Nemanja Vidić is a centre back who plays for English side Manchester United and the Serbian national team. He is also the captain of both United and Serbia. Vidić started his professional career with Red Star Belgrade. In 2004 he was signed by Spartak Moscow, apparently as the most expensive player in the Russian League. His robust and solid defending caught the eye of major European clubs and in January 2006 he brought his services to Old Trafford.
At Manchester United Vidić quickly formed a strong partnership with England international Rio Ferdinand. He has been a key player in helping United win 3 Premiership titles, 3 League Cups and the 2008 UEFA Champions League. Since 2002 Vidić has also been one of the rocks in Serbia’s solid defence line.

Ivica Olić is a forward who plays for German side Bayern München and Croatia. Except for his first stint in the German Bundesliga playing for Hertha Berlin, Olić has had success as a prolific goal scorer wherever he has played. In Croatia he played for Marsonia, before and after Hertha Berlin, and for NK Zagreb and Dinamo Zagreb (winning the Croatian League with both those teams). He then played for CSKA Moscow, winning the Russian Premier League three times, the Russian Cup twice and the 2005 UEFA Cup. In January 2007 Olić joined German side Hamburger SV where he enjoyed another two strong seasons before moving to his current club Bayern München in January 2009. The following season he won the Bundesliga, the German Cup and Super Cup with Bayern München, in addition to reaching the Champions League final. The Croatian national team have also enjoyed his fast pace and high work rate. With the start of the Euro2012 qualifiers he has passed 70 caps for his country. Olić was also Croatian Player of the Year in 2009.

Arjen Robben is a left winger who plays for German side Bayern München and Netherlands’ national team.
Robben arrived at Bayern München in August 2009. In his first season at the club they won the German Bundesliga, were runners-up in the Champions League and Robben named Player of the Year in Germany.
Robben came to Bayern München after two seasons in Real Madrid. The Spanish club had bought several new top quality players and decided to sell Robben when Bayern München made a €25 million offer. Before Real Madrid Robben had spent three seasons with English side Chelsea, where he often struggled with injuries. Prior to going abroad he had enjoyed two seasons in Holland with PSV Eindhoven and two senior seasons with Groningen, where he had come up through the youth ranks. In 2003 Robben was Netherlands’ Young Player of the Year.
Robben is a real impact player with high techincal skills and a brilliant dribbler. In addition to his strong season with Bayern München, 2010 also saw him with Netherlands as runners-up in the FIFA World Cup.

Hamit Altıntop is a midfielder who plays for Spanish side Real Madrid and the Turkish national team. Altıntop is of Turkish parentage but is born and bred in Germany. He started his career with local German side Wattenscheid 09 with his twin brother Halil Altıntop. Hamit was soon picked up by Schalke 04 while Halil went to Kaiserslautern. At Schalke he won the German League Cup and they were also twice runners-up in the Bundesliga. The 2006-07 season was his last at Schalke and Hamit was then also joined by his brother Halil, by then a successful striker. Ahead of the 2007-08 season Hamit Altıntop went to Bayern München on a free transfer. His versatility in midfield soon secured him a spot amongst Bayern’s starting XI. With Bayern he has won 2 Bundesliga titles, 2 German Cups, 1 German League Cup and been runners-up in the 2010 UEFA Champions League final. In May 2011 he moved on a free transfer to Real Madrid, signing a four year contract.
Hamit Altıntop has played for Turkey since 2004 and was their best player in Euro 2008, where Turkey made it to the semifinals. His brother also plays for Turkey and since January 2010 with Eintracht Frankfurt.

Franck Ribéry is a left winger who plays for German side Bayern München and the French national team. Ribéry is a real impact player and was named French Footballer of the Year in 2007 and 2008. He was also Player of the Year in Germany in 2008. He arrived at Bayern München in June 2007 and won the German double with the club in the 2007-08 season and the 2009-10 season. In the latter they were also runners-up in the Champions League. Prior to this Ribéry had played for various French clubs, except for a brief stint at Galatasary in Turkey. He had two exceptional seasons for Olympique de Marseille in 2005-06 and 2006-07. He was included in the French national team just before the 2006 FIFA World Cup and went on to enjoy a great World Cup with France reaching the final. After that several top clubs in Europe were seeking his signature but Bayern München were successful paying Marseille a then club-record €25 million.