Alexander Merkel facts for kids
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Merkel with Admira Wacker in 2018
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | 22 February 1992 | ||
| Place of birth | Almaty, Kazakhstan | ||
| Height | 1.79 m (5 ft 10 in) | ||
| Position(s) | Midfielder | ||
| Team information | |||
|
Current team
|
Nassaji Mazandaran | ||
| Number | 52 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1999 | Okzhetpes | ||
| 1999–2003 | JSG Westerwald | ||
| 2003–2008 | VfB Stuttgart | ||
| 2008–2010 | AC Milan | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2010–2011 | AC Milan | 6 | (0) |
| 2011–2013 | Genoa | 19 | (1) |
| 2012 | → AC Milan (loan) | 1 | (0) |
| 2013–2016 | Udinese | 6 | (0) |
| 2014 | → Watford (loan) | 11 | (1) |
| 2014–2015 | → Grasshopper Club Zurich (loan) | 6 | (0) |
| 2016 | Pisa | 0 | (0) |
| 2016–2018 | VfL Bochum | 13 | (0) |
| 2018 | Admira Wacker | 15 | (1) |
| 2018–2020 | Heracles Almelo | 59 | (2) |
| 2020–2021 | Al-Faisaly | 27 | (1) |
| 2021–2023 | Gaziantep | 38 | (3) |
| 2023–2024 | Hatta | 10 | (2) |
| 2024– | Nassaji Mazandaran | 18 | (1) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2007 | Germany U15 | 2 | (0) |
| 2007–2008 | Germany U16 | 15 | (1) |
| 2008 | Germany U17 | 3 | (0) |
| 2009 | Germany U18 | 2 | (0) |
| 2010–2011 | Germany U19 | 2 | (1) |
| 2011 | Germany U20 | 1 | (0) |
| 2015–2019 | Kazakhstan | 3 | (0) |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 17 April 2025 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 21 March 2019 |
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Alexander Merkel is a professional football player. He was born on February 22, 1992. He is from Kazakhstan and Germany. Alexander plays as a midfielder for Nassaji Mazandaran, a club in Iran.
Even though he was born in Kazakhstan, his parents are of German descent. Because of this, Alexander first played for Germany in youth football. Later, in 2015, he decided to play for Kazakhstan. He made his first game for Kazakhstan in a big European championship qualifying match.
Contents
Club Career Highlights
Alexander Merkel started playing football at a young age. He has played for many different clubs. His journey shows how players can move between teams.
Early Football Days
Alexander moved to Germany when he was six years old in 1998. He began playing football with a local team called JSG Westerwald. When he was 11, he joined a bigger club, VfB Stuttgart.
Time at AC Milan
In 2008, when Alexander was 16, he moved to Italy. He joined the famous club AC Milan. He played in their youth team. In 2010, his youth team won the Coppa Italia Primavera. This was a big youth cup.
Alexander started getting called up to the main AC Milan team. He played his first official game on December 8, 2010. This was in a UEFA Champions League game against Ajax. He also played his first league game against Cagliari. On January 20, he scored his first professional goal. This was in a cup game against Bari. He played ten games for Milan that season.
Playing for Genoa
In 2011, Alexander joined Genoa. He played his first game for Genoa in a cup match. He also helped his team score a goal against Juventus. In January 2012, he went back to AC Milan for a short time. He played a few more games for Milan. Later, Genoa fully bought him as a player in May 2012.
Moving to Udinese
In 2013, Alexander moved to another Italian club, Udinese. He played for them for a few years.
Loan to Watford
In January 2014, Alexander went on loan to Watford in England. He played his first game for Watford on January 11, 2014. He scored his first goal for Watford on March 15, 2014. This was in a 3-0 win against Barnsley.
Loan to Grasshopper Club Zurich
Later in 2014, Alexander went on loan again. This time, he played for Grasshopper Club Zurich in Switzerland.
Later Club Experiences
Alexander continued his career by playing for several other clubs.
- In 2016, he joined Pisa in Italy.
- Later in 2016, he signed with VfL Bochum in Germany.
- In 2018, he moved to Admira Wacker in Austria. He scored his first goal for them against Wolfsberger AC.
- In July 2018, he joined Heracles Almelo in the Netherlands.
- In 2020, he moved to Al-Faisaly in Saudi Arabia.
- In 2021, he signed with Gaziantep F.K. in Turkey.
- In 2023, he joined Hatta in the UAE.
- Since 2024, he has been playing for Nassaji Mazandaran in Iran.
International Career
Alexander Merkel has played for different national teams. This means he represented countries in international football games.
Playing for Germany's Youth Teams
Alexander first played for Germany's Under-15 team. He played in a game against Switzerland. He continued to play for Germany at different youth levels, up to the Under-19 team. He once said he hoped to play for the main German team one day.
Switching to Kazakhstan
In March 2015, Alexander decided to play for the Kazakhstan national team. He made his first game for Kazakhstan against Iceland. This was a qualifying match for the Euro 2016 tournament.
Career Statistics
Club
| Club | Season | League | Cup | Continental | Total | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| AC Milan | 2010–11 | Serie A | 6 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 10 | 1 |
| Genoa | 2011–12 | Serie A | 13 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 14 | 0 | |
| 2012–13 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | 7 | 1 | |||
| Total | 19 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 21 | 1 | ||
| AC Milan (loan) | 2011–12 | Serie A | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| Udinese | 2012–13 | Serie A | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 5 | 0 | |
| 2013–14 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | |||
| Total | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | ||
| Watford | 2013–14 | Championship | 11 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 11 | 1 | |
| Grasshopper Club Zurich | 2014–15 | Swiss Super League | 6 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 11 | 0 |
| Udinese | 2015–16 | Serie A | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 1 | 0 | |
| Pisa | 2016–17 | Serie B | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | |
| VfL Bochum | 2016–17 | 2. Bundesliga | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 11 | 0 | |
| 2017–18 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 3 | 0 | |||
| Total | 13 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 2 | ||
| Admira Wacker | 2017–18 | Austrian Bundesliga | 15 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 15 | 1 | |
| Career total | 77 | 3 | 9 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 91 | 4 | ||
International
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kazakhstan | 2015 | 1 | 0 |
| 2019 | 2 | 0 | |
| Total | 3 | 0 | |
Honours
These are the awards and championships Alexander Merkel has won with his teams:
Milan
- Serie A: 2010–11 (This is the top football league in Italy)
Al-Faisaly
- King Cup: 2020–21 (This is a major cup competition in Saudi Arabia)
See also
In Spanish: Alexander Merkel para niños
