- Brehme, 63, reportedly suffered a cardiac arrest at his home in Munich last night
- He was West Germany’s hero when they beat Argentina to win 1990 World Cup
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Andreas Brehme, who scored West Germany’s winning goal in the 1990 World Cup final, has died at the age of 63.
The left-back slotted home the decisive 85th-minute penalty as Franz Beckenbauer’s side beat Argentina 1-0 in Rome.
Brehme played 86 times for Germany during his playing career and for Kaiserslautern, Bayern Munich and Inter Milan among others at club level.
German newspaper Bild reported that Brehme died on Monday night in Munich, apparently of a cardiac arrest.
Brehme was reportedly admitted to the emergency room of a clinic on Ziemssenstrasse, close to his apartment, but couldn’t be saved.
Andreas Brehme converts the decisive penalty to win West Germany the 1990 World Cup
Brehme pictured during his time as coach of Kaiserslautern in 2000
The newspaper said Brehme had been deeply affected by the death of his former coach and mentor Beckenbauer last month.
He leaves behind his partner Susanne Schaefer and two adult sons from his marriage to Pilar.
Brehme the player was remembered for being a modern full-back who wasn’t afraid of pushing forward to cross or shoot and he boasted a good goal record for a defender.
He was also adept from free-kicks and penalties, and was first to step up for West Germany against England in the 1990 semi-final which later saw Stuart Pearce and Chris Waddle miss.
Brehme’s decade-long international career, which featured eight goals, saw him play at the 1986, 1990 and 1994 World Cups and the European Championships of 1984, 1988 and 1992.
He was named in the tournament’s best team in 1984, 1990 and 1992. As well as winning in 1990, he was involved in losing finals for West Germany against Argentina in 1986 and Denmark in 1992.
Beckenbauer admitted he never worked out whether the ambidextrous Brehme was left or right footed, while German great Lothar Matthaus said he was the most talented footballer he played with.
Brehme experienced success at club level, too, winning an incredible Bundesliga title during his second spell with Kaiserslautern in 1998, just a year after they won promotion to the top level.
He’d already won the German league with Bayern in 1987, the same year they lost to Porto in the European Cup final.
His stint with Inter saw a Serie A title win in 1989 and victory in the UEFA Cup in 1991 when they defeated fellow Italians Roma 2-1 on aggregate.
More to follow.
