Alexander Frei facts for kids
Frei with Borussia Dortmund in 2007
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Alexander Frei | ||
| Date of birth | 15 July 1979 | ||
| Place of birth | Basel, Switzerland | ||
| Height | 1.79 m | ||
| Playing position | Striker | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1987–1988 | FC Begnins | ||
| 1988–1995 | FC Aesch | ||
| 1995–1997 | Basel | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 1997–1998 | Basel | 11 | (1) |
| 1998–1999 | Thun | 32 | (6) |
| 1999–2000 | FC Luzern | 53 | (17) |
| 2001–2003 | Servette | 64 | (36) |
| 2003–2006 | Rennes | 100 | (47) |
| 2006–2009 | Borussia Dortmund | 74 | (34) |
| 2009–2013 | Basel | 103 | (72) |
| Total | 437 | (213) | |
| National team | |||
| 1995–1996 | Switzerland U-18 | 5 | (1) |
| 1996–1997 | Switzerland U-19 | 4 | (3) |
| 1999–2000 | Switzerland U-21 | 19 | (9) |
| 2001–2011 | Switzerland | 84 | (42) |
| Teams managed | |||
| 2013–2014 | FC Luzern (sporting director) | ||
| 2015–2020 | Basel (youth) | ||
| 2018 | Basel (interim) | ||
| 2020–2021 | Wil | ||
| 2021–2022 | Winterthur | ||
| 2022–2023 | Basel | ||
| 2023–2024 | Aarau | ||
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Alexander Frei or Alex Frei (born July 15, 1979) is a Swiss football coach and a former player. He played as a forward, which means he was usually at the front of the team to score goals. He recently coached FC Aarau in the second-highest football league in Switzerland.
Alex started his career at FC Basel, a famous Swiss team. He then played for other clubs in Switzerland, France, and Germany. Later, he came back to FC Basel. There, he helped his team win the Swiss Super League championship four times in a row. He also won the Swiss Cup twice, in 2010 and 2012. Winning both in the same year is called a "double."
Alex is the top goal scorer ever for the Switzerland national team! He scored 42 goals in 84 games. He also played for Switzerland in two UEFA European Championships and two FIFA World Cups.
Contents
Club Career
Alex Frei began his professional football journey with his hometown club, FC Basel. After that, he moved to other Swiss clubs like FC Thun, FC Luzern, and Servette FC.
Success in France and Germany
Later, Alex moved to the French club Rennes. In the 2004–05 season, he was the top goal scorer in France's top league, Ligue 1, with 20 goals. He was also named the best Swiss Footballer of the Year in 2004, 2005, and 2007.
On June 29, 2006, Alex signed a four-year contract with Borussia Dortmund in Germany. He quickly became their top scorer in the 2006–07 season, scoring 16 goals in 32 matches. Even after a long injury, he scored six goals in his last eight games for Dortmund in the 2007–08 season.
Return to FC Basel
On July 17, 2009, Alex left Borussia Dortmund and returned to his home club, FC Basel. He played his first game back on July 26, 2009, helping Basel win 2–1 against FC Sion. He even scored the winning goal in the last minute!
During the 2009–10 season, he scored 15 goals in 19 league games. FC Basel won both the league and the Swiss Cup that year. In the 2010–11 season, he scored an amazing 27 goals in 35 league games, becoming the top scorer in the Swiss League.
At the end of the 2011–12 season, Alex won another "double" with Basel. They won the League Championship title and the Swiss Cup again.
Final Season and Retirement
In the 2012–13 season, FC Basel made it to the semi-finals of the UEFA Europa League. Alex's last game in this competition was when Basel beat Tottenham Hotspur to reach the quarter-finals.
Alex Frei played his very last professional match on April 14, 2013, at Basel's home stadium. Basel won 3–1 against FC Zürich. Alex was the team captain for this game and scored his final goal from a free kick. He left the field to a standing ovation from the fans. At the end of the 2012–13 season, he received his fourth championship medal with Basel.
Overall, Alex played 217 games for Basel in two different periods, scoring 148 goals. He won four league championships and two cup titles with the club.
International Career
Alex Frei played for Switzerland at different youth levels, including Under-18s, Under-19s, and Under-21s.
He made his debut for the senior Switzerland national team on March 24, 2001. Just four days later, he scored his first three goals for the national team in a 5–0 win against Luxembourg.
Major Tournaments
Alex played for Switzerland in UEFA Euro 2004. He also scored six goals during the qualification games for the 2006 FIFA World Cup. At the World Cup in Germany, Alex was named "Man of the Match" in Switzerland's 2–0 win over Togo, where he scored the first goal. He also scored in the next game against South Korea, helping Switzerland win their group.
On May 30, 2008, Alex scored two goals in a friendly game against Liechtenstein. This made him the all-time leading scorer for the Switzerland national team, passing the previous record. However, during the first game of UEFA Euro 2008, Alex got injured while leading the Swiss team as captain. He had to miss the rest of the tournament.
In 2011, Alex decided to stop playing for the national team. This decision came after some fans criticized him during a game.
Coaching Career
After ending his playing career, Alex Frei became the sports director for FC Luzern.
He later started coaching. In 2018, he was an interim manager for FC Basel. In September 2020, he became the head coach of FC Wil 1900. He then coached FC Winterthur from December 2021 to June 2022. He successfully led Winterthur to be promoted to the top Swiss league.
Because of his success, his former club, FC Basel, hired him as their new head coach in July 2022. However, Alex and Basel decided to part ways on February 7, 2023. This happened after the team had a tough period with no wins in five league games.
On June 12, 2023, Alex was announced as the new head coach of FC Aarau, returning to the second Swiss league. He left this position in March 2024 by agreement with the club, deciding to take a break from coaching.
Personal Life
Alex Frei is not related to his former teammate Fabian Frei. However, he is the second-cousin of Seattle Sounders FC goalkeeper Stefan Frei. His younger sister, Andrea, also plays football for the Basel ladies team. Alex is married to Nina, and they have a daughter born in 2012.
Honours
Servette
- Swiss Cup: 2000–01
Basel
- Swiss Super League: 2009–10, 2010–11, 2011–12, 2012–13
- Swiss Cup: 2009–10, 2011–12
Individual
- Credit Suisse Player of the Year: 2003
- Ligue 1 Golden Boot: 2004–05 (20 goals)
- Credit Suisse Player of the Year: 2004, 2005, 2007
- Swiss Super League Golden Boot: 2010–11 (27 goals), 2011–12 (24 goals)
- Axpo Super League Player of the Year: 2011, 2012
- Swiss Golden Player Award: "Best Forward": 2011, 2012
- Swiss Super League Team of the Year: 2014–15
Images for kids
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Frei battling for the ball with Brazil's Luisão in a November 2006 friendly
See Also
In Spanish: Alexander Frei para niños
