Franck Ribery and the soccer players who have played for both Bayern Munich and Marseille
Franck Ribery spent two years with Marseille before his illustrious spell at Bayern Munich. With the sides set to face each other on 31 July, bundesliga.com looks at the players who join the French superstar in having turned out for both clubs…
Bayern legend Franz Beckenbauer has coached both sides, and current Bayern defender Lucas Hernandez was born in the French port city while his father, Jean-Francois, was playing for the Ligue 1 outfit to maintain a fruitful connection that stretches back over two decades.
Franck Ribery
Bayern appearances: 425 (2007-19)
Marseille appearances: 89 (2005-07)
"When we signed him, it was as if we had won the lottery." If Der Kaiser Beckenbauer says that about you, you've done something right. Ribery certainly did, time and time again over 12 trophy-stocked seasons in Bavaria. He had played in a FIFA World Cup final for France before ending a promising two-year stint at Marseille with a move to Bayern in 2007, but surely no-one - not even the flying French winger himself - could have predicted the riotous success he would become in a Bayern shirt.
"There was a completely different style of play at Bayern before," the wing wizard told bundesliga.com in an exclusive joint interview with partner-in-crime Arjen Robben, who came in 2009 and formed the almost unplayable Robbery partnership.
Watch: Ribery at Bayern: 12 years, 12 best goals
"When Arjen, myself and others arrived at the club, we brought more pace and dynamism. When I first arrived, Bayern were fourth or fifth. After 12 years, it's amazing what we've achieved."
'Amazing' almost comes close…Upon his arrival, Ribery inherited the No.7 jersey of Mehmet Scholl, but by the time he signed off on his Bayern career, it was synonymous only with the Frenchman. He ended with nine Bundesliga titles - a league record - and tops the club's charts ahead of Beckenbauer, Oliver Kahn, Philipp Lahm & Co. with 24 trophies won, including the unprecedented 2012/13 treble.
Daniel Van Buyten
Bayern appearances: 239 (2006-14)
Marseille appearances: 98 (2001-04)
Spotted at Standard Liege by Marseille, Van Buyten's first major career move was to the Mediterranean coast. His 6'6" frame - built on the genes of his wrestling star father - made him an imposing presence in the Marseille backline, though between arriving in 2001 and heading on loan to Manchester City in January 2004, he was unable to help his team achieve significant success.
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Then-City boss Kevin Keegan stated the English Premier League side wouldn't be able to keep the Belgium international after his six-month spell as "he will go to a big club then", and Van Buyten duly joined Keegan's former side Hamburg. His two years in northern Germany were the prelude to him travelling the length of the country to sign for Bayern in 2006.
Eight years and over 200 competitive appearances later, Van Buyten had played effectively alongside the likes of Lucio, Martin Demichelis and Jerome Boateng en route to winning three Bundesliga-DFB Cup doubles, and the 2012/13 treble, becoming only the second Belgian to lift the UEFA Champions League. The first? Eric Gerets, who didn't play for Bayern but did coach Marseille…
Jean-Pierre Papin
Bayern appearances: 40 (1994-96)
Marseille appearances: 266 (1986-92)
Mention Papin's name - or even his initials, JPP - in Marseille, and be prepared for genuine hero worship. The former France international was the spearhead of one of the best sides Europe has seen, winning four successive Ligue 1 titles and forming a potent triumvirate with Chris Waddle and Abedi Pele during his six years at the Stade Vélodrome where his eye for goal and a spectacular volleyed finish were legend.
The 1991 Ballon d'Or winner left Marseille for AC Milan and watched on as his former club beat his current on in the 1992/93 UEFA Champions League final in Munich's Olympiastadion where Papin played in Bayern colours between 1994 and 1996. Though Papin was part of the side that claimed the 1995/96 UEFA Cup and scored a Tor des Monats early in his Bayern stay, it ultimately wasn't the success both parties would have hoped for with the Frenchman rather overshadowed by Jürgen Klinsmann.
Bixente Lizarazu
Bayern appearances: 273 (1997-2004, Jan. 2005-06)
Marseille appearances: 15 (2004)
For Papin's compatriot, it was the other way round. The FIFA World Cup and UEFA Euro 2000-winning left-back had come through alongside Zinedine Zidane at Bordeaux and had then profited from his Basque heritage to join Athletic Bilbao in 1996 - a year later, he was a Bayern player. Over the next six seasons, he was a fundamental part of club and country success, winning four Bundesliga titles and the 2000/01 UEFA Champions League as well as a trio of DFB Cups.
He headed for Marseille in summer 2004 seeking to play out his career there, but returned to Bayern just six months later after a handful of appearances having fallen out with coach Philippe Troussier. Bayern were only too happy to welcome him back with Lahm - billed as the Frenchman's successor - having suffered a long-term injury. 'Liza' played 18 more months for the record German champions, adding two league-cup doubles to his and the club's impressive list of honours before retiring.
Luiz Gustavo
Bayern appearances: 100 (Jan. 2011-13)
Marseille appearances: 98 (2017-19)
When Marseille were looking for a player with "experience and charisma in midfield" - in the words of then-coach Rudi Garcia - in 2017, they quickly agreed Luiz Gustavo would fit the bill.
Having helped Hoffenheim into the Bundesliga for the first time ever, he joined Bayern following three-and-a-half seasons in Sinsheim. Never a stitched on first-team regular at the Allianz Arena, the Brazil international was nonetheless a key squad player, helping provide the strength-in-depth that propelled Bayern to the treble under Jupp Heynckes.
It was as a European and Bundesliga champion he joined Wolfsburg that summer before moving to Marseille four successful years later.
The complete list of those who have played for Bayern and Marseille
- Alou Diarra: Bayern 2000-02 (0 first-team appearances), Marseille 2011/12
- Luiz Gustavo: Bayern Jan. 2011-13, Marseille 2017-19
- Bixente Lizarazu: Bayern 1997-2004 & Jan. 2005-06, Marseille 2004
- Jean-Pierre Papin: Marseille 1986-92, Bayern 1994-96
- Franck Ribery: Marseille 2005-07, Bayern 2007-19
- Daniel Van Buyten: Marseille 2001-04, Bayern 2006-14
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