With the upcoming clash with Germany on Tuesday, here are our top ten Germans in Premier League history.
10. Andre Schurrle – Chelsea 2013 –
Yet to show the league what he’s truly capable of, but it’s great for the division to have a talent such as his to call on. Having bagged his first goal for the club against Manchester City, the £18m summer signing from Bayer Leverkusen will no doubt light up the country once he is used to the pace and speed of the English top flight.
Also now a key member of the German national team, he has already amassed 29 caps and scored 11 goals at the age of just 23.
9. Steffen Freund – Tottenham Hotspur (1998-2003) Leicester City (2004)
The midfielder joined Tottenham from the Champions League winning side of Borussia Dortmund in 1998 and quickly set about adding some much needed class and style into the middle of the park. He became a cult hero during his time at While Heart Lane, having failed to score a single goal in five years there, though his work ethic and commitment more than made up for the lack of goal action, and he also helped the club to a League Cup win in 1999.
A short spell with Leicester toward the end of his career yielded very little other than being choked by Duncan Ferguson, but he is now Andre Villas-Boas’ right hand man back at Spurs.
8. Thomas Hitzlsperger – Aston Villa (2001-05) West Ham United (2010-11) Everton (2012-13)
Little Tommy Hitzlsperger wasn’t a fan of scoring taps ins, and nearly all 13 of his goals for the West Midlands side were thunderbolts that eventually earned him the nickname ‘Der Hammer’. He made close to 100 appearances for the club, who had beaten Bayern Munich to his signature and for a while there was hope that he would go on to become a world class star.
He didn’t quite make it that far, but 52 international caps certainly proved that he was a very good player and Villa fans still hold an affection for him as he never lost his strange hybrid Brummie-German accent.
Two spells with West Ham and Everton were largely unsuccessful, and he retired over the summer thanks to consistent injuries. 
7. Christian Ziege – Middlesbrough (1999-2000) Liverpool (2000-01) Tottenham Hotspur (2001-04)
Though he only won one League Cup during his time in England, his arrival during the late ’90s to Middlesbrough from Milan proved that the division was still on the up. A successful first season on Teesside was enough to prompt Liverpool to splash out on him and bring him to Anfield, but a limited contribution thanks to injuries meant that he was moved onto Spurs just a season later.
He stayed for three years at Spurs, but increasing injury problems meant that he was soon shipped back to Germany. 
6. Markus Babbel – Liverpool (2000-04) Blackburn Rovers (2003-04)
The German international took the Premier League by storm thanks to his charismatic darting runs down the right flank and he was a part of the team that won the FA Cup, League Cup, Community Shield UEFA Cup and UEFA Super Cup in 2001, even managing to bag himself a goal in the UEFA Cup final – a thrilling 5-4 win over Spanish side Alaves.
However, his career in England hit the skids when he was diagnosed with Guillain–Barré syndrome and was subsequently robbed a year of his career. However, he made a positive comeback with Blackburn for a season before heading home to Stuttgart, whom he later managed in 2008. 
5. Jens Lehmann – Arsenal ( 2003-08) (2011)
Lehmann had a reputation as something of a hothead when he arrived from Borussia Dortmund, and many accused him of having an inflated ego and a chip on his shoulder from not being able to displace Oliver Kahn from the German national side.
Replacing David Seaman, and seeing off challenges from Manuel Alumnia, he was a part of the last Arsenal side to win the league in 2004, the FA Cup in 2005, and was even a Champions League runner up a year later.
He returned for a year in 2011 but could only make a solitary appearance.
4. Mesut Ozil – Arsenal 2013 –
Having only joined over the summer the jury is still out on Ozil by all rights, but judging by his flying start in the Premier League he will undoubtedly be a hit and go on to establish himself as an Arsenal legend.
Already with three goals from 13 appearances this season, he has taken to the pace and physicality of English football like a duck to water and has taken the attention in his stride. He will be crucial to any future success that the club may have.
3. Jurgen Klinsmann – Tottenham Hotspur (1994-95) (1997-98)
At the time Klinsmanns’ signing at Spurs was a genuine surprise as he was a world class footballer joining a less than world class club. However, he quickly set about proving that he was more than capable of handling the English top flight by bagging a brilliant return of 21 goals in 41 appearances and in doing so, created a goal celebration that was emulated by millions after.
He returned home to Bayern Munich at the end of the season but made a return at the end of his career in 1997 where he still managed to notch a respectable nine goals in 15 appearances.
2. Michael Ballack – Chelsea 2006-10
When Ballack joined Chelsea from Bayern Munich after the 2006 World Cup he was a consistent name brought up on the Balon D’or shortlist and many expected him to take the Premier League by storm.
It took him time to get acclimatised to his new surroundings, but once he did he would go on to pick up a League Cup, three FA Cups, and a Premier League title, as well as a Champions League runners up medal.
1. Dietmar Hamann – Newcastle United (1998-99) Liverpool (1999-2006) Manchester City (2006-09)
Brought to England off the back of his performances at the 1998 World Cup by Kenny Dalgleish he quickly set about asserting his influence into a Magpies midfield that at the time was still expected to challenge for honours at the top of the table.
However, it wasn’t until his move to Liverpool went through that people really saw what he was capable of and during his seven years at Anfield he picked up two League Cups, two FA Cups, a UEFA Cup, two UEFA Super Cups and the Champions League.