After successfully coming through the youth ranks at Bayern Munich and making 143 competitive senior appearances for the German giants, Dietmar Hamann went on to enjoy a lengthy and successful professional career in England.
Between 1998-2011, the midfielder represented Newcastle United, Liverpool, Manchester City and MK Dons. In addition to the two Bundesliga and DFB-Pokal titles Hamann claimed with Bayern, his stint at Liverpool yielded a further two F.A. Cups, two League Cups and, most notably, the 2004/05 UEFA Champions League trophy.
The final in Istanbul saw Hamann score Liverpool's opening penalty in their shoot-out triumph over A.C. Milan. The German was brought into the action during the half-time interval, helping The Reds come back from a 0-3 deficit and take the game into that penalty shoot-out.
Hamann earned 59 international caps over the course of his career, scoring five goals for his country. He was a crucial part of Germany's run to the 2002 FIFA World Cup final, starting all but one of their games in the tournament.
Two decades on, in this exclusive interview, Hamann discusses his thoughts on how England should approach the rest of their ongoing 2022 World Cup campaign, the Cristiano Ronaldo vs. Lionel Messi debate, the star-studded 2002 Brazil squad and more.
England need to keep being bold:
Following Monday's dominant 6-2 win against Iran, England find themselves in a commanding position, at the top of Group B of the ongoing World Cup.
With their goal difference handsomely boosted and the points shared in the other group fixture, a win from tomorrow evening's much-anticipated clash with the U.S.A. will likely seal knockout round qualification for England and go far towards assuring them of top spot in the group.
Hamann praised how Gareth Southgate set up his team in their opening fixture and encouraged him to retain the back four system, for the rest of the group stage:
"I think Southgate played the right squad against Iran.
"I always felt that in the Euros, when we played with seven defenders, which consisted of the back five with Declan Rice and Kalvin Phillips in the middle and then three forward players, we ignored our attacking talent quite a bit.
"As [Jude] Bellingham was in the team today, he was able to influence a more offensive England side and, personally, I think that he has more of an attacking mind than Phillips.
"In terms of switching from a back five to a back four, it gives you a chance to bring one more offensive player. Today, that was Mason Mount and he did ever so well; I think that's how we evolved.
"If you're playing against Brazil, or another strong nation, where you might feel that we've got to be a bit more cautious here, I don't mind any formation. However, when playing against teams you should dominate, which was the case in the Euros and on Monday, I think you've got to be more proactive, more attacking minded and be a bit more bold – that’s what they were on Monday and we saw that going forward, once they got going, they're very hard to stop."
Liverpool should target both Bellingham and Rice:
Hamann spent seven seasons in Merseyside and has retained the love of the Anfield faithful, ever since his time at Liverpool.
He advised his former club to go all out to try and sign both Rice and Bellingham to bolster The Reds' midfield, arguing that the form of Fabinho and a lack of a goalscoring midfielder is an issue for Liverpool:
"Even though [Darwin] Nunez is coming into it now, with the departure of [Sadio] Mané, they lost a bit of firepower going forward.
"Bellingham could be the key to Liverpool’s midfield troubles. I think that Liverpool's Achilles heel was not having a player who gets us seven or more goals from open play, from midfield.
"Bellingham is the type of candidate who they should be looking at, but they must try and lure Rice to Anfield too.
"Rice is spoilt for choice if he were to move clubs, but he’d absolutely suit playing behind Bellingham, at Liverpool.
"Liverpool have Fabinho, who’s form has dropped off a bit in the last few months. I don't think that you can play with both Rice and Fabinho in the middle of the pack. I think one player of that calibre is enough, but Fabinho's form has been a concern."
Manchester United also a great fit for the West Ham man:
Rice and Bellingham were the midfield pair for England's opener against Iran. The pair are, arguably, two of the country's most valuable and sought after young assets.
Should the cost of bringing both, rather than just one, of the England internationals to Liverpool prove too much of a stumbling block, Hamann also thinks that Rice should consider one of their rivals as a potential destination:
"Rice can also fit into Manchester United’s team, as well as Liverpool’s. I think United's probably the one.
"Arsenal have Thomas Partey, who plays that role brilliantly. Chelsea, I think they've got players in Jorginho and Mateo Kovacic who can play there.
"I think United will probably be the team where he is more tailor-made; I think that they are crying out for a player like Rice. Manchester United would, for me, be the most likely destination of interest. I am sure he will do well there."
