Midfield anchorman Tomas Galasek will have the honour of leading the Czech Republic in the country's first ever World Cup finals appearance. He made his debut for the national team in a 4-1 win against Finland in 1995, but missed out on the 1996 and 2000 European Championships. However, he was a regular starter in the team that reached the semi-final of Euro 2004 and Karel Bruckner had no hesitation in handing him the armband when Pavel Nedved retired after the tournament. The 33-year-old started his career with Banik Ostrava, but has played most of his club football in the Netherlands following his transfer to Willem II in 1996. He moved to Ajax four years later and has since collected two Eredivisie title winners' medals.