East Germany (GDR/DDR) Greatest All-Time Team

World Cup 1974

Please also see my All-Time World Cup Team Index.

Germany
East German players after 1990

Eastern German regional team (Not only GDR)
German Americans/American Germans
German Turks 
German-born Players Capped by Other National Teams
Germany All-Time Team After Beckenbauer
Germany All-Time Team before 1972

This is the all-time team for East Germany (GDR). If there were an All-Time World Cup, this would be the 23 players I would bring to the tournament.

During the existence of  German Democratic Republic (East Germany), the country was known as a sporting power, but they never could match West Germany for football. Their lone achievement was winning the Gold Medal at the 1976 Olympics beating Poland in the Final.  Poland actually fielded a team almost identical to their World Cup team in 1974, where they finished a respectable third.  They would also win the Silver Medal in the Moscow Olympics four years later.

East Germany qualified for their only World Cup Finals in 1974, hosted by West Germany.  In that tournament, they also beat West Germany in their one and only ever encounter between the two states. The victory put East Germany ahead of West Germany in the group standing.

East Germany won the 1986 European Under-18 Championship beating the talented Yugoslavia in the quarterfinal.  At the World Youth Championship in 1987, they narrowly lost to Yugoslavia and finished 3rd.  Yugoslavia was known for its Golden team. Matthias Sammer was the star of the team.  I believe East Germany might have their Golden era from1996 to 2006. They would probably be a force.

1976 Olympic Gold Medal

Team
GK: Jürgen Croy
Jürgen Croy was probably one of the greatest keepers of his generations.  He spent his entire career with BSG Sachsenring Zwickau (today FSV Zwickau). He was one of East Germany's few international players not to play for a top club.  He was capped 86 caps.  He won the Gold medal in 1976 Olympic Games and went to the 1974 World Cup Finals in East Germany, the East German pulled an upset over West Germany.

Jürgen Croy

GK: Hans-Ulrich Grapenthin

Grapemthin was orn in 1943. He was a one club player.  He played for FC Carl Zeiss Jena in 308 Oberliga matches between 1966 and 1985.  he helped the club to reach the Final of the 1981 Cup Winners' Cup. He was an East Germany international between 1975 and 1981, winning 21 caps, and was part of the gold-medal winning squad at the 1976 Olympics. He was Croy's backup. He was East German Footballer of the Year in 1980 and 1981.

GK: René Müller
Müller was first-choice goalkeeper of the East German national team for much of the 1980s, and was twice East German Footballer of the Year. He played for 1. FC Lokomotive Leipzig for fourteen years, and later had spells with FC Sachsen Leipzig, Dynamo Dresden and FC St. Pauli.  With Lokomotive Leipzig, he reached the Final of 1987 European Cup Winners' Cup Final

RB: Klaus Urbanczyk
Urbanczyk played for Chemie Halle and later Hallescher FC Chemie – in the DDR-Oberliga.  He played for East Germany between 1961 and 1969. In 1964, he won a Bronze medal at the Tokyo Olympics for the Unified German team(only East German players were used). In the same year, Urbanczyk won the East German Sportsperson of the Year award – the only time that a footballer won the award. He also won the East German Footballer of the Year award that year.

RB: Gerd Kische 
Kische played for FC Hansa Rostock from 1970 to 1981. On the national level, he played for the East German national team (59 and 63 matches respectively). He won his first cap in 1971 against Mexico. He was a participant at the 1974 FIFA World Cup, where he played every matches. He also played every single at the 1976 Olympics in Montreal as East Germany won the Gold Medal.

SW: Hans-Jurgen Dorner
Hans-Jurgen Dorner joined Dynamo Dresden in 1968 where he won five first division DDR-Oberliga titles and five FDGB-Pokale (East German Cup). He captained Dynamo Dresden from 1977 to his retirement, and is the clubs most decorated captain and he was voted the teams greatest ever player in 1999.  He was capped 96 times for East Germany, winning a gold medal as vital part of that country's Olympic team at the 1976 Montreal Olympics.

