Marco Streller

Marco Streller

Streller in 2006
Personal information
Date of birth18 June 1981
Place of birthBasel, Switzerland
Height1.95 m (6 ft 5 in)
Playing positionStriker
Club information
Current team
FC Basel
Number9
Youth career
1988–1997FC Aesch
1997–2000FC Arlesheim
Senior career*
YearsTeamApps†(Gls)†
2000–2004FC Basel20(13)
2001–2002→ Concordia Basel (loan)30(16)
2002–2003→ FC Thun (loan)16(8)
2004–2007VfB Stuttgart55(9)
2006→ 1. FC Köln (loan)14(3)
2007–FC Basel226(110)
National team
2001–2002Switzerland U-203(0)
2002–2003Switzerland U-2113(6)
2003–2011Switzerland37(12)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 29 April 2015.
† Appearances (Goals).

Marco Streller (born 18 June 1981) is a Swiss international footballer who plays as a striker for FC Basel in the Swiss Super League.[1]

Club career

Streller was born in Basel and began his youth football with local club FC Aesch, coming through the ranks between 1988 and 1997. He then played for FC Arlesheim in the 2. Liga, before he started his professional football career with local club FC Basel with manager Christian Gross in 2000. He played his League debut in St. Jakob-Park being substituted in during the 66th Minute at St. Jakob-Park on 11 July 2001 in the 3–1 home win against Servette. Unluckily in the last minute of the game he scored an own goal.[2] It was to remain his only game for Basel in this season because he was loaned to feeder club FC Concordia Basel for the rest of the season. He scored 16 goals in 30 starts in the Nationalliga B with Concordia, which made his home club and Gross sit up and take notice. They called him back in 2002, but after playing just three games was loaned out again in January of the following year to FC Thun. He scored eight goals in just 16 games for Thun and was subsequently recalled to Basel, being promised first team football.

During the 2003–04 Swiss Super League season, he scored 13 goals in 16 games, thus gathering the interest of a handful of Bundesliga clubs including VfB Stuttgart. Stuttgart eventually signed him ahead of the 2004–05 season. During his debut on 14 March 2005 he also scored his first goal for the VFB. But after returning from an injury he scored just four goals in 28 matches in his two years in Stuttgart. Therefore and to gain match practice, he was loaned out to 1. FC Köln for their second half of the 2006 season. After returning from Köln, where he made 14 starts, Streller scored five goals in 27 games as Stuttgart won the Championship, but he still failed to impress the board.

Stuttgart therefore allowed Streller to rejoin his boyhood heroes FC Basel on a free transfer in June 2007.[3] This was his fourth spell at the club and it turned out to be very successful. He was Basel's top goal-scorer during the 2007–08 season with twelve league goals and 16 goals in all competitions. In the last game of the season Valentin Stocker and Marco Streller scored the two goals in Basels 2–0 home win over BSC Young Boys and Basel won the championship.[4]

Streller missed the start of the 2008–09 season after returning from UEFA Euro 2008 injured. He playing his first game of the season in a 1–0 Swiss Cup win over FC Schötz on 20 September 2008. During the 2008–09 Swiss Super League season Streller played 23 league games, scoring six goals, but Basel finished just third in the League table, qualifying for the Europa League. In the 2009–10 season Streller played 29 League games, scoring 21 goals, and Basel won the Double. In the 2010–11 season Basel were able to defend the League Title, thus Streller won his fourth Swiss League Medal.[5]

For the 2011–12 Swiss Super League season trainer Thorsten Fink named Marco Streller as team captain.[6] He scored his first UEFA Champions League goal for Basel on 22 November in the Group C tie in the Arena Națională, in Bucharest, as Basel won the away game against Oțelul Galați 3–2.[7] At the end of the 2011–12 season, Streller won the Double, the League Championship title[8] and the Swiss Cup[9] with Basel.

At the end of the 2012–13 Swiss Super League season Streller won the Championship title[10] for the fourth time in a row and was Swiss Cup runner up with Basel.[11] In the 2012–13 UEFA Europa League Basel advanced as far as the semi-finals, there being matched against the reigning UEFA Champions League holders Chelsea, but were knocked out being beaten 2–5 on aggregate.[12] In a very long season Basel played a total of 76 games (36 in the domestic League, 6 in the Cup, 20 in Champions und Europa League, as well as 14 Test matches). Streller made 62 appearances, of which 32 were in der domestic League, 3 in the Cup and 17 in the Champions League and Europa League.

On 18 September 2013, he headed the winning goal away to Chelsea in the opening group game of the 2013–14 UEFA Champions League.[13] At the end of the 2013–14 Super League season, Streller won his seventh league championship with Basel (fifth time in a row).[14] They also reached the final of the 2013–14 Swiss Cup, but were beaten 2–0 by Zürich after extra time. In the 2013–14 Champions League season, Basel finished in the group stage in third position to qualify for Europa League knockout phase and here they advanced as far as the quarter-finals.

International career

Streller represented Switzerland at Under-20s and Under-21s levels. He played his Swiss U-20s debut on 7 November 2001 in the 3–1 away defeat against the Dutch U-20s team. His U-21s debut was on 21 August 2002 in the 1–0 home win against the Austrian U-21 team.

