FRANZ BECKENBAUER

The German Football Association (DFB) has submitted a bid as it seeks to host the European Championships in 2024, according to reports. The president Reinhard Grindel submitted the bid on behalf of the association to the continental governing body UEFA. Grindel made the submission alongside the bid ambassador Philipp Lahm, a former Bayern Munich and German skipper.

The DFB submitted their bid ahead of the April 27 deadline as they seek to host the continent with the last being the 1988 edition even though they staged the 2006 World Cup. Grindel said they submitted an “excellent bid concept” which will be an opportunity for UEFA to further develop the game. They want the Euro 2024 to be staged in the heart of the continent, with fans being able to support their teams. (more…)

Robert Lewandowski scored twice on his 100th Bundesliga appearance with Bayern Munich as his side thrashed Mainz. The Poland striker has scored 82 goals in the league since signing on a free from Borussia Dortmund in 2014. The prolific Polish striker reached a century of outings in the German top-flight on Saturday, and marked the occasion with a brace against Mainz.

The Poland international has been prolific throughout his time in Germany, having previously starred for four years at Borussia Dortmund.
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Crystal Palace midfielder Yohan Cabaye believes that Arsenal midfielder Mesut Ozil is currently the best player in the Premier League.

The Germany international is in his fifth season with the Gunners for whom he remains a pivotal player in the starting lineup.

In an interview with France Football, Yohan Cabaye revealed that Ozil is the strongest player in terms of technical ability due to his vision of putting in passes that no other player could imagine, he said: “The strongest player in England, I think? Mesut Ozil. He is really, very strong. You get the impression that he does not care, that he is nonchalant, but at one point he will put a pass that nobody has seen. He always knows everything before everyone else. That’s what is fabulous about him.” (more…)

So it is that in an era where Borussia Dortmund is trying to get back to the g0od old times of Jurgen Klopp, chief of club Joachim Watzke decided that his personal issues stood greater than the harmony and slow rebuilding being introduced into the squad by sacked coach Thomas Tuchel.

Many expected the chief to go for former Borussia Monchengladbach coach Lucien Favre since he offered something similar to that of the two previous men to take hold of the proceedings of Westfalenstadion pitch. His achievement with French side OGC Nice did enough to convince observers of his capability.

Alas the Dortmund chief like his earlier decision to sack Tuchel against the wishes of substantial of people connected to the club felt Ajax’s Peter Bosz will be a better head to steer them towards the destination they are longing for.

Bosz is a fine coach no doubt but appointing the Dutch man raises few red flags chief of which is that the 53-year old believes football should be played in a way distinctly different from the style Dortmund has been used to for the past 6 years. (more…)

Franz Beckenbauer is one of the most iconic figures in the world of football as he’s a retired player who lifted major pieces of silverware and that during a specific period of time; the German defender was without any doubts the best player in the sport.

During 1972 and 1976, Beckenbauer won the Ballon d’Or which is an individual award that is given to the player who is considered to be the best footballer in that selected year. Another one of his significant accomplishments was being able to win trophies as the captain of Bayern Munich as well as with Germany.

Even though Franz Beckenbauer is out of the pitch and no longer an actual player, he still remains being a hugely influential figure as the German is currently working as a pundit for Sky Germany and has served in various roles for Bayern Munich as the President in some point in time and chairman in another date.

He was even at the helm of Germany’s 2006 FIFA World Cup bid and Beckenbauer has actually recently been investigated and questioned by Swiss prosecutors due to a suspicion involving possible corruption with the past edition of the worldwide football competition. (more…)

German football legend Franz Beckenbaueris been questioned by prosecutors over his involvement in the corruption cases of the 2006 World Cup.

Four members of the organizing committee are being investigated over suspected corruption, specifically, money laundering, misappropriation, criminal mismanagement and fraud.

The legend confirmed that he was under investigation but declined to share details out of respect for the prosecutors.

“Today I was interviewed as part of a long scheduled hearing by the Swiss federal prosecutor. I answered his questions,” the 71-year old ex-German skipper revealed.

The Swiss attorney general’s office confirmed that the legend was “co-operative” in the investigation. The investigations into the four accused began in 2015. The three others aside Beckenbauer are German Football Association (DFB) former presidents Wolfgang Niersbach and Theo Zwanziger and former secretary of the association Horst Rudolf Schmidt. (more…)

Following the on-going investigations by some Swiss prosecutors into allegations of corruptions, Franz Beckenbauer was forced to cancel a public appointment that was supposed to hold in Zurich.

