Germany 
It is a mark of Metzelder's standing in the game that he was named in a squad as strong as Germany's provisional 26-man party just five days after making his return following six months on the sidelines.
A foot injury sustained in December and operated on in February kept him out of action until mid-May, but his defensive partnership with Per Mertesacker is so good Joachim Low gave him every chance to make his final squad.
An integral part of the line-up since injuries to Jens Nowotny and Cristian Worns saw him thrown in at the deep end, Metzelder grabbed his chance immediately by being voted the best player under 23 at the 2002 World Cup.
At that stage he had just won the Bundesliga title with Borussia Dortmund and quickly appeared on shopping lists of club managers around Europe, with Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson one of his biggest admirers.
He eventually joined Real Madrid last summer, though his first season at the Bernabeu would be wrecked by that foot injury.
An accomplished performer, Metzelder has all the attributes any manager could want from a defender including being genuinely two-footed.
