Patrik Berger

Early career

He began his footballing career as a youth player at Sparta Prague in 1989, securing a professional contract two years later with rivals Slavia Prague. Establishing himself as a senior regular, Berger competed in Europe and earned selection for Czechoslovakia and, following its establishment, the Czech Republic.

Borussia Dortmund

After 90 league appearances and 24 goals, Berger was purchased by Ottmar Hitzfeld's Borussia Dortmund in 1995 for a reported £500,000. In August 1995 he played in the DFL-Supercup, as Dortmund beat Borussia Mönchengladbach to win the title. While Dortmund went on to win the Bundesliga title in the 1995–96 season, Berger was frequently used as a substitute, making 14 of his 27 league appearances from the bench. Hitzfeld preferred to employ Berger as a defensive midfielder as he considered him to be most suited to the role. Berger scored four goals for Dortmund in the German top-flight. Liverpool's interest in Berger was stimulated by the performances of the Czech Republic during Euro 1996, organised in England, where he scored a penalty in the final. The club approached both Berger and Karel Poborský, who elected to transfer to Manchester United after the competition's conclusion. Berger did accept Liverpool's contract offer and completed his transfer in August 1996 for £3.25 million.

Liverpool

Berger and his family settled in Southport, Merseyside, where they resided near retired players Kenny Dalglish and…

Berger represented the youth teams of Czechoslovakia from the under-15 level, working his way up through under-16, under-17 and under-18 between 1988 and 1991. For these junior teams he had a record of a total of six goals in 49 appearances. During this time, he won the 1990 UEFA European Under-16 Championship with the under-16 team, scoring in the final against Yugoslavia. In a FIFA World Cup qualifier on 23 March 1993, Berger debuted for the Czechoslovakia against Cyprus, which ended in a 1–1 draw. In October 1995, he scored the second goal in a qualification match for Euro 1996 against Belarus, which the Czechs won 2–0. Berger was part of the Czech Republic team who took part in Euro 1996, but Martin Frýdek was preferred to Berger in the starting lineup for the first match against Germany. Berger went on to play in all of his nation's matches in the tournament, scoring the famous penalty spot in the final to give the Czech Republic a 1–0 lead against Germany. However, the Czech Republic ultimately lost on the golden goal rule in extra time. Between 1997 and 1998, Berger boycotted the Czech national team due to a conflict with head coach Dušan Uhrin. He returned to the national set-up after a 17-month absence following the appointment of Jozef Chovanec as Uhrin's replacement. He made a notable return to the national team, scoring two goals from free kicks in a qualification match against Estonia. The next major international tournament Berger took part in was Euro 2000.…

Berger played mainly as an attacking midfielder, also being known as a winger. He became noted for his powerful strikes, surging runs, and strong left foot. Teammate at Liverpool Steven Gerrard said of Berger that "he was the best left-footed striker of a ball I have seen".

Berger was born in Prague, Czechoslovakia. His uncle is the Czech footballer Jan Berger. He married wife Jaroslava, and has two children, son Patrik and daughter Valentýnka. He gained a British passport in 2001 after having spent five years playing club football in England. This enabled him to play without needing a work permit, which he had previously required due to the Premier League's rules on non-EU players.