The son of Miroslav Kadlec, captain of the Czech Republic side that reached the final of EURO '96, Michal Kadlec is every bit as important and influential to the current team. A calm, composed defender who is equally adept at left-back, his trusty left foot and aerial ability are useful assets at set pieces.

• Spent much of his childhood in Germany, where his father had eight seasons with 1. FC Kaiserslautern, but returned to his homeland to begin his professional career with 1. FC Synot.

• Joined AC Sparta Praha in January 2005 and won the Czech title at the first attempt; was also crowned champion a second time in 2007 and scooped a hat-trick of Czech Cups with the country's most decorated club, scoring in the shoot-out during the 2006 and 2008 finals.

• Made his UEFA Champions League debut in a 1-1 home draw against AFC Ajax in September 2005 and started all six group games for Sparta that season.

• Played for the Czech Republic at the 2007 UEFA European Under-21 Championship in the Netherlands and made his senior debut in his country's penultimate UEFA EURO 2008 qualifier – a 3-1 win against Slovakia – but had just ten minutes of action at the final tournament.

• Joined Bayer 04 Leverkusen in 2008 and became a star turn at the Rhineland club, notably in helping Jupp Heynckes' team to the runners-up spot in 2010/11, which brought guaranteed qualification for the following season's UEFA Champions League, in which he scored against holders FC Barcelona in the round of 16.

• The only ever-present in the Czech Republic's successful UEFA EURO 2012 qualification, he was on the pitch for all 900 minutes of the campaign and scored four goals, including a vital late penalty in Scotland.