Philipp Lahm is one of the greatest players in German football history.

In a glittering career with Germany and Bayern Munich, he has won 18 major honours and captained his country to success at the 2014 World Cup.

Over breakfast at Bayern’s training base, he spoke to Sportsmail’s JAMIE CARRAGHER about his burning desire to give incoming Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola a perfect send-off in Saturday night's German Cup final against Borussia Dortmund.

DOMINIC KING listened in…

Philipp Lahm speaks to Sportsmail columnist Jamie Carragher at Bayern Munich's training base

Lahm, 32, has collected 18 honours over the course of his illustrious career with Bayern and Germany

The defender turned midfielder discussed his experiences in the game and playing under Pep Guardiola

CARRAGHER: You have been one of the best full backs we have seen over the last 10 years but you are going to retire in two years. Why?

LAHM: It all comes to an end at some point. I have to prepare for it and that’s why I said I will retire in 2018. I’ll be 35 then and I want to decide when I finish playing. Weren’t you the same? You were 35, too, right?

CARRAGHER: Exactly. You want to say when you are finished rather than the club telling you. But there is plenty of football to play before then so tell me how you think the full back position has changed down the years.

LAHM: Football as a whole has changed. Look at the top teams and you see a lot of midfielders on the pitch. You don’t really have traditional full backs any more.

CARRAGHER: We watch Bayern a lot because Pep is coming to England and I’m always on the phone to Xabi Alonso. I have to understand this midfield/full back position that Pep makes you play. I’ve never seen it before. You and David Alaba come inside and then go back to the wing?

LAHM: I’m not going to give you all his secrets! But he is an incredible coach on a completely different level in terms of tactics. I have played as a right winger at times but this season I’ve also played more in the middle of midfield and right back. It depends on the tactics used against the different opponents.

Lahm led Germany to the World Cup in 2014, when the national side beat Argentina in the final in Brazil

Lahm celebrates with David Alaba and the rest of the Bayern squad following their Bundesliga triumph

CARRAGHER: Pep described you as being the most intelligent player he has worked with in terms of understanding tactics. Was that something that came naturally or is it something Pep helped you with?

LAHM: A combination of the two. I’ve always placed great value on tactics. Secondly, I was always smaller and more slightly built so I had to adapt my approach and I learnt a lot through that. Pep then added ideas that made it more fun and put me in midfield — and that gave me a different perspective.

CARRAGHER: How did you find playing in midfield?

LAHM: (becoming animated) Super, super! I played at right or left back for 10 years and that teaches you how to handle every situation. It’s good to play in another position and get another view. That brought me up a level in spite of my age.

CARRAGHER: You started your career with a spell on loan at Stuttgart but the rest of your time has been spent here. I read that Barcelona had an interest in signing you back in 2008. How close did you come to leaving?

The veteran heaped praise on Guardiola, saying the Spaniard's tactics are on 'a different level to others'

Lahm is presented with a Weißbier of beer as Bayern's traditional victory celebrations got underway last week

LAHM: Frank Rijkaard was still the coach then but if I had signed, Pep would have been my manager. That is the only time I thought ‘what if?’ and come close to leaving.

CARRAGHER: I played only for Liverpool and never thought of going elsewhere. What stopped you from trying La Liga, Serie A or England?

LAHM: I came here when I was 12. I always thought about what would happen if I left and Bayern went on to win the Champions League. I didn’t want that so I stayed with my club and all my team-mates I’d grown up with to win the Champions League. That was my main target.

CARRAGHER: So I can’t talk you into joining Jurgen Klopp at Liverpool?!

LAHM: (laughs) Not this time! I watch the English league more now Klopp’s there. The atmosphere is incredible and Xabi Alonso has told me about the fantastic atmosphere at Liverpool but I’m going nowhere.

He won 113 caps for his country during 10 years in Germany colours, scoring five goals in the process

Lahm and Carragher spoke ahead of the German Cup final against Borussia Dortmund this weekend

PHILIPP LAHM'S CAREER TO DATE 2001-2003: Bayern Munich II 2002-present: Bayern Munich 2003-2005: Stuttgart (on loan) Advertisement

CARRAGHER: You have just won your fourth consecutive Bundesliga title, something that has never been done in Germany. Three of the titles came under Pep but how will his stay in Munich be judged without him winning the Champions League?