Hans-Jurgen Dorner

CB/SW: Konrad Weise 
Konrad Weise was born in 1951.  He played his career at senior level for FC Carl Zeiss Jena between 1970 and 1986. He had over 80 caps between 1970 to 1981 for East Germany.  He ranked 4th in appearance record for the East German national team. He was a member of the 1974 World Cup team.  He also won a Gold medal at the 1976 Summer Olympics and bronze four years earlier in Munich.  

CM/SW: Matthias Sammer
With Borussia Dortmund as a player, Sammer won the Bundesliga and DFL-Supercup in 1995, the Bundesliga, DFL-Supercup, and European Footballer of the Year in 1996, and the UEFA Champions League and Intercontinental Cup in 1997. He also played for Inter Milan and Dynamo Dresden. With Die Mannschaft as a player, Sammer won the UEFA Euro 1996, where he was named the tournament's best player, and was subsequently awarded the Ballon d'Or later that year. Sammer retired with 74 total caps, 23 for East Germany and 51 for the unified side.  

CB/LB: Lothar Kurbjuweit 

Kurbjuweit played for Stahl Riesa (1965–1970) and FC Carl Zeiss Jena (1970–1983). With Carl Zeiss Jena, he reached the Final of the 1981 Cup Winners' Cup as their captain. He had 66 caps.  He won the Olympic Bronze Medal in 1972 and then, the Gold Medal in 1976.  He was a participant of the World Cup team in 1974, where GDR qualified for the first and only time .

SW/LB: Bernd Bransch 
Bernd Bransch was remembered for being the captain of the East German team at the 1974 World Cup Finals, where East Germany beat West Germany. He had 64 caps between 1967 and 1976.  He also won the Gold Medal at the 1976 Olympics.  He was the  East German Footballer of the Year twice (1968 and 1974).  He played his entire career for SC Chemie,  except for the 1973/74 season, in which he played for FC Carl Zeiss Jena. 

Bernd Bransch (R)

CM/DM: Reinhard Lauck 

Lauck played for 1. FC Union Berlin between 1968 and 1973. He moved to BFC Dynamo in 1973.  He led BFC Dynamo to win three East German championships in a row.  He also played for FC Energie Cottbus. He played for East Germany national team 33 times, and was a participant at the 1974 FIFA World Cup. He was one of the heros during the victory over West Germany in 1974.

CM: Jürgen Pommerenke 

Pommerenke played his entire professional career for 1. FC Magdeburg, though he began his career as a youngster with BSG Traktor Wegeleben. At international level he received 53 caps for the East Germany national team, scoring three goals, and was a participant at the 1974 FIFA World Cup. He earned an additional four caps for East Germany playing in the 1972 Summer Olympics, where he won a bronze medal.

AM/RWF: Günter Schröter

Schröter played for BSG Konsum Brandenburg before he joined SG Volkspolizei Potsdam in 1949.[3] Schröter was then delegated to SV Deutsche Volkspolizei Dresden in 1950. He played as a forward for SG Dynamo Dresden from 1950 to 1954 and then for SC Dynamo Berlin from 1954 to 1963. He won the DDR-Oberliga in the 1952-53 season with SG Dynamo Dresden and the 1959 FDGB-Pokal with SC Dynamo Berlin. He played 39 times for East Germany.

LW: Eberhard Vogel
Vogel was one of the greatest East German footballers. Vogel played for FC Karl-Marx-Stadt (1961–1970) and FC Carl Zeiss Jena (1970–1982). His 440 appearances for both clubs combined was the record for East German top-flight football. For the national team, he played for the East German national team 74 times, and was a participant at the 1974 FIFA World Cup. In 1969, he won the award for the GDR Footballer of the Year.

Eberhard Vogel

AM/LW: Jürgen Nöldner
Nicknamed "the Puskás of the DDR",  he spent his entire career with Vorwärts Berlin, winning East German champion five times. He won 30 caps and scoring 16 goals, including a goal against Austria which was the fastest in the national team's history. He was part of the all-East German team that represented Germany at the 1964 Summer Olympics, winning the bronze medal. In 1966 he was voted East German Footballer of the Year. 

