Mario Götze

German attacking midfielder Mario Gotze established himself as one of the Bundesliga's brightest stars before netting the dramatic winner in the 2014 World Cup final. Born in Memmingen, Gotze gained a place at the Borussia Dortmund youth academy at the age of eight and in his mid-teens won the Golden Player at the UEFA European Under-17 Football Championship in which Germany also lifted the trophy. In 2009 he made his Bundesliga debut for Dortmund in a goalless draw against Mainz 05, and a year later became both the youngest player since Uwe Seeler in 1954, and the first to be born in the unified Germany, to turn out for the senior team. By the end of the 2010/11 season Gotze had become a regular in the Dortmund team, scoring eight goals and 11 assists to help his side win the Bundesliga. A hip injury disrupted the following season in which Dortmund retained their league title and won the DFB-Pokal, but Gotze still managed to earn a place in the national squad for Euro 2012, coming on as a substitute in the 4-2 quarter-final victory over Greece. Injury also ruled him out of the side that lost to Bayern Munich in the 2013 Champions League final, although Gotze had been a virtual ever-present during their accompanying league campaign. Shortly after, Gotze became the most expensive German player of all time when he signed to Bayern for €37 million. Under the guidance of his hero Pep Guardiola, Gotze scored 15 goals in his first season to help the team do the league and cup double, with his former side Dortmund finishing runner-up in both competitions. Gotze then announced himself on the international stage at the 2014 World Cup in Rio when he won the decisive penalty kick in Germany's first group game against Portugal and scored the opening goal in their 2-2 draw against Ghana. Although Gotze only briefly featured in the knockout stages, missing the semi-final altogether, he then became a national hero when after coming on as a sub, he scored an impressive extra-time volley in the final to land Germany their fourth World Cup. Gotze subsequently made the 23-man shortlist of the Ballon d'Or, and although his form over the following two seasons were blighted by injury and inconsistent form, he still played a significant part in Bayern's back-to-back titles success.