On 7 October 2000, England met Germany during the qualifying stages of the 2002 World Cup. It was the final match to be played at the original Wembley Stadium. Germany won the game 1–0, with the goal scored by Dietmar Hamann. England manager Kevin Keegan resigned from his position after this game. The return fixture in Munich, Germany, resulted in a 5–1 victory to England with Swedish Sven-Göran Eriksson as new England manager.
Background England had faced Germany earlier the same year at the UEFA Euro 2000, a match that England won 1-0.
The demolition of original Wembley Stadium had already been announced days before. Prior to the game, England's team selection was leaked to the media, leading to criticism from Keegan.
Match Team selection Both England and Germany fielded 4–4–2 formations. England centre-back Gareth Southgate was unusually played in a defensive midfield position ahead of Paul Ince and Dennis Wise.
Summary The only goal of the game was scored by Dietmar Hamann after fourteen minutes. It came from a free kick awarded for a foul on Michael Ballack by Paul Scholes 30 yards from goal. German goalkeeper Oliver Kahn saved shots from Andy Cole and England captain Tony Adams in the first half and a David Beckham free kick in the second. England's David Seaman, who some had blamed for the first goal, saved a shot by Mehmet Scholl on 52 minutes.
Details
GK 1 David Seaman (Arsenal)CB 5 Tony Adams (c) (Arsenal)CB 4 Gareth Southgate (Aston Villa)CB 6 Martin Keown (Arsenal)RWB 2 Gary Neville (Manchester United) LWB 3 Graeme Le Saux (Chelsea) CM 7 David Beckham (Manchester United) CM 8 Paul Scholes (Manchester United)CM 11Nick Barmby (Liverpool)CF 9 Andy Cole (Manchester United) CF 10Michael Owen (Liverpool)Substitutes:GK 13Nigel Martyn (Leeds United)DF 12Kieron Dyer (Newcastle United) MF 14Ray Parlour (Arsenal) MF 15Gareth Barry (Aston Villa) MF 17Dennis Wise (Chelsea)FW 16Emile Heskey (Liverpool)FW 18Kevin Phillips (Sunderland)Manager:Kevin Keegan GK 1 Oliver Kahn (Bayern Munich)CB 2 Marko Rehmer (Hertha BSC)CB 3 Thomas Linke (Bayern Munich)CB 5 Jens Nowotny (Bayer Leverkusen) RM 8 Sebastian Deisler (Hertha BSC)CM 4 Carsten Ramelow (Bayer Leverkusen)CM 6 Michael Ballack (Bayer Leverkusen) CM 10Dietmar Hamann (Liverpool)LM 11Marco Bode (Werder Bremen) SS 7 Mehmet Scholl (Bayern Munich)CF 9 Oliver Bierhoff (c) (Milan)Substitutes:GK 12Jens Lehmann (Borussia Dortmund)MF 13Paulo Rink (Bayer Leverkusen)MF 14Stefan Beinlich (Hertha BSC)MF 15Dariusz Wosz (Hertha BSC)MF 16Frank Baumann (Werder Bremen)MF 17Christian Ziege (Liverpool) FW 18Oliver Neuville (Bayer Leverkusen)Manager:Rudi Völler Assistant referees: Gennaro Mazzei (Italy) Sergio Zuccolini (Italy) Fourth official: Fiorenzo Treossi (Italy)Match rules 90 minutes. Seven named substitutes. Maximum of three substitutions.
Aftermath Immediately after the game, Keegan resigned as manager of England. England under-21 coach Howard Wilkinson was appointed as caretaker manager by the Football Association. He was succeeded by Sven-Goran Eriksson, who led England to a 5–1 victory over Germany in the return fixture.
Dietmar Hamann's goal was the last to be scored at the stadium. Hamann later stated in an interview that he regretted the fact that Keegan had resigned after the game, as he had supported Hamburger SV during Keegan's time at the club.
In May 2005, a poll to name a footbridge at the new Wembley Stadium saw the name Dietmar Hamann Bridge receive the most nominations. It was instead given the name White Horse Bridge.
See also England–Germany football rivalry
References
External links 2007 BBC Sport interview with Dietmar Hamann about the game