CM: Manfred Kaiser 

Kaier  played in 31 international matches for the East German national team from 1955 to 1964 .  He made his debut in 1955 against Bulgaria at the Stadion der Weltjugend. For his club career, he first played for BSG Wismut Gera between 1950 and 1955.  He joined SC Wismut Karl-Marx-Stadt (Wismut Aue) in 1955.  He won four GDR championship titles ( 1955 , 1956 , 1957 and 1959 ). He was the first East German footballer to be awarded the title of East German Footballer of the Year in 1963.

AM/CM: Dieter Erler 
Erler played with Chemie Glauchau and Wismut Gera before moving SC Wismut Karl-Marx-Stadt in 1959.  In 1963, Erler moved to SC Karl-Marx-Stadt, where he played alongside Eberhard Vogel. In 1966–67 the team was crowned DDR-Oberliga champion. Between 1959 and 1968, he earned 47 caps and scored 12 goals for East Germany. He was voted GDR footballer of the year in 1967.

FW/AM: Jürgen Sparwasser
Sparwasser started his playing career with BSG Lokomotive Halberstadt in 1956. In 1965 he moved to 1. FC Magdeburg.  He was part of the team that won the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup in 1974. Between 1969 and 1977, he played in 49 times for East Germany. He also made six appearances for East Germany at the 1974 World Cup finals, where he scored the winning goal in a politically prestigious match against West Germany.

Jürgen Sparwasser

ST: Peter Ducke
Ducke was born in 1941 in Benesov, which was then a part of Sudetenland.  His family moved to Magdeburg after the War. He played most of his career for FC Carl Zeiss Jena (1959–1977). On the national level he played for East Germany national team in 63 matches (15 goals), and was a participant at the 1974 FIFA World Cup.  In the GDR, he was given the nickname Schwarzer Peter (English: Black Peter).

ST: Ulf Kirsten
Ulf Kirsten started with Dynamo Dresden.  He was one of the first East German footballers to enter the Bundesliga after the German reunification. In the German Bundesliga he played 350 matches for Bayer Leverkusen and scored 182 goals.  Kirsten's 100 caps are almost evenly split: 49 for East Germany and 51 for the re-unified Germany. Kirsten played for his country at the 1994 and 1998 World Cups and Euro 2000.

Ulf Kirsten

ST: Hans-Jürgen Kreische 
Kreische spent his entire career with his hometown club, Dynamo Dresden, scoring 127 goals in 234 DDR-Oberliga games between 1964 and 1978. He was East Germany's top scorer in 1971, 1972, 1973 and 1976, and was player of the year in 1973.  Kreische was an East German international, scoring 25 goals in 50 appearances. He was part of the 1974 World Cup squad, and was also in the 1972 Olympic bronze medal winning team. 

FW: Andreas Thom
Thom played as a forward for Dynamo Berlin, Bayer Leverkusen, Celtic and Hertha Berlin. In December, 1989, Thom became the first East German to sign for a Bundesliga club when he joined Bayer Leverkusen. He was also among the first group of former DDR player to play for the unified Germany.  He played 51 times for East Germany and played 10 times for the unified German national team in the early 1990s.  He went to Euro 1992.

ST: Joachim Streich 
Joachim Streich played as a striker for Aufbau Wismar from 1957 to 1963, TSG Wismar from 1963 to1967, Hansa Rostock from 1967 to 1975, and 1. FC Magdeburg from 1975 to 1985. Between 1969 and 1984, he was capped 102 times for East Germany, scoring 55 goals. He was their cap record holder and all-time leading scorer. He played in the 1974 World Cup Finals. He was named East Germany Player of the Year in 1979 and 1983.  

Joachim Streich 

Special Honorable Mention (players born in Eastern Germany, but did not play for DDR

Richard Hofmann, Matthias Herget, Norbert Nachtweih, Erwin Helmchen, Helmut Schön.

