BERLIN, June 16: Former West German international Heinz Flohe, who was a member of the squad that won the 1974 World Cup, has died aged 65 after a long illness in his home town of Euskirchen, it was reported by the Cologne Express on Sunday.

The former attacking midfielder, who was capped 39 times, had been in a coma since suffering a stroke in May 2010.

Flohe, who also was part of the West German squads in the 1976 European championships and 1978 World Cup finals, spent most of his career with Cologne with whom he won the domestic double in 1978, having already won the German Cup in 1968 and 1977.

He was an unused substitute in the 1974 final which saw a team that comprised legends Sepp Maier, Franz Beckenabauer and Gerd Mueller come from behind to beat a hugely-talented Dutch side 2-1 in front of their own fans in Munich.

Flohe retired in 1980, after suffering a career ending injury playing for 1860 Munich, which had seen him play 343 Bundesliga games.—AFP