Lars Ricken

Lars Ricken (born 10 July 1976) is a German retired footballer who played as a midfielder.

He represented Borussia Dortmund during his entire professional career, which spanned 15 years, being the youngest player to ever appear for the club in an official match, a record later broken by Nuri Şahin.

A German international for five years, Ricken represented the country at the 2002 World Cup and the 1999 Confederations Cup.

Football career

Born in Dortmund, Ricken joined local BV Borussia at an early age, and made his Bundesliga debut on 8 March 1994 in a 1–2 home defeat against VfB Stuttgart, aged not yet 18. From the following season onwards, he became a regular.

Ricken scored a memorable long-distance goal in the final of the 1996–97 edition of the UEFA Champions League against Juventus FC, which stood as the fastest in a final of the competition by a substitute, finding the net after just 16 seconds on the field. He also combined for 47 matches and eight goals in the team's back-to-back national titles (1994–96).