Honorable Mention

Wolfgang Blochwitz, Karl-Heinz Spickenagel, Bodo Rudwaleit, Klaus Sammer, Herbert Schoen, Dirk Stahmann, Frank Rohde, Kurt Zapf, Hans-Dieter Krampe, Siegmar Wätzlich,Werner Heine, Otto Fräßdorf, Rüdiger Schnuphase, Rüdiger Schnuphase, Ronald Kreer, Wolfram Löwe, Rainer Ernst, Gerd Weber, Dariusz Wosz, Reinhard Hafner, Matthias Liebers, Matthias Döschner, Rainer Ernst, Henning Frenzel, Helmut Nordhaus,   Uwe Zötzsche, Matthias Döschner, Ralf Minge, Falko Götz, Martin Hoffmann, Olaf Marschall.

 

Squad Explanation

-- The original team was created on January, 2018. I completely redid it in January, 2025.  This original one was very bad in my opinion.

-- Only players capped by East Germany are considered. I am including East German players who were also capped by the unified Germany. 

-- In a 1989 survey conducted by the FUWO, the top footballers in 40 years of GDR football were identified. The rankings were as follows: 1) Jürgen Croy, 2) Peter Ducke, 3) Joachim Streich, 4) Günter Schröter, 5) Hans-Jürgen Dörner, 6) Manfred Kaiser, 7) Klaus Urbanczyk, 8) Dieter Erler, 9) Willy Tröger, and 10) Jürgen Nöldner. The list continues with various other notable players ranked based on the survey results.  The names were: Eberhard Vogel, Hans-Jürgen Kreische, Bernd Bransch, Roland Ducke, Henning Frenzel, Andreas Thom, Otto Fräßdorf, Johannes Schöne, Konrad Weise, Herbert Pankau, Jürgen Pommerenke, Rene Müller, Helmut Nordhaus, Kurt Zapf, Reinhard Häfner, Karl-Heinz Spickennagel, Martin Hoffmann, Herbert Schoen, Alois Glaubitz, Rudolf Krause, Gerd Kische, Heinz Satrapa, Wolfgang Seguin, Heinz Tietz, Wolfgang Blochwitz, Gerhard Körner. Their best XI according to the survey comprised: Jürgen Croy, Klaus Urbanczyk, Hans-Jürgen Dörner, Konrad Weise, Bernd Bransch, Günter Schröter, Dieter Erler, Manfred Kaiser, Jürgen Nöldner, Peter Ducke, and Joachim Streich.

-- The IFHHS created an All-Time Best XI team for East Germany.  The starting lineup was as followed: Jurgen Croy, Klaus Urbanczyk, Bernd Bransch, Hans-Jürgen Dörner, Lothar Kurbjuweit, Jürgen Pommerenke, Jürgen Nöldner, Jürgen Sparwasser, Hans-Jürgen Kreische, Joachim Streich and Peter Ducke.

-- In 1974, East Germany qualified for their only time in World Cup Finals.  They played West Germany on 22 June 1974, in a group game of the 1974 World Cup, held in West Germany. It was the only time that the two sides met at the senior national team level, The game in Hamburg, in front of 62,000, was won 1–0 by East Germany courtesy of a goal by Jürgen Sparwasser.  The game was a historical moment for East Germany.  The following players made this all-time team: Jürgen Croy, Eberhard Vogel, Joachim Streich, Hans-Jürgen Kreische, Reinhard Lauck, Bernd Bransch, Konrad Weise, Lothar Kurbjuweit, Gerd Kische and Jürgen Sparwasser. Hans-Jurgen Dorner did not go to the World Cup Finals because of an illness.

