Kazimierz Deyna facts for kids

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Kazimierz Deyna

Deyna in 1970
Personal information
Full name	Kazimierz Deyna
Date of birth	(1947-10-23)23 October 1947
Place of birth	Starogard Gdański, Poland
Date of death	1 September 1989(1989-09-01) (aged 41)
Place of death	San Diego, California, United States
Height	1.80 m
Playing position	Attacking midfielder
Youth career
1958–1966	Włókniarz Starogard Gdański
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps†	(Gls)†
1966	ŁKS Łódź	1	(0)
1966–1978	Legia Warsaw	304	(93)
1978–1981	Manchester City	38	(12)
1981–1984	San Diego Sockers	90	(44)
1981–1987	San Diego Sockers (indoor)	169	(118)
Total		602	(267)
National team
1968–1978	Poland	97	(41)
Honours Men's football Representing  Poland FIFA World Cup Third 1974 West Germany
Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. † Appearances (Goals).

Kazimierz Deyna (Polish pronunciation: [kaˈʑimjɛʐ ˈdɛjna]; 23 October 1947 – 1 September 1989) was a Polish professional footballer who played as an attacking midfielder in the playmaker role and was one of the most highly regarded players of his generation, due to his excellent vision.

Early life

Deyna was born in Starogard Gdański to Franciszek (1911–1976) – a dairy worker, and Jadwiga (1917–1981) – a housewife. He had six sisters and two brothers – Henryk and Franciszek, who also were footballers; Henryk played for Włókniarz Starogard Gdański, while Franciszek was a Starogardzki KS player.

Club career

Exhibition dedicated to Kazimierz Deyna at Legia Warsaw Museum

Legia Warsaw

Kazimierz Deyna monument in Łazienkowska street

Deyna began playing youth football in 1958 at his local club Włókniarz Starogard Gdański. In 1966 he made one appearance for ŁKS Łódź (on 8 October in a 0–0 draw against Górnik Zabrze). But he was quickly snapped up by Legia Warsaw. In communist Poland each team had its own "sponsor". The Warsaw club was much more powerful as it was the military club. Moreover, it was the favourite club of the authorities. Deyna was called up into the army and in this way he had to play for Legia Warsaw. He made a name for himself during his first season, becoming one of Legia's most important players. In 1969 and 1970 his team won the Polish Championship. After his performances at the 1974 World Cup, European top teams like AS Saint-Étienne, A.C. Milan, Inter Milan, AS Monaco, Real Madrid and Bayern Munich tried to acquire his services but he was unable to join, since the communist regime in Poland prevented him from moving to Western Europe. Real Madrid was so determined to acquire Deyna that they sent a shirt to Warsaw with his name and number "14".

Manchester City

The jersey that Deyna wore during his run on San Diego Sockers

Soon afterwards Deyna was transferred to English club Manchester City, making his debut in November 1978, and being one of the first wave of overseas players to play in the English league. His time in England was marred by a series of injuries, and he left in January 1981, shortly after Manchester City made a managerial change, having made only 43 appearances in all competitions. However, he was regarded as an exceptionally gifted playmaker and became a cult figure with City fans. Deyna scored thirteen goals in his time with the club. Furthermore, his seven goals in the last eight games of the 1978–79 season were crucial for Manchester City in their relegation battle.

San Diego Sockers

Deyna appeared in the 1981 film Escape to Victory as Paul Wolcheck. In the same year, he emigrated to the United States, where he signed with the San Diego Sockers of the North American Soccer League in January 1981. During the next seven years, he played four NASL outdoor seasons, one NASL indoor season and five Major Indoor Soccer League seasons with the Sockers, winning five championships. The Sockers released him in June 1987. He was a 1983 NASL Second Team All Star.

International career

On 24 April 1968, Deyna made his debut for the Poland national team in a match against Turkey in Chorzów. He won the gold medal in the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich, and the bronze in Football World Cup 1974, after a match against Brazil. In 1972, he was also the Top Goalscorer of the Olympic Games, with a total of nine goals. In 1976 Summer Olympics his team yet again reached the finals and won the silver medal. Additionally, he was ranked third in the European Footballer of the Year for 1974, behind Johan Cruyff and Franz Beckenbauer.

Deyna played for Poland on 97 (84 after the deduction of Olympic Football Tournament competition games) occasions, scoring 41 goals, and often captained the side. He had the ability to score from unusual positions, for example directly from a corner. Because of his achievements and talents, he was chosen Football Player of the Year several times by Polish fans. In 1978, he captained Poland at the Football World Cup in Argentina, where the team reached the second phase.

Death

Kazimierz Deyna tomb in Powązki Military Cemetery

Deyna died in a car accident in San Diego, California, aged 41. In 1994, he was chosen by the Polish Football Association (PZPN) and the readers of all Polish sports-related newspapers as the Greatest Polish Football Player of All Time. His number 10 is retired by Legia Warsaw and the Sockers. In June 2012 Kazimierz Deyna's remains were exhumed and reburied in Warsaw's Powązki Military Cemetery.

Career statistics

Club

International

Scores and results list Poland's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Deyna goal.

List of international goals scored by Kazimierz Deyna

No.	Date	Venue	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition
1	20 April 1969	Kraków, Poland	Luxembourg		8–0	FIFA World Cup 1970 qualification
2	15 June 1969	Sofia, Bulgaria	Bulgaria		1–4	1970 FIFA World Cup qualification
3	27 August 1969	Łódź, Poland	Norway		6–1	Friendly
4	12 October 1969	Luxembourg, Luxembourg	Luxembourg		5–1	1970 FIFA World Cup qualification
5
6	9 November 1969	Warsaw, Poland	Bulgaria		3–0	FIFA World Cup 1970 qualification
7	16 May 1970	Kraków, Poland	East Germany		1–1	Friendly
8	2 September 1970	Warsaw, Poland	Denmark		5