| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | March 20, 1983 | ||
| Place of birth | Hvidovre, Denmark | ||
| Height | 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in) | ||
| Playing position | Attacking midfielder | ||
| Club information | |||
| Current club | VfL Wolfsburg | ||
| Number | 8 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1997–1998 | Hvidovre | ||
| 1998–2001 | Brøndby | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 2001–2005 | Brøndby | 96 | (34) |
| 2005–2009 | Auxerre | 130 | (19) |
| 2009– | VfL Wolfsburg | 26 | (1) |
| National team‡ | |||
| 1999–2000 | Denmark U17 | 9 | (1) |
| 2000–2002 | Denmark U19 | 7 | (0) |
| 2004 | Denmark U20 | 1 | (0) |
| 2002–2006 | Denmark U21 | 26 | (10) |
| 2003– | Denmark | 36 | (4) |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 14 May 2011. † Appearances (Goals). |
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Thomas Kahlenberg (born March 20, 1983) is a Danish footballer, who plays as an attacking midfielder for German team Wolfsburg. He started his career with Brøndby IF, winning two Danish Superliga championship, and played four seasons at French club AJ Auxerre. He has played 29 games and scored three goals for the Danish national team, and represented Denmark at the 2004 European Championship. He was named 2004 Danish under-21 Player of the Year.
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At the age of 15,[1] Kahlenberg moved from lower-league club Hvidovre IF to the defending Danish champions Brøndby IF in the Danish Superliga championship.
Kahlenberg did not make his senior debut for Brøndby, until youth team coach Tom Køhlert was promoted to head coach in May 2002. On May 12, 2002, Kahlenberg made his Superliga debut against arch-rivals København, at the penultimate match of the 2001–02 season. The result was a 1–1 draw, which helped Brøndby secure the 2001–02 Danish championship on goal difference.
During his first years at Brøndby, Kahlenberg played in the central midfield, where he set up the attacks with his great technique and view for the game. In the 2004–05 season, Kahlenberg was moved out as left midfielder, following the sale of Swedish international left winger Mattias Jonson. Cutting into the field from his wide position, Kahlenberg managed to become Brøndby's 2004–05 league top goalscorer with 13 goals, leading the club in winning The Double. Kahlenberg played a combined total of 130 games for Brøndby IF,[2] including 97 games and 28 goals in the Danish Superliga championship.[3]
In July 2005, the French club AJ Auxerre made a transfer fee offer of £2.5 million for Kahlenberg,[4] which Brøndby accepted. Kahlenberg signed a four-year contract with Auxerre in the top-flight Ligue 1 championship. Kahlenberg made the most assists of all players in the 2004–05 Ligue 1 championship.[5] In his four seasons at Auxerre, Kahlenberg played 130 games and scored 19 goals in the Ligue 1.[6]
In May 2009, Kahlenberg signed a four-year contract with the defending German champions VfL Wolfsburg for a €4 million transfer fee, effective from the end of the season.[7] Immediately after joining Wolfsburg, Kahlenberg suffered an injury which kept him out until October 2009. He made his German Bundesliga debut for Wolfsburg in the 3–3 draw with 1. FSV Mainz 05 on October 31.[8]
While playing youth football at Brøndby IF, Kahlenberg played a number of games for various Danish youth national teams on under-17 and under-19 levels from August 1999 to February 2002.[9] He was recognized as one of the most talented Danish midfielders, and debuted for the Denmark under-21 national team in September 2002.[9] He debuted for the Danish senior national team under coach Morten Olsen on April 30, 2003 in a 1–0 friendly win against Ukraine.[9] He was selected as the youngest Danish player for the 2004 European Championship,[10] but did not play any games at the tournament. He subsequently won the 2004 Danish under-21 Player of the Year award.[11]
Kahlenberg continued to play for the Denmark under-21 team until May 2006,[9] when he was selected for the Danish squad for the 2006 European Under-21 Championship. As age restrictions are calculated from the start of the qualification matches, in September 2006, he competed in the tournament at age 23. Even though Denmark was eliminated in the preliminary group stage, Kahlenberg managed to score three goals in three games, and he was selected for the "Team of the Tournament".[5] He ended his under-21 national team career after the tournament, having scored 10 goals in 26 matches for the Denmark under-21s.[9]
After a lay-off from the senior national team, Kahlenberg was recalled for the 2010 World Cup qualifiers. In his second start of the qualifiers, he scored the winning goal against rivals Sweden, which helped Denmark qualify for the main tournament.
| # | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | September 1, 2006 | Copenhagen, Denmark | Portugal | 2–1 | 4–2 | Friendly match |
| 2. | November 21, 2007 | Copenhagen, Denmark | Iceland | 3–0 | 3–0 | UEFA Euro 2008 qualifier |
| 3. | June 6, 2009 | Solna, Sweden | Sweden | 1–0 | 1–0 | FIFA World Cup 2010 qualifier |
| 4. | September 7, 2010 | Copenhagen, Denmark | Iceland | 1–0 | 1–0 | UEFA Euro 2012 qualifier |
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