Cult Heroes: Liverpool’s Dietmar Hamann

Cult heroes. Every club has them, every club needs them, every club should appreciate them.

Those players that, although they may not get the credit they deserve from other football fans, are the ones that you will remember most fondly when you talk about your club in years to come.

So, here at Shoot! we want to give these great players the appreciation they deserve and, having looked at John O’Shea’s career at Manchester United last time, it is time to turn to their rivals Liverpool, and identify a player whose effort in the Reds midfield isn’t given the credit it deserves: Dietmar Hamann.

Hamann joined Liverpool from Newcastle United in July 1999 for £8 million, leaving St James’ Park after just one season in the North East.

He made his debut on the opening day of the 1999/00 season away at Sheffield Wednesday and, despite injuring himself just 24 minutes into his Liverpool career, he quickly established himself in the Reds midfield when he returned from injury at the end of September.

Hamann in is early Liverpool days – Photo Michael Craig / Mark Leech Sports Photography

He scored his first goal for the club in their 3-1 win over Leeds United in February 2000, and remained a regular starter for the rest of the campaign, helping Gerard Houllier’s men to a top four finish in the league.

The German international then won his first piece of silverware at the club in 2001 after the Reds beat Birmingham City on penalties in the final of the League Cup.

Houllier’s men also won the FA Cup and UEFA Cup that season and, given Hamann made 53 appearances in all competitions, he certainly played his part in an excellent season for the club.   

Regular appearances for club and country followed over the next few years. Hamann played the full 90 minutes in Germany’s infamous 5-1 home loss to England in 2001, and he appeared in six of his nation’s seven games at the 2002 FIFA World Cup in Japan and South Korea, where Germany were beaten finalists.

However, his Liverpool career continued to go from strength to strength, as he played a key part in their 2003 League Cup final victory over Manchester United, setting up Michael Owen to score the Reds’ second in a 2-0 win.

The German continued to marshal the Reds midfield with the same authority in the next two seasons, but it was on one May evening in 2005 where he really helped his side out when they needed it most.

Hamann beats Dida with his penalty.
Photo: Mark Leech / Offside

Hamann was not in the starting eleven for their Champions League final against AC Milan, but he was introduced at half-time with Liverpool 3-0 down and in serious need of his ability in the middle of the park.

He then helped inspire the most miraculous of comebacks to force a penalty shoot-out, and it was the German who dispatched the first spot-kick.

Liverpool went on to win the shoot-out, and indeed the UEFA Champions League.

And Hamann did all this with a fractured foot. He even took the penalty with the foot that was injured.

The German remained at Liverpool for a further season, although did not play as much as previous campaigns. He did however finish his Liverpool career with an FA Cup triumph over West Ham at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff.

It was another final that he had to score in a penalty shoot-out, although this time he did it without a broken foot.

In a bizarre set of circumstances, he signed a contract with Bolton Wanderers but, after just one day, he moved to Manchester City for £400,000, where he spent three years before finishing his career at MK Dons in 2011.

But it was at Liverpool where Hamann really made his name.

He became one of the finest holding midfielders in the country during his seven year stay at the Merseyside club and, although many will remember the impact he made in Istanbul back in 2005, it is his whole Liverpool career that many Reds fans will appreciate just as much.