Stefan Schwarz

Stefan Schwarz
Personal information
Full nameHans-Jürgen Stefan Schwarz
Date of birth18 April 1969
Place of birthMalmö, Sweden
Height1.79 m (5 ft 10 1⁄2 in)
Playing positionMidfielder/Left wingback
Youth career
1986Kulladals FF
Senior career*
YearsTeamApps†(Gls)†
1987–1991Malmö FF32(0)
1990Bayer Leverkusen?(?)
1991–1994Benfica77(7)
1994–1995Arsenal34(2)
1995–1998Fiorentina78(2)
1998–1999Valencia23(4)
1999–2003Sunderland62(3)
Total306(18)
National team
1990–2001Sweden69(6)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only.
† Appearances (Goals).

Hans-Jürgen Stefan Schwarz, referred to as Stefan Schwarz (born 18 April 1969), is a Swedish football manager and former professional footballer who played as a midfielder from 1987 until 2003, notably playing in the top flight of a number of European clubs. He is currently the assistant manager in Helsingborgs IF.

As well as earning 69 caps, scoring 6 times for Sweden and starting his career with Malmö FF, he played in the English Premier League for Arsenal and Sunderland, the German Bundesliga for Bayer Leverkusen, Italian Serie A for Fiorentina, Spanish La Liga for Valencia and in Portugal for Benfica.

Club career

Born to a German father, he played as a midfielder and a left-back. He started playing football at youth level in Kulladals FF and began his career at his hometown club Malmö FF.[1] In 1990 he played as a youth player in Leverkusen before moving on to Benfica where he played from 1990 to 1994 when he was in Portugal they ask him if it was difficult to defend Luis Figo and he said "When your first game is against Diego Armando Maradona, the rest of the opponents are too easy to play". He also played for Arsenal,[2] Fiorentina, Valencia and Sunderland. The most prestigious award he received was Guldbollen, 1999, as Sweden's best footballer during that year. When he joined Sunderland, the club inserted a "Space Clause" that stated that he could not travel into space or it would invalidate his contract.[3] His playing career ended on a low note in 2003, when he retired at the end of a season where Sunderland (who had finished seventh in his first two seasons there) were relegated from the Premier League with a mere four wins, 19 points and 21 goals to their name.

International career

He was capped for the Swedish national team on 69 occasions and scored 6 goals. He formed a highly rated midfield partnership with Jonas Thern when playing for both his country and Benfica. He played at the World Cup 1990 and 1994 finals, and at the Euro 1992 finals.

Honours and awards

Club

Malmö
1 Swedish Championship 1988
2 Allsvenskan 1987 and 1988
1 Svenska Cupen:1989
Benfica
2 Portuguese Liga: 1990/1991,1993/1994
1 Portuguese Cup:1992/1993
Arsenal
UEFA Cup Winners' Cup: 1994/95 Runner-up
Fiorentina
Italian Cup Winner: 1995/96
Supercoppa Italiana Winner: 1996/97

Sweden

FIFA World Cup: 1994 Bronze Medal – Third Place

Individual

References

  1. ↑ "Har spelat i sex länder – Sport – Sydsvenskan-Nyheter Dygnet Runt". Sydsvenskan.se. 18 April 1969. Retrieved 12 June 2013.
  2. ↑ "ArseWEB presents: Stefan Schwarz". Arseweb.com. 18 April 1965. Retrieved 12 June 2013.
  3. ↑ "FA Carling Premiership | Footballer banned from space". BBC News. 2 August 1999. Retrieved 12 June 2013.