Editing Matthias Sammer (section)

==Club career==

===Dynamo Dresden===
[[File:Bundesarchiv Bild 183-1990-0602-009, 1. FC Dynamo Dresden - PSV Schwerin 2-1.jpg|thumb|upright|Sammer with Dresden in 1990, holding the [[FDGB-Pokal]] trophy]]
Sammer started his career at [[Dynamo Dresden]] when he joined the club's youth team as a nine-year-old in 1976.<ref>{{cite news|url= http://bundesligafanatic.com/news-sammer-replaces-nerlinger-at-bayern-munchen/|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20130216045357/http://bundesligafanatic.com/news-sammer-replaces-nerlinger-at-bayern-munchen/|url-status= usurped|archive-date= 16 February 2013|title=Sammer replaces Nerlinger at Bayern München|date =2 July 2012|publisher= bundesligafanatic | access-date = 30 March 2013 | first = Gerry | last = Wittmann}}</ref> He made his debut for the senior team under the management of his father, [[Klaus Sammer]], in the [[1985–86 DDR-Oberliga|1985–86 season]]. Playing as a striker, he scored eight goals in his first season as Dynamo finished fifth in the [[DDR-Oberliga]]. After being moved to the left wing the [[1986–87 DDR-Oberliga|following season]] by new manager [[Eduard Geyer]], he eventually found his place in central midfield during the [[1987–88 DDR-Oberliga|1987–88 season]].

In the [[1988–89 DDR-Oberliga|1988–89 season]], Sammer was part of the Dynamo Dresden team which won the [[List of East German football champions|East German championship]]. The same season the club also reached the semi-final of the [[1988–89 UEFA Cup|UEFA Cup]] where they were knocked out by [[West Germany|West German]] club [[VfB Stuttgart]]. [[1989–90 DDR-Oberliga|The following year]] Dynamo won the league and cup [[Double (association football)|double]], defending the DDR-Oberliga title and also winning the [[1989–90 FDGB-Pokal|1990]] [[FDGB-Pokal]].

Sammer was formally an officer of the [[Volkspolizei]], as a player of Dynamo Dresden. He enrolled into the [[Felix Dzerzhinsky Guards Regiment]] as a 19-year-old. Many players of Dynamo Dresden were assigned to the regiment for their military service. Sammer then served as a non-commissioned officer in the Guards Regiment for three years from 1987,<ref name="SportbuzzerStasi">{{cite news |last=Leimert |first=Jochen |date=21 December 2017 |title=Dynamo und die Stasi: Warum Matthias Sammer nur zwei Tage "diente" |url=https://www.sportbuzzer.de/artikel/dynamo-und-die-stasi-warum-matthias-sammer-nur-zwei-tage-diente/ |language=German |newspaper=[[Sportbuzzer]] |location=Hannover |publisher=Sportbuzzer GmbH |access-date=25 December 2012 |archive-date=23 December 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171223230419/http://www.sportbuzzer.de/artikel/dynamo-und-die-stasi-warum-matthias-sammer-nur-zwei-tage-diente/ |url-status=dead }}</ref> holding the rank of [[sergeant]] in the Stasi.<ref>{{cite news |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |date=20 December 2017 |title=Warum Matthias Sammer in seiner Stasi-Akte als Täter geführt wird |url=https://www.focus.de/sport/fussball/als-junger-profi-von-dynamo-dresden-warum-matthias-sammer-in-seiner-stasi-akte-als-taeter-gefuehrt-wird_id_8029700.html |language=German |newspaper=FOCUS Online |location=München |publisher=FOCUS Magazin Verlag GmbH |accessdate=25 December 2021 }}</ref> The President of SV Dynamo was the head of the Stasi [[Erich Mielke]]. Sammer has explained that he would not have been able to continue to play football for Dynamo Dresden if he had refused to serve with the Guards Regiment and that he never saw any weapon or took part in any military exercise. He has described his employment with the Guard Regiment as an alibi to play football to Dynamo Dresden.<ref name="SportbuzzerStasi"/>

===VfB Stuttgart===
In the summer of 1990, Sammer joined [[VfB Stuttgart]] of the [[Bundesliga]]. Sammer scored 11 times in [[1990–91 Bundesliga|his debut season]] as Stuttgart finished sixth in the Bundesliga. [[1991–92 Bundesliga|The following year]] Sammer scored nine goals, helping Stuttgart to become the [[List of German football champions|first champions]] of the [[German reunification|reunified Germany]].

===Inter Milan===
After two seasons at Stuttgart, Sammer joined Italian club [[Inter Milan]] for the [[1992–93 Serie A]] season. Though he was a success on the pitch, scoring four times in 11 appearances, including a goal against [[Juventus FC|Juventus]] in the [[Derby d'Italia]], Sammer failed to adapt to the Italian lifestyle and returned to Germany in January 1993.

===Borussia Dortmund===
In the winter break of the [[1992–93 Bundesliga|1992–93 season]], Sammer signed for [[Borussia Dortmund]]. He made 17 Bundesliga appearances in the second half of the season, scoring ten times.

[[1993–94 Bundesliga|The following season]], Sammer was moved from midfield into the [[Libero (football)|libero]] position by Dortmund coach [[Ottmar Hitzfeld]]. This move proved to be successful as Dortmund won back-to-back Bundesliga titles in [[1994–95 Bundesliga|1994–95]] and [[1995–96 Bundesliga|1995–96]], followed by the [[1996–97 UEFA Champions League]], with Sammer lifting the [[European Cup]] as [[Captain (association football)|captain]] after beating [[Juventus FC|Juventus]] 3–1 in [[1997 UEFA Champions League Final|the final]] at [[Munich]]'s [[Olympiastadion (Munich)|Olympiastadion]].

Soon after winning the Champions League, Sammer's career was cut short by injury. He made only three further Bundesliga appearances for Dortmund before suffering a serious knee injury which he failed to recover from and retired in 1998.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://sports.ndtv.com/euro-2012/players/legends/190742-euro-legends-matthias-sammer|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130419122432/http://sports.ndtv.com/euro-2012/players/legends/190742-euro-legends-matthias-sammer|url-status=dead|archive-date=19 April 2013|title=Euro Legends: Matthias Sammer|date=26 May 2012|access-date=30 March 2013}}</ref>

In addition to the two Bundesliga titles and one Champions League, Sammer also led Dortmund to two [[DFB-Supercup]]s, in [[1995 DFB-Supercup|1995]] and [[1996 DFB-Supercup|1996]]. Sammer himself was named [[Footballer of the Year (Germany)]] in both 1995 and 1996 and was named [[Ballon d'Or|European Footballer of the Year]] in 1996, making him the first [[Defender (association football)|defender]] to win the Ballon d'Or since [[Franz Beckenbauer]] in 1976.