East Germany beat West Germany at the WC Finals in 1974

-- Were those GDR players good enough for an reunified Germany? Jürgen Croy was widely considered one of the best goalkeepers in his generation. If he played for an unified Germany, he would be overshadowed by Sepp Maier, who was two years older.  Hans-Jurgen Dorner would have been Franz Beckenbauer's successor as Germany's sweeper. He would have played a major role at the 1978 World Cup Finals, the 1980 European Championship and the 1982 World Cup Finals. Eberhard Vogel was born on the same year as Wolfgang Overath who sometimes occupied Germany's left midfield spot.  Left winger Jupp Heynckes was also only two years younger which would make it difficult for Vogel to be an impact player for the German national team.  He would probably picked up some caps.  If Joachim Streich played for an unified Germany, he would be playing in the same time as Gerd Muller and Klaus Fischer.  However, he was 6 years younger than Gerd Muller and two years than Fischer.  His main challenger on the national team would be Dieter Muller and Karl-Heinz Rummenigge. But he might be help Germany to win the 1976 European Championship.  He might have improved Germany's performance at the 1978 World Cup Finals.

-- The United Team of Germany won a bronze medal at the 1964 Olympics.  The team consisted entirely of East German players. The two German teams played each other for the right to represent Germany in three Olympics(1956, 1960, and 1964).  East Germany team went to both 1960 and 1964 Olympics as the German team.  

-- In 1972, East and West Germany also met at the Olympics hosted in Munich, West Germany.  The East German, playing with its full team beat West Germany 3-2.

-- In the 1990's, East Germany might enter a golden age and qualify for a few major tournaments, but the unification stopped that.  They almost qualified for Italia 1990 with Matthias Sammer, Ulf Kirsten and Andreas Thom.  They only needed a draw against Austria on the last match of the World Cup Qualifiers. The trio later contributed to the German national team after the reunification in 1990. Thomas Doll also played that match as a sub.  He would become an important player at Euro 1992 for Germany. Dariusz Wosz and Olaf Marschall had been capped by DDR.

 -- Robert Enke, Carsten Jancker, Jörg Heinrich, Thomas Linke, Bernd Schneider and Michael Ballack emerged in the late 1990's. They never played for DDR but were groomed by East German clubs (See East German Players after 1990 ).These players could become the greatest generation of East German stars. Instead, Germany reunified, and East Germany came to an end.

Andreas Thom

-- I do not know if Lutz Eigendorf and Falko Götz were good enough to be considered to be all-time greats. They were well-known because they deflected to the West.  Lutz Eigendorf was the only active player who had capped for East Germany when he deflected.  Jürgen Sparwasser had retired when he left the East. Norbert Nachtweih also deflected to West Germany. He had a great career in the Bundesliga.  He also played with a young Zinedine Zidane at Cannes. The other deflectors I knew of were Horst Assmy, Marco Köller and Axel Kruse.  

Goalkeepers

-- Jürgen Croy was widely considered one of the best goalkeepers of his generation. He was one of the few East German footballers who were considered among the greatest in his generation. He helped East Germany win the Gold Medal at the 1976 Olympics. However, if he had played for a unified Germany, he would have been overshadowed by Sepp Maier, who was two years older.

-- René Müller was named East German Footballer of the Year twice. He was probably the second greatest goalkeeper in the history of the GDR. He was a key player for FC Lokomotive Leipzig when they reached the 1987 European Cup Winners' Cup final. In the semi-final against Girondins Bordeaux, they won in a penalty shootout in which Müller saved two penalties and scored the decisive one himself. However, they lost the final 0:1 to Ajax Amsterdam in Athens, with Marco van Basten scoring the only goal.

Rene Muller

-- Selecting the third goalkeeper was difficult. Wolfgang Blochwitz was the backup goalkeeper at the 1974 World Cup Finals. I did not know much about Karl-Heinz Spickenagel, who played for East Germany between 1952 and 1962. This left me with the choice between Hans-Ulrich Grapenthin and Bodo Rudwaleit. Bodo Rudwaleit was GDR's starting goalkeeper for about a decade and helped East Germany win the silver medal in the 1980 Moscow Olympics. He also had a decorated career with BFC Dynamo. Grapenthin. However, from discussions on internet forums, it seemed that Grapenthin was rated better. He was Croy's longtime backup goalkeeper and was named East German Player of the Year twice.