LAHM: In England it might not be the case, but here it’s a success for a coach to be at the same club for three years. He won the Bundesliga three times, he can do the Double twice and we’ve been in the Champions League semi-finals every year. We missed out on winning but he has been a success, absolutely. He took us to another level.

CARRAGHER: Is it more than just trophies with him? By that I mean, has he elevated the way you play, the way you train to a level you didn’t expect? I have watched his training and the level of intensity is really noticeable. Has he educated you as a player?

LAHM: You’re always measured by the number of trophies but he developed a lot of players with the way he thinks about tactics, the way he analyses games and prepares teams for particular opponents. He really helps players develop and he even helped me improve at the age of 30. You’re right — with Pep it’s more than just about winning trophies.

The Bayern captain wants to ensure Guardiola leaves the club on a high with victory over Dortmund

Lahm has been with Munich all his pro career, making over 300 appearances for the German champions

CARRAGHER: When you won the Treble under Jupp Heynckes in 2013, how big was that for Bayern? You had seen Dortmund dominate under Klopp for two years and also lost the Champions League final in 2012 to Chelsea. Did you need to make a statement?

LAHM: When you don’t win the title for two years here, people start asking questions. We lost the Champions League final in Munich and also lost to Dortmund in the Cup final (in 2012) so we were in a critical position. Of course, it helped motivate us to improve to enable us to beat Dortmund. That was great fun, without a doubt.

CARRAGHER: Is that why you kept signing Dortmund’s best players? First Mario Gotze (2013), then Robert Lewandowski (2014) and now Mats Hummels!

LAHM: (laughs) He’s a very good player. If you look at our recent history, then you see we achieved a minimum target of reaching the Champions League semi-final and that’s a good basis to attract players. Money does play a part but so does the prospect of being successful in Europe. We’ve done that over the past few years by always making it to the last four in the Champions League.

CARRAGHER: Let’s look at the World Cup. First it was Fritz Walter (1954), then Franz Beckenbauer (1974) and Lothar Matthaus (1990). Now Philipp Lahm is Germany’s fourth World Cup-winning captain. It sounds good?

From left: Karl-Heinz Rummenigge - the Bayern chief executive, Guardiola and Lahm receive their championship rings during the club's champions dinner at the Postpalast on May 14

Lahm believes Guardiola has helped him develop both as a player and a person during the Spaniard's tenure

When you don’t win the title for two years here, people start asking questions. Philipp Lahm on the pressures of playing for Bayern Munich

LAHM: (laughs) Not bad! Not bad at all!

CARRAGHER: How did your Bayern role differ to the way you played in midfield for Germany during the 2014 World Cup? Could you do the same as you did for Pep or did Joachim Low want other things?

LAHM: With the national team you don’t have as much time together to work on tactics. You know how it is. That was why it was so chaotic. But, yes, I enjoyed it. I moved into midfield for the first games when (Bastian) Schweinsteiger and (Sami) Khedira were injured.

CARRAGHER: Was it a big pressure when you went to Brazil? You hadn’t won the World Cup since 1990 —which isn’t a very long time in England! — but did you feel you had to deliver a trophy?

LAHM: There was a sense of expectation on us. We had a very good, young side but we also had experienced players in the squad who’d always got to the semi-final stages at least before that. There was pressure but it was positive. It feels great when you’re playing to win a title for the people. I knew it would be my last tournament with Germany.

However, he has no inclination to follow the former Barcelona player into coaching when he decides to retire

He said: 'I can’t imagine standing outside again every day and having to do more work than as a player'

CARRAGHER: I went to the final with my son. I always think in those big games how fine the margins are: Mario Gotze got the winner for you in extra-time but Gonzalo Higuain had a big chance in the first half…

LAHM: You are right. Messi had one in the second half, too, that just went past the post. We played Algeria in the round of 16 and we won after extra-time so that was tight.

CARRAGHER: There has been talk that Germany might try to bring you out of retirement for the European Championship. Would you consider that? If you won, you’d complete your set of medals…

LAHM: No! Definitely not. I think we will have some barbecues at home, drink a few beers and watch the games on television.

