Former East Germany football icon Kreische dies at age 78

Former East Germany football great Hans-Jürgen Kreische died at age 78 on Tuesday night, his long-time club Dynamo Dresen said, citing his family.

Kreische won 50 East Germany caps, scoring 25 goals. He was part of the team that famously beat hosts West Germany at the 1974 World Cup, and he won Olympic bronze in 1972.

Kreische played 344 matches for Dresden in which he scored 188 goals. He won five East German league titles and one cup with them, and was league top scorer in four seasons.

“Hansi was undoubtedly one of the greatest sportsmen of his time," former Dresden player and sporting director Ralf Minge said.

"As young lads, we looked up to him like we did to hardly anyone else. Whenever he stepped onto the pitch, magical moments were never far away.”