Defenders

-- Mathias Sammer's stardom came after the reunification in 1990. He helped Germany to win the UEFA Euro 1996, where he was named the tournament's best player, and was subsequently awarded the Ballon d'Or later that year.  He was probability the last great sweeper to play the game as the position no longer existed.  He should also be a midfielder.  Nevertheless, he was international player for about 4 years for GDR picking up 23 caps.  In the end, it was hard to ignore an East German international who won the Ballon d'Or.  His father Klaus Sammer was also a renowned defender/midfielder at his time.

-- Known as  "Beckenbauer of the East", Hans-Jürgen Dörner was arguably the greatest outfield player of the German Democratic Republic (GDR), especially considering that Matthias Sammer's prime years were spent playing for Unified Germany. He was named East Germany's Player of the Year on three occasions in 1977, 1984, and 1985).  

-- Konrad Weise was a part of the 1974 World Cup and 1976 Olympic team.  With Carl Zeiss Jena, Lothar Kurbjuweit reached the Final of the 1981 Cup Winners' Cup as their captain. I found his name mentioned frequently on several discussion forums.  The pair should be on this team. 

-- Herbert Schoen was ranked the 27th greatest footballer from GDR, but I did not see his name mentioned much elsewhere. Dirk Stahmann was a club hero with  FC Magdeburg.  Frank Rohde played 42 times for GDR before moving to play in the West after unification.  He was a star player with Hamburger SV, but he never played for the unified Germany. All those players only made honorable mentions.

-- Matthias Herget was born in 1955 in Annaberg-Buchholz, East Germany, but he was raised in West Germany. He earned 39 caps for West Germany between 1983 and 1988, establishing him as a West German player, rendering him ineligible for this team. Moreover, the presence of Sammer and Dorner would have excluded him from the squad. Nevertheless, I selected another sweeper Bernd Bransch primarily because I lacked a solution for the left-back position. 

-- Klaus Urbanczyk stood out as one of the select GDR players hailed as world-class. As his backup, I opted for Gerd Kische, a prominent figure from the 1970s era with a total of 63 caps. This choice meant edging out Ronald Kreer and Otto Fräßdorf. Kreer represented GDR 65 times between 1982 and 1989. Despite Fräßdorf being ranked the 17th greatest footballer from GDR, placing ahead of Kische at 30th, Kische's prominence mainly stemmed from his exploits in the 1970s. Additionally, Rüdiger Schnuphase was noted for his versatility, listed as a right midfielder, center back, and fullback.

Klaus Urbanczyk 

-- Bernd Bransch primarily operated as a libero, yet he frequently assumed the role of a left-back for the GDR national team. With a total of 72 caps, he led the team in 45 matches as captain, including the 1974 World Cup Finals. In contrast, in West Germany, he played as a libero, with Lothar Kurbjuweit occupying the starting left-back position. I included both players in the selection. Additionally, I considered Siegmar Wätzlich, Uwe Zötzsche, and Hans-Dieter Krampe. Matthias Döschner stood out for his versatility, adept at playing as a striker, left winger, or left-back based on the tactical requirements.

Midfielders/Wingers

-- First, I selected Reinhard Lauck who was one of the few famous defensive midfielders form GDR.  The soccer fans would remember his performance against West Germany in the 1974 World Cup Finals, in which he successfully contained Wolfgang Overath.  

-- Born in the GDR and developed within its sports system, Norbert Nachtweih naturally should be viewed as a GDR player.  Furthermore, during his prime, he stood out as one of the Bundesliga's premier German midfielders. Despite his exceptional abilities, his prior GDR youth international cap prevented him from representing West Germany at the senior level. Unlike Matthias Herget, he did not become a West German player. However, he defected to West Germany in 1976 before gaining a senior cap for the GDR, meaning he had minimal impact on the history of GDR football. 

-- In the modern era, Mathias Sammer should be considered as a central midfielder.  Jürgen Pommerenke was a central midfielder, but could also play in a deeper position.  He was  selected by IFHHS on their All-Time Best XI.  He was also ranked the 21st greatest player by FUWO.  The two of them with Lauck provided the deep position.

