Kahn has been the goalkeeper of the finals (Allsport)

By Jason Hughes, PA International, Yokohama

Oliver Kahn is rightly regarded as the world's best goalkeeper, and he has lived up to that reputation throughout this tournament.

His value to Germany's ambitions in the Far East was summed up by coach Rudi Voller immediately after the 33-year-old had repelled everything the United States could throw at him during the quarter-final.

"If we wanted to get far in this World Cup, we knew we could only do that with a fantastic Oliver Kahn," said Voller.

Kahn, who won his 51st cap against South Korea in the semi-final, embarked on his journey to the very pinnacle of his profession at the age of six in 1975 with hometown club Karlsruhe.

Kahn was later inspired by a Sepp Maier goalkeeping collection he received as a present, and so he worked his way up through the ranks before finally making his Bundesliga debut in 1990.

In 1994, he signed for Bayern Munich £1.6million, a fee which still represents a German record for a goalkeeper.

Over the last eight years Kahn has built up a collection of personal accolades, in conjunction with helping Bayern Munich win a number of trophies, including the European Cup last year when he emerged the hero with three penalty shoot-out saves to help beat Valencia.

International recognition, though, eluded him for some time. Despite making his debut in 1995 against Switzerland, he was forced to act as understudy to Bodo Illgner and then Andreas Kopke at USA 94, Euro 96 and France 98.

When Kopke retired at the end of the World Cup in France, Kahn was finally given his chance to make the number one shirt his own - and he has not looked back since.