Clubs: Borussia Dortmund

• Schmelzer played youth football in his native Magdeburg before moving to the Dortmund academy in 2005 at the age of 17. Although he began his career as a left-winger, he switched to left-back and managed to oust long-serving Dedé from that berth in the 2009/10 season.

• Played for Dortmund's amateur side in the Regionalliga Nord until Jürgen Klopp promoted him to the first team in summer 2008; made his senior debut in a German Cup tie against Rot-Weiss Essen followed, a week later, by his Bundesliga bow in a 3-2 win against Bayer 04 Leverkusen.

• Ever-present in Dortmund's 2010/11 Bundesliga title triumph – conspicuous by his headband – and scored his first goal for the club (in a 5-0 defeat of 1. FC Köln) the following season as the Schwarzgelben retained the championship.

• A European U21 champion with Germany in 2009 − making four appearances − he returned to Sweden to make his senior debut for the Nationalmannschaft in a November 2010 friendly, playing the full 90 minutes of a goalless draw.

• Played all 1,080 minutes – 12 matches – of Dortmund's run to the 2013 UEFA Champions League final, scoring the winner against Real Madrid CF on matchday three.

UEFA honours
UEFA European Under-21 Championship: winner 2009