Messi over Ronaldo:
Even though both Ronaldo and Messi are approaching the twilight of their remarkable careers, the outstanding and, at times, draining football debate of our lifetime rages on - which one of the pair do the sport's followers prefer?
Hamann takes a clear stance regarding this and references Ronaldo's recent, controversial interview with Piers Morgan, which has led to the five-time Balon d'Or winner and Manchester United parting ways, earlier this week:
"In this debate, I always go with Messi because he is more of a team player.
"You look at Ronaldo’s stats – he has done it in more than one country – he has been successful in two or three. He has won the Champions League in two different countries, which Messi hasn't done.
"It's a toss of a coin, but I always leaned towards Messi and that is not going to change.
"For Ronaldo, he is the type of player that if he scores 50 goals - he can do what he wants.
"But, there's times when you have to think about the team and I just feel that in the past and also when you dive into the politics in the last week or so with Ronaldo, it shows that Messi probably thought more about the team, or more often about the team, than Ronaldo did. That doesn't stop him from being one of the greatest ever; he won the Ballon d'Or eight [correction: five] times.
"If I could choose one to play with - I would probably go with Messi."
Had Ballack been available in 2002, result against Brazil may have been different:
A World Cup title would have, undoubtedly, been the sweetest of cherries on top of Hamann's successful playing career. He came agonisingly close to winning the 2002 edition of the tournament, held in South Korea and Japan.
Germany's 0-2 defeat in the final against Brazil is something which Hamann reflects on in a what-if kind of way:
"It was a good Brazil team, but it wasn't an unbeatable Brazil team.
"Our captain Michael Ballack was suspended; he got his second booking in the semis. You know, obviously, it's philosophical and hypothetical what would have happened [had Ballack been available], but he was our talisman and he scored the goals which got us to the semi-final and the final in the first place. With him, it might have been a different story.
"Brazil was better on the day. They had Ronaldo, who will go down as one of the greatest ever in world football. So, sometimes you just have to accept defeat.
"I’m not sure whether that Brazil team was the best team [I faced]; I played against some brilliant teams in the Premier League. You know, Ronaldinho was pretty young at the time, but obviously Rivaldo and Ronaldo are two outstanding players and Cafu, as well.
"A lot had to go our way obviously, but I just feel it wasn't a team that was unbeatable, even though they were very good."
Arsenal 'invincibles' were better than 2002 Brazil:
The 2003/04 Arsenal team completed the incredible, and since non-repeated feat, of completing a whole Premier League season unbeaten.
Hamann believes that the 'Invincibles' were a stronger unit than the Brazil team that won the 2002 World Cup:
"I played against the 'Invincibles' Arsenal squad in the early 2000s and they were better; that Arsenal team was exceptional.
"I played against the Manchester United team with Newcastle, in the FA Cup final - they won the treble. There were some outstanding teams in the Premier League over the years.
"As I said, it's hard to compare the national teams and club teams, but, these teams were special."
Vieira - the toughest ever opponent:
A crucial part of that 'Invincibles' squad was the 107 French cap holder, Patrick Vieira.
The current Crystal Palace manager was highlighted by Hamann, when asked who the toughest opponent of his playing career was:
"The toughest was probably Vieira. He was tall, quick and powerful, great technique, very good passer of the ball. He had everything for me.
"Vieira was always the epitome of a central midfielder. You know, I always felt that he had everything. He didn't have a weakness in his game and, for me, he was the most exceptional defensive midfielder of my time."
The former Arsenal midfielder also has a 1998 FIFA World Cup title to his name. The then-22-year-old promising talent came off the bench to see out the last quarter of an hour of France's eventual win over Brazil, in the final. Vieira and his French team were able to lift the trophy, at their home stadium - Stade de France.
That was the first and last instance of the host country winning professional football's showpiece event, since Argentina did so, in 1978.
While it is unlikely that this winter's competition will provide another example of that occurring, England will be hoping that they can go one better than their EURO 2020 run and claim their first title, since their only triumph on the world stage, in 1966.
It remains to be seen whether or not Southgate's team will continue to deploy, as encouraged to do so by Hamann, the back four system, tomorrow evening against the U.S.A.
To the content of most England supporters, the contest is scheduled for the Friday evening prime time slot - a 7 p.m. kick-off (BST).
This interview is courtesy of Stake.
If you or someone you care about require support with gambling, GamCare provide a confidential service.