Jacek Krzynówek facts for kids

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Jacek Krzynówek

Krzynówek with Poland in 2007
Personal information
Full name	Jacek Krzynówek
Date of birth	(1976-05-15) 15 May 1976 (age 49)
Place of birth	Kamieńsk, Poland
Height	1.79 m (5 ft 10 in)
Position(s)	Midfielder
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1994–1996	RKS Radomsko	9	(1)
1996–1997	Raków Częstochowa	17	(0)
1997–1999	GKS Bełchatów	61	(11)
1999–2004	1. FC Nürnberg	142	(28)
2004–2006	Bayer Leverkusen	52	(9)
2006–2009	VfL Wolfsburg	55	(7)
2009–2010	Hannover 96	25	(2)
Total		361	(58)
International career
1998–2009	Poland	96	(15)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Jacek Kamil Krzynówek was born on May 15, 1976. He is a Polish former professional footballer. He played as a midfielder.

Many people think he is one of the best Polish footballers ever. He won many awards and trophies in Poland and other countries. He was named the Polish Footballer of the Year twice. This award came from Pilka Nozna magazine in 2003 and 2004. He played 96 games for the Polish national team and scored 15 goals. He is also a special member of the Elite Poland national team Footballers group by the PZPN.

One of his most famous moments was scoring an amazing goal against Real Madrid. This happened during the 2004–05 UEFA Champions League season.

Football Career Highlights

Starting His Football Journey

Jacek Krzynówek began his football career with a team called LZS Chrzanowice. In 1994, he joined RKS Radomsko. He played there for two seasons. After that, he moved to another Polish club, Raków Częstochowa. He played his first game in Poland's top league, the Ekstraklasa, on July 28, 1996.

After one season with Raków, he joined GKS Bełchatów. This club was in the second division at the time. In the 1997–98 season, he helped his team get promoted to the Ekstraklasa. However, his club could not stay in the top league and went back down to the second division. Even so, his great skills caught the eye of other clubs. These included 1. FC Nürnberg and the coach of the Poland national team, Janusz Wójcik.

Playing for Poland and in Germany

While still playing for GKS Bełchatów, Jacek Krzynówek made his first appearance for the Poland national football team. This was on November 10, 1998, in a game against Slovakia. Poland won that match 3–1. In 1999, he moved to 1. FC Nürnberg in Germany's 2. Bundesliga. He returned to the national team in early 2000 when Jerzy Engel became the new coach. Soon, he became a very important player for the team. He helped them qualify for the 2002 FIFA World Cup.

In 2002, he helped 1. FC Nürnberg get promoted to the Bundesliga, which is Germany's top league. He was also named the best left midfielder in the 2. Bundesliga. In the same year, he went to South Korea and Japan for the 2002 World Cup with Poland. Even though Poland did not play well, Jacek was praised for his performance. He played in all three of Poland's matches.

He missed most of the 2002–03 season because of an injury. In the fall of 2003, he played in important games for Poland to qualify for UEFA Euro 2004. Poland did not qualify for the tournament. Also, 1. FC Nürnberg was relegated from the Bundesliga that season.

Because of his strong performances, he moved to another Bundesliga club, Bayer Leverkusen. In the 2004–05 season, he was one of Leverkusen’s best players. He, Andriy Voronin, and Dimitar Berbatov formed a strong attacking group. Many top European teams noticed them. Bayer Leverkusen also did well in the Champions League. They beat both Real Madrid and A.S. Roma in the group stage. However, they were knocked out by Liverpool F.C. in the next round. Krzynówek scored three goals in the Champions League, including a fantastic long-range shot against Real Madrid.

In August 2005, he was part of the national team that won the Valeri Lobanovsky Memorial Tournament 2005. During the 2006 FIFA World Cup qualification games, he played in the most important matches for Poland. He helped Poland qualify for the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany. He got another injury in the spring of 2006. This meant he could not play regularly for his club, Bayer Leverkusen. This also affected his performance at the 2006 FIFA World Cup. He was one of the players who did not play well as Poland lost to Ecuador (2–0) and hosts Germany (1–0). After a disappointing 2005–06 season, he moved to VfL Wolfsburg.

Krzynówek was a key player in the UEFA Euro 2008 qualifying campaign for Poland. He scored four goals in these games. Three goals were against Azerbaijan. He also scored an amazing goal in the 87th minute against Portugal. His shot from 40 yards hit the post and then the back of the Portuguese goalkeeper Ricardo before going into the net. Because of his great overall performance, he was chosen for Eurosport's dream team as the left midfielder. Poland's team then went to UEFA Euro 2008, which was their first time competing in this tournament.

On February 2, 2009, Krzynówek moved to Hannover 96. He played there until the summer of 2010.

Retirement from Football

On August 15, 2011, Jacek Krzynówek officially announced he was retiring from football. He had played 178 matches in the German top-flight league.

After retiring, he worked as the sporting director at GKS Bełchatów. He held this role from July 1, 2015, to May 31, 2016.

International Games and Goals

Jacek Krzynówek played many games for the Polish national team. Here is a summary of his appearances and goals each year:

Goals for Poland

Here are the goals Jacek Krzynówek scored for the Polish national team:

#	Date	Venue	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition
1.	28 February 2001	Larnaca, Cyprus	Switzerland	4–0	4–0	Friendly
2.	30 April 2003	Brussels, Belgium	Belgium	1–2	1–3	Friendly
3.	6 June 2003	Poznań, Poland	Kazakhstan	3–0	3–0	Friendly
4.	12 November 2003	Warsaw, Poland	Italy	3–1	3–1	Friendly
5.	4 September 2004	Belfast, Northern Ireland	Northern Ireland	3–0	3–0	2006 FIFA World Cup qualification
6.	9 October 2004	Vienna, Austria	Austria	2–1	3–1	2006 FIFA World Cup qualification
7.	13 October 2004	Cardiff, Wales	Wales	3–1	3–2	2006 FIFA World Cup qualification
8.	26 March 2005	Warsaw, Poland	Azerbaijan	6–0	8–0	2006 FIFA World Cup qualification
9.	7 October 2005	Warsaw, Poland	Iceland	1–1	3–2	Friendly
10.	24 March 2007	Warsaw, Poland	Azerbaijan	4–0	5–0	UEFA Euro 2008 qualifying
11.	2 June 2007	Baku, Azerbaijan	Azerbaijan	2–1	3–1	UEFA Euro 2008 qualifying
12.				3–1
13.	22 August 2007	Moscow, Russia	Russia	1–2	2–2	Friendly
14.	8 September 2007	Lisbon, Portugal	Portugal	2–2	2–2	UEFA Euro 2008 qualifying
15.	1 June 2008	Chorzów, Poland	Denmark	1–1	1–1	Friendly

Awards and Achievements

Individual Awards

• Polish Footballer of the Year: 2003, 2004

See also

In Spanish: Jacek Krzynówek para niños