Bixente Lizarazu: Bayern Munich's famed French full-back with flair
Bixente Lizarazu, a marauding full-back, enjoyed two spells at Bayern Munich and won all the game's major honours - scoring some remarkable goals along the way.
It is easy to think with all the success that came his way at Bayern that Lizarazu was a major star on his arrival in Bundesliga. That wasn't necessarily the case - he had been part of a strong Bordeaux side in the mid-1990s featuring a young Zinedine Zidane, but he joined the Bavarians looking to lift his career after an ill-fated spell at Athletic Bilbao.
He did prove to be an instant hit for Bayern, however, with the kind of attacking full-back play rarely seen at the time. The Frenchman would frequently maraud forward and whip in dangerous crosses, with his extravagant technique endearing him even more to the Bayern faithful. He fired in some spectacular goals during his nine seasons in the Bundesliga, too, with an exquisite volley from the edge of the box against Duisburg in February 2000 one that is remembered particularly fondly.
Lizarazu's time at Bayern coincided with their rise to becoming the preeminent force in the Bundesliga, and the Frenchman hoovered up trophies with just as much enthusiasm as he galloped down the left flank. He even won the DFB League Cup before making his first Bundesliga appearance in summer 1997. The DFB Cup followed the same season, and the first of six Bundesliga titles came at the end of the following campaign, in 1998/99.
Lizarazu left his mark on the international stage in the years following his arrival at Bayern - as part of the France team that lifted the FIFA World Cup for the first time on home soil in 1998 and followed that up with a win of UEFA Euro 2000.
He had missed the 1999 UEFA Champions League final through injury, forcing him to watch on as his Bayern teammates suffered the heartache of a last-minute Manchester United comeback. Redemption followed in 2001 with Lizarazu converting a crucial penalty in the shootout as Bayern edged Valencia to lift the European crown. It meant the defender held the World Cup, European Championship and Champions League all at the same time. And when Bayern added the Intercontinental Cup, Lizarazu was the first player ever to be both a reigning world and European champion for both club and country.
A six-month spell at Marseille in 2004 was a mere interlude to a glorious Bayern career that continued until his retirement in 2006.
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