A versatile defender who generally operates at left-back but can also play in midfield, Dennis Aogo has had a stop-start international career with Germany since he made his debut on the eve of the 2010 FIFA World Cup. Born in the south west of Germany, he has spent the past four seasons up in the north of the country with Hamburger SV.

• Of Nigerian parentage on his father's side but a German native, he was born and raised near Karlsruhe, and it was in the Black Forest, at SC Freiburg, that he launched his professional career, making his senior debut at 17.

• Came close to helping Freiburg win promotion to the Bundesliga in three successive seasons, finishing fourth, fourth and fifth respectively, before earning a personal promotion to Germany's top flight with a 2008 transfer to Hamburg.

• Helped HSV reach back-to-back European semi-finals − in the 2008/09 UEFA Cup and 2009/10 UEFA Europa League − while establishing himself as a regular in the Bundesliga; won the 2009 UEFA European Under-21 Championship with Germany, appearing in all five matches.

• Made his senior international debut against Malta in an Aachen friendly on 13 May 2010 and travelled to the World Cup in South Africa the following month, making his competitive debut in the third-place play-off against Uruguay; started two UEFA EURO 2012 qualifiers − at home to Kazakhstan and in Azerbaijan.

• Finally scored his first goal for Hamburg − over three years after his arrival − in a German Cup tie against SV Eintracht Trier 05 on 25 October 2011.

UEFA honours
UEFA European Under-21 Championship: winner 2009