Streller played his debut as full international on 11 October 2003, being substituted in, during the 2–1 home win against the Republic of Ireland in the final match of the Group 10 qualifying match to the UEFA Euro 2004.[15] Streller was in the squad for the UEFA Euro 2004, but pulled out due to injury.

During a 2006 WC qualifier against Turkey, he was lashed at and kicked by Turkey player Alpay Özalan. He played at the 2006 FIFA World Cup and during the tournament's final stage he missed a spot-kick during his side's penalty shootout against Ukraine, who emerged victorious.

His substitution in the last friendly game before the Euro 2008, against the Principality of Liechtenstein, was accompanied by catcalls from Swiss supporters, being dissatisfied with Streller's performance in that game. As a consequence, Streller announced his international retirement after the Euro 2008, citing he does not have "the full support of the fans". He was bashed about announcing such a move in front of the tournament not only by the Swiss press. Ottmar Hitzfeld, designated Swiss manager from July 2008, convinced Streller to continue his international career.

Streller scored Switzerland's second goal in a 4–1 victory against Wales in a Euro 2012 qualifier on 13 October 2010.

On 5 April 2011, he stepped down from the national team as well as Alexander Frei, after being sharply criticised by home fans following a 0–0 draw with Bulgaria for the Euro 2012 qualifier.[16]

International goals

Scores and results list Switzerland's goal tally first.
# Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1. 16 November 2005 Şükrü Saracoğlu Stadium, Istanbul  Turkey 2–3 2–4 2006 World Cup qualifier
2. 3 June 2006 Hardturm, Zürich  China PR 2–0 4–1 Friendly
3. 4–0
4. 6 September 2006 Stade de Genève, Geneva  Costa Rica 1–0 2–0 Friendly
5. 11 October 2006 Tivoli-Neu, Innsbruck  Austria 1–2 1–2 Friendly
6. 7 February 2007 Esprit Arena, Düsseldorf  Germany 1–3 1–3 Friendly
7. 22 March 2007 Lockhart Stadium, Fort Lauderdale  Jamaica 1–0 2–0 Friendly
8. 2 June 2007 St. Jakob-Park, Basel  Argentina 1–1 1–1 Friendly
9. 7 September 2007 Ernst-Happel-Stadion, Vienna  Chile 2–1 2–1 Friendly
10. 13 October 2007 Letzigrund, Zürich  Austria 1–0 3–1 Friendly
11. 3–1
12. 12 October 2010 St. Jakob-Park, Basel  Wales 2–1 4–1 Euro 2012 qualifier

Honours

Basel[17]
Stuttgart[17]

References

  1. ↑ "Marco Streller" (in German). fussballdaten.de. Retrieved 16 February 2010.
  2. ↑ Weber, Eugen (11 July 2001). "3:1 gegen Servette Genf" (in German). FC Basel 1893. Retrieved 3 February 2013.
  3. ↑ "Streller wieder ein Basler" (in German). tagesanzeiger.ch. 20 June 2007. Retrieved 20 June 2007.
  4. ↑ "Der FC Basel ist Schweizer Meister" (in German). Tagesanzeiger. 10 May 2008. Retrieved 10 May 2008.
  5. ↑ "FC Basel ist Schweizer Meister" (in German). football.ch. 25 May 2011. Retrieved 25 May 2011.
  6. ↑ "Marco Streller neuer FCB-Captain" (in German). FC Basel 1893. 3 July 2011. Retrieved 3 July 2011.
  7. ↑ Haylett, Trevor (22 November 2011). "Basel hang on to set up United showdown". uefa.com. Retrieved 15 June 2013.
  8. ↑ "Jetzt hat Basel den Titel auf sicher" (in German). football.ch. 29 April 2012. Retrieved 18 May 2012.
  9. ↑ "Matchtelegram FC Basel 1893 5:3 FC Luzern" (in German). football.ch. 16 May 2012. Retrieved 18 May 2012.
  10. ↑ Schifferle, Michael (10 June 2013). "Season review: Switzerland". UEFA. Retrieved 15 June 2013.
  11. ↑ SFV (20 May 2013). "Telegramm Schweizer Cup Final" (in German). Schweizerischer Fussballverband. Retrieved 15 June 2013.
  12. ↑ Haylett, Trevor (3 May 2013). "Basel take heart after Chelsea defeat". UEFA. Retrieved 15 June 2013.
  13. ↑ "Chelsea 1 Basle 2". Daily Telegaph. 19 September 2013. Retrieved 19 September 2013.
  14. ↑ Grossenbacher, Sacha (18 May 2014). "Fotos vom Spiel gegen Lausanne sowie den anschliessenden Feierlichkeiten" (in German). FC Basel 1893. Retrieved 26 October 2014.
  15. ↑ "Swiss through after sinking Ireland". UEFA.com. 11 October 2003. Retrieved 1 January 2013.
  16. ↑ "Swiss pair Frei and Streller announce retirements". BBC News. 5 April 2011. Retrieved 5 April 2011.
  17. ↑ 17.0 17.1 "M. Streller". Soccerway. Retrieved 19 September 2014.

External links

Sporting positions
Preceded by
Franco Costanzo		 FC Basel captain
2011–present 		Succeeded by
Incumbent