Matthias Sammer

-- Gerd Weber is possibly a defensive midfielder, having earned 35 caps for GDR. Nevertheless, he is predominantly recalled as the player who was apprehended by the Stasi shortly before his defection to the West, leading to a two-year sentence. I do not know how to rate him.

-- Jürgen Sparwasser became famous for scoring the winning goal in the 1974 World Cup match against West Germany. He was almost undisputed due to his frame in that match, but I was not sure if he was ahead Manfred Kaiser, Günter Schröter and Dieter Erler., all of whom were included in FUWO's All-Time Best XI.  In FUWO's survey, Manfred Kaiser was ranked 4th, Günter Schröter secured the 6th position, and Dieter Erler claimed the 8th spot as the greatest footballers from GDR. I decided to take all four of them.

Jürgen Sparwasser, Manfred Kaiser and Günter Schröter. 

-- Reinhard Hafner, Matthias Liebers and Rainer Ernst made on honorable mentions. Michael Ballack was groomed by the sport system of East Germany, but he was too young to be capped by GDR at any level.  He was 14 years old at the time of the Reunification of Germany.

-- Günter Schröter could operate as a right wing forward, I believed. I almost selected Thomas Doll because he could operate on the right.  He had 29 senior caps by 1990, but he did not reach stardom until he played for Hamburger SV after the unification.  Sammer was a different case.  He was already an important player at the end of DDR. He captained them on their last ever international match.

-- Eberhard Vogel was usually recognised as GDR's greatest winger.  He held the appearances record in DDR-Oberliga.  He is also the second leading scorer for the national team.  Jürgen Nöldner was known as "Fritz Walter of the East".  He was famous for his left foot.  He was one of the midfielders selected by both IFFHS and FUWO.  He was an attack midfielder who could play on the left.

Forwards

-- Joachim Streich is their cap record holder and all-time leading scorer for GDR. He is considered their greatest ever player.   His tally of 53 goals surpassed that of the second leading scorer, Eberhard Vogel, by more than double.  

-- Hans-Jürgen Kreische was a 4 times East German Player of the Year.  He would be another undisputed selection for this team.  Both IFHSS and FUWO selected Peter Ducke on their All-Time best XI team.  He was the East German Player of the Year in 1971. His brother Roland won the award the year before.

Hans-Jürgen Kreische 

-- Andreas Thom was the first East German to join a West German team after the fall of East Germany.  He played 51 times for GDR scoring 15 goals before the unification.  Meanwhile, Ulf Kirsten played 154 matches and scored 57 goals for Dynamo Dresden in the DDR-Oberliga.  Thom was the East Germany Player of the Year in the 1988 while Kirsten won the award a year later.  Both were born in the same year.  But for the unified Germany, Kirsten was a better player.  However, this team was about GDR football. At the very end of GDR, Thom was a more famous player.  

-- Actually, the last spot was between Thomas Doll and Ulf Kirsten.  Kirsten might be a more famous player than Doll in 1990 because he already played 51 times for GDR while Doll only had 29 caps.  Many of Doll's caps came as a sub during the World Cup Qualifiers in 1989.  So I decided to take Kirsten over Doll.

-- Martin Hoffmann helped FC Magdeburg to win the European Cup Winners' Cup in 1974.  He also played in the 1974 World Cup and won the Gold medal in the 1976 Olympics.  He was overshadowed by Thom in my opinion.

-- Richard Hofmann played for Germany between 1927 and 1933.  In all, he played 25 times for the national team, scoring 24 goals.  Helmut Schön was born in Dresden. He is best remembered for his exceptional career as manager of the West German national team in four consecutive World Cup tournaments, including winning the title in 1974. As a player, he was capped 16 times for Germany.  They were not eligible because he did not play for DDR and was not developed through the GDR sport system.

-- Falko Götz was a more recognizable figure to Western fans due to his defection in 1983 and subsequent Bundesliga appearances. Notably, he played a pivotal role in Bayer Leverkusen's UEFA Cup victory in 1987. However, this team did not require his services, as I prioritized players who made significant contributions to the GDR national team.

Formation