The investigation is being carried out into the awarding of the 2006 World Cup that saw Germany come off as the host country.

Beckenbauer, who owns a South African winery, was supposed to be at a public wine tasting in a Zurich hotel, where he was supposed to present his own brand of ‘The Kaiser’s Wines’.

The German football legend is not alone in the investigations. Three other members of the 2006 World Cup organizing committee – Hans-Rudolf Schmidt, Theo Zwanziger and Wolfgang Niersbach, are also being investigated by the Office of the Attorney General of Switzerland.

On Thursday, the court in Bern made it known that the investigations into the four Germans have been ongoing since last year, November to be precise. Allegations made on the quartet are those of criminal mismanagement, fraud, misappropriation, and money laundering.

On Thursday, searches were carried out in more than eight locations. Bild, the German daily reported that two hours were spent by officials who were searching Beckenbaeur’s home in Salzburg. (more…)

Carlos Alberto is regarded as one of the legendary players in the game and he recently passed away at the age of 72 due to a heart attack. The Brazil captain led his team to the 1970 World Cup title.

The defender also scored one of the iconic goals in the World Cup history to help his team secure a 4-1 win over Italy in the final of the tournament. During his career, Alberto played alongside legendary names like Pele – both at club and national team level – and his passing away has been mourned by football fans around the world.

Germany legend Franz Beckenbauer has claimed that Alberto has been like a brother to him and that his passing away brings a lot of sadness. Santos have produced a number of great players in their history and Alberto is one among them. The defender went on to make more than 400 appearances for the Brazilian outfit. He also helped them win four consecutive domestic titles during 1967 and 1973. Santos have issued a three-day mourning for the player, who they have termed as the best right back in the history of the club. Alberto went on to represent the national team in 53 appearances before retiring from the game in 1978 following plenty of knee related issues.

“Heidi and me are deeply shocked. Carlos Alberto was like a brother to me, one of my best friends,” said Franz Beckenbauer.”It is with huge regret from the CBF (ConfederacaoBrasileira de Futebol) that the world of football has been surprised by the death of Carlos Alberto Torres on Tuesday (October 25).The legend of the Brazilian national team, the captain of the three-time winners of 1970, died in Rio de Janeiro, victim of a heart attack.The wake will be held at the CBF building in Barra da Tijuca. Details will be announced soon,” read a statement on the Brazilian Football Federation’s official site.

Pep Guardiola says he did not take the help of a third medium to express his thoughts about Zlatan Ibrahimovic like the Sweden native did.

Ibrahimovic came up with a book few years back in which he disclosed many things about his Barcelona stint and why he couldn’t continue long enough there.

He was heavily critical of Guardiola in the book and seemed to be blaming him for cutting short a possible legendary Barca career.

Referring to that book before Manchester Derby which would be a battle of prestige for the two great personalities, Guardiola said, “I didn’t choose to speak through a book or something like that. I had a direct conversation with Zlatan about my requirements off him.”

Coming to the potential of the striker, the Spaniard said, “Look, no club has been at a loss with Zlatan. He has given everybody their money’s worth. When he goes to a new league, he always blossoms without taking much time and that’s why he sits in the topmost grade of Footballers.”

Another Red Devil whom Guardiola doesn’t necessarily call to say a merry Christmas is Jose Mourinho, but, the Sky Blues’ boss was in no mood to hype that rivalry either and stressed that things were actually not that sour between him and the Portuguese. (more…)

Franz Beckenbauer is legend by his own achievements and when he talks about others, it surely brings them under the spotlight as well.

For instance, he has been noticing the performance of Bastian Schweinsteiger and how he has helped in turning things around for his team in Euro 2016. He has been telling Bild that Bastian Schweinsteiger has definitely overcome the problems that he faced when he was at Manchester.

Joachim Low included Bastian Schweinsteiger in the squad. The player, who is about 31 years of age, is on in the summer tournament even though he has suffered from a partial tear. This has happened in his right knee as a result of playing in March. Being the Germany captain, it definitely affects the team’s games when the captain is absent due to injury. He returned last weekend for a friendly match that was played against Hungary. The game ended with Germany has victory over their opponent with a score of 2-0.
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