CARRAGHER: That sounds like a good plan! Who is going to win it then?

LAHM: Germany deserve to be favourites but they’ll have to start well. Then there’s France, Belgium, Spain. England maybe…

CARRAGHER: You’re laughing when you say England! What was the biggest relief for you then? Was it lifting the World Cup or completing the Treble with Bayern?

Lahm and Bayern team-mate Thomas Muller share a smile during their club's title celebrations

Lahm moved from full back into a midfield role in recent years and said the experience has been 'super'

No! Definitely not! I think we will have some barbecues at home, drink a few beers and watch the games on television! Philipp Lahm's answer when asked whether he could be tempted out of retirement for Euro 2016

LAHM: It’s difficult. The Champions League was incredible and if you celebrate with the lads you grew up with, that’s fantastic. It was like us being a family. With the national team you keep meeting up with each other and I was in the squad for 10 years. And you know you can be the best in the world and that’s the biggest thing in football. It’s very difficult to decide between the two on an emotional level.

CARRAGHER: With Pep coming to England, what is the big thing Manchester City’s players will have to get used to? Do you think he will have problems with the amount of games we play in England? Training is so important to him…

LAHM: The first thing they will have to know is this: keep your position. That is what he places greatest value on. In terms of the schedule, when you get as far as we do in the Champions League then you have to play a lot of games and we have fixture congestion here, too.

In the pre-season it depends on how many international players are away and how many at home. It will be an issue but I think he’ll manage it really well. I’m not worried. He’s a brilliant coach and I’m sure he’ll do a great job.

Now he is preparing for a new era at Bayern as Carlo Ancelotti arrives to take over from Guardiola

The Bayern skipper is pragmatic about the impending change, saying: 'It comes to an end at some point'

Lahm was in good spirits when he sat down with Carragher to talk about his career and the future

I’ll never be a coach. I can’t imagine standing outside again every day and having to do more work than as a player. I can’t see it. Philipp Lahm on the prospect of stepping into management

CARRAGHER: What was your first meeting with him like? Do you remember what he said he had planned for you and what his vision for Bayern was?

LAHM: It was during the pre-season prior to the 2013-14 season. I was away and I spoke to him on the phone. He made a very, very good impression on me. What else can I remember? There was the first training camp on Lake Garda where there was a lot of work on tactics. It was all new and we learnt a new approach but I think he needed to get to know German football first in terms of how it’s played and where the strengths are.

CARRAGHER: How much will you miss him? But, equally, how much are you looking forward to working with Carlo Ancelotti?

LAHM: I don’t know about missing him. We professional footballers are used to it. From the moment you start playing your team-mates and coaches change or move on. That’s the way it is. You have a successful period and then it comes to an end at some point. Then a new coach arrives and I’m getting another manager experienced in European football who’s already won the Champions League. It’s sure to be interesting.

Lahm plans on watching this summer's European Championship at home with friends and family

CARRAGHER: You have had lots of top managers: do you see yourself following them or do you have something else in mind? If you stay in football will you be more like Pep or a chief executive like Karl-Heinz Rummenigge? We don’t have that in England where players move into the boardroom…

LAHM: I’ll never be a coach. I can’t imagine standing outside again every day and having to do more work than as a player. I can’t see it. I don’t know what will happen and I haven’t talked to anybody at the club but being a coach is definitely ruled out. But I do think it’s important for players to stay involved with clubs after they retire. They are the ones who’ve experienced what it’s like on and off the pitch. That’s why it is so important.

Here at Bayern there are lots of former players in management and on the board. It’s crucial they are integrated into the club and the club fully embraces them.

CARRAGHER: If you are finishing in 2018, you only have two more opportunities to win the Champions League. Would you have any regrets if you only had one winner’s medal or would winning it once bring fulfilment?

The ex-Germany captain has tipped his country to win the title but also believes France stand a good chance

LAHM: I can assure you I aiming to win it again! I’m happy I was lucky enough to have the team-mates and the team to make it possible to win the Champions League. The same applies to the World Cup. But I don’t like looking back. There are still things to be achieved.

CARRAGHER: So on the subject of medals, you have a chance to add one more against Borussia Dortmund in the German Cup final. How desperate are you to finish with one last win to send Pep away in style?