated 3–2 in the World Cup final for the second time in a row.

Matthäus commanded the squad at UEFA Euro 1988 in West Germany, scoring a goal in the semi-final against the Netherlands (the defending champions) to give his team a 1–0 advantage. However, Ronald Koeman tied the result with a penalty, and Marco van Basten slid in the deciding goal in the final seconds.

His rapid progress in Italy's major football division,

, served as a springboard for the national football team, which went on to win the 1990 FIFA World Cup in Italy. Six members of West Germany's national team played at a high level there, and Matthäus and the German team played the majority of their World Cup games at Inter's San Siro stadium.

West Germany was the contest's strongest team and one of the first to go for an offensive playing style, as opposed to the defensive style of play used by prior German teams. Matthäus was the captain of his team and netted four goals, two of which came against Yugoslavia.

West Germany advanced to their third straight final, a replay of Maradona's Argentina, and this time Matthäus and his squad won 1–0 at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome, thanks to Brehme's 85th-minute penalty conversion.

Matthäus had the distinction of lifting the last World Cup as captain just before Germany reunified in 1990. When the East Germans entered, the (West) German squad and state remained unchanged. Later, Matthäus said that competing in the World Cup in Italy was "like playing at home."

He was hospitalized and therefore unable to compete in UEFA Euro 1992 in Sweden, despite the fact that a reunified Germany reached the finale but lost 2–0 to

.

He commanded the squad at the 1994 FIFA World Cup in the United States, but now serving as a sweeper. In his record-tying 21st World Cup match, he scored a penalty in Germany's quarter-final game versus

at Giants Stadium in New York City, but the Bulgarians scored a brace in three minutes to stun the reigning champions.

Though Matthäus did not formally withdraw from international play, USA 94 was supposed to be his final game. Due to a conflict with following captain Jürgen Klinsmann and manager Berti Vogts, Matthäus was not invited for the national squad. Germany won the UEFA Euro 1996 in England when he was away.

The fact about Lothar Matthaus’ last days at national level is that Interestingly, he was appointed to substitute injured midfielder Matthias Sammer for the 1998 World Cup in France.

He didn't play in Germany's win over the United States, but he stepped on as a replacement versus FR Yugoslavia and led the team to a 2–2 draw. He matched Mexican goalkeeper Antonio Carbajal as the second player to feature in five separate World Cups.

The achievement was also matched in 2014 by Italian goalie

, who has only appeared in four games. In 2015, Homare Sawa and Formiga would become the first athletes to play in the FIFA Women's World Cup in Canada for a historic sixth time.

Matthäus featured in all of Germany's remaining matches before Croatia eliminated them 3-0 in the quarterfinals in Lyon, bringing his tally to a historic 25. His final three appearances came at UEFA Euro 2000 in Belgium and the Netherlands, with his 150th coming versus

, where Germany was eliminated in the first round.

Lothar Matthaus coaching career

Germany’s former captain believed that he was destined for managerial greatness. No one else agrees. Since the 2001/02 season, Matthaus worked as a coach for several teams in Europe and South America.

He coached Rapid Vienna, Partizan Belgrade,

, Athletico Paranaense,

, Maccabi Netanya, and Bulgaria National Team.

However, after Bulgaria finished last in their qualifying group and missed out on European Championship qualification, Matthaus was sacked on 19 September 2011.

Former Germany football captain Lothar Matthaeus reaffirmed that his coaching career was definitely finished.

"Coaching is over for me," the 58-year old told the reporters. Matthaeus, Germany's most capped player and 1990 World Cup winner, last coached Bulgaria's national side.

Since that role ended in 2011 he has been engaged in many interesting tasks, all of which had to do with football.

He also worked as a TV expert for broadcaster Sky and as an ambassador for club Bayern Munich and the German Football League.

Lothar Matthaus stats

Lothar Matthaus netted 204 times in 782 games for four various teams over his 21-year pro career, which spanned 1979 to 2000. In the 1990-91 campaign, he had his most stellar season, scoring 23 goals in 46 games for Inter.

Lothar Matthaus was a member of the German national team for 20 years, between 1980 to 2000. He played in 150 games for his state, hitting 23 goals in the process. He has the most caps of any German footballer in history.

Lothar Matthaus achievements

Lothar Matthaus is one of Germany’s greatest players. However, his most important work was accomplished at the 1990 World Cup when he led the national team to the title with a total of 4 goals in the competition.

Matthaus major works included his performances where he won four goals during the 1990s World Cup competition. It was also the same year that he garnered the Ballon d'Or Award. The following year, he was named as the FIFA World Player of the Year.

He won honours in Europe with Inter Milan, before returning back to Germany and Bayern Munich. In 1994, he was supposed to be playing in his last World Cup, operating this time in the sweeper’s position.

Lothar Matthaus was awarded the Ballon d’Or in 1990. In 1991, he became the FIFA World Player of the Year.

He played in five consecutive World Cups, which remains a record. In addition to that, his total of 150 appearances for the German national team too remains an all time record.

Germany were knocked out by Bulgaria in the quarterfinal and in the same game Matthäus joined Uwe Seeler, Wladislav Zmuda and Maradona as a record holder of most World Cup matches with 21. Against all odds he turned up in France 98 as a replacement for the injured sweeper Mattias Sammer.

Lothar Matthaus’ social media

Regarding

Lothar Matthaus social media

accounts, it should be mentioned that he has an Instagram page (

) with nearly 340k followers. He mainly posts pictures of his peak days in the game and sometimes of his coaching career. He mainly supports Inter and Bayern on his page.

He also has a YouTube channel (

) with more than 4m subscribers, in which he uploads short videos of himself explaining the big matches that happen in European football. He posts about various topics of football in his twitter page, too.

Lothar Matthaus body measurements

Speaking about

Lothar Matthaus body measurements

, it should be mentioned that he is 5 ft 9 in (174 cm tall) and weighs 74 kg.

Lothar Matthaus net worth and salary

Lothar Matthaus net worth

is estimated to be around 6 million dollars. He earned his wealth mainly from his playing and coaching career. Matthäus also served as a writer for the German sports journal Sport Bild from 2001 to 2009, in addition to his coaching employment.

The important fact about Lothar Matthaus’ net worth and salary is that His other main source of income is commentating in sport tv channels.

Between the 2002 and 2006 FIFA World Cups, he acted as a TV sports commentator for the German premium tv network Premiere, for the German channel ZDF during UEFA Euro 2004, for Eurosport throughout UEFA Euro 2008, and most notably for the Arabian network Al Jazeera Sports during the 2010 FIFA World Cup.

Matthaus worked as a sports commentator for the British television network ITV during the Uefa Euro 2016 tournament (TV network). During his coaching days, these acts in TV channels gave him a good amount of money.

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