The 'enfant terrible' of German football

A loner who was known for being introverted and sensitive, Bernd Schuster was considered the "enfant terrible" of German football during the 1980's.

It was said that you couldn't meet a nicer player on the park, however off the field he was known to have shocked the public with his carefree behaviour and outspoken manner.

When it came to carrying out the football side of his contract, Schuster was irreproachable. From FC Cologne, where he began his career in 1978, to Bayer Leverkusen, the "blond angel" fulfilled his midfield remit with regular defence-splitting passes.

Quickly, his talent at club level opened the doors to the national squad, and an impressive awakening during the Euro-80 tournament in Italy.

In the final against Belgium he provided the pass which allowed teammate Horst Hrubesch to score Germany's opener as they marched to the title by a 2-1 scoreline.

At the end of the competition, Schuster was touted as the next big thing and he decided to leave Germany. He began his adventure in Spain, where he stayed a lengthy 13 years.

With Barcelona he won all the major national titles including the championship in 1985 and six domestic Cups.

Disagreements with his Catalan employers led to a move to rivals Real Madrid in 1988, with his title-winning ways following suit (Spanish Cup in 1988, league titles in 1989 and 1990,) before completing his voyage at his last big club in Spain - Atletico Madrid.

Quarrels by the bucketload

Brilliant at club level, Schuster never really fulfilled his potential in the black and white of the national team. Differences with the coach, Jupp Derwall, kept him on the outside of the "Mannschaft" and his personal caps tally stopped at 21.

He returned to Germany in 1993 to play at Bayer Leverkusen. But once again difficulties emerged with the team manager - at that time Erich Ribbeck and Schuster closed the door on his playing days for good.

His next foray was in the field of coaching, leading to a successful spell at Fortuna Cologne, then with city rivals FC Cologne (D2), who he failed to take into the Bundesliga. Schuster was not, as one might imagine, much thanked for his services.

Spanish giants Barcelona employed him as a technical advisor until 2001 before he coached second division outfit Jerez and now finds himself at Ukrainian side Shakhtar Donetsk.