20 Facts About Matthias Sindelar

Matthias Sindelar played as a centre-forward for the celebrated Austrian national side of the early 1930s that became known as the Wunderteam, which he captained at the 1934 World Cup.

Matthias Sindelar was voted the best Austrian footballer of the 20th Century in a 1999 poll by the International Federation of Football History and Statistics and was named Austria's sportsman of the century a year before.

Young Matej, whose name would be Germanized as Matthias Sindelar, began playing football in the streets with the other children of the neighbourhood, many of whom were immigrants from Bohemia and Moravia.

Matthias Sindelar began his footballing career with Hertha Vienna, whom he joined in 1918.

Already considered to be "an excellent dribbler and finisher" as a teenager, Matthias Sindelar had quickly progressed into the first team by the early 1920s.

Matthias Sindelar quickly earnt his keep at Hertha Vienna, scoring his first goals in the national championship, in particular, thanks to his quick feet, and becoming a vital cog in their team.

Now a free agent but still injured, Matthias Sindelar consulted the club doctor of SV Amateure who suggested that he should undergo meniscus surgery.

Matthias Sindelar helped the team win the Austrian Cup five times across an eleven-year spell - in 1925,1926,1933,1935 and 1936.

Much like his time at Hertha Vienna, Matthias Sindelar was a center forward and utilised his technical ability, talent on the ball, and eye for goal to overcome his physical disadvantages.

Matthias Sindelar was seen as a great leader in the pitch.

Matthias Sindelar was arguably one of Europe's best and, in scope, most influential footballers of his generation, recognized for his ball control, passing and dribbling, and especially his creativity.

From 1926 to 1937, Matthias Sindelar was capped 43 times for his country, scoring 26 goals.

Matthias Sindelar became an essential part of the Austrian Wunderteam that was coached by Hugo Meisl, until the two later had a falling out.

Matthias Sindelar made his international debut in 1926 and played well before falling out of favour with the disciplinarian Meisl.

Everyone was arguing for Matthias Sindelar's recall and Meisl changed his mind.

Matthias Sindelar scoring 3 goals to make him Austria's all-time top goalscorer at the Central European International Cup.

Austria was then defeated by the host nation, with Matthias Sindelar affected by the harsh marking of Luis Monti.

Matthias Sindelar is claimed to have celebrated extravagantly in front of senior Nazi dignitaries.

However, in a 2000s documentary screened on the BBC, Egon Ulbrich, a lifelong friend of Matthias Sindelar, stated that a local official was bribed to record his death as an accident, which ensured that he would receive a state funeral.

Matthias Sindelar was ranked as Austria's best footballer of the twentieth century by the IFFHS, ranking as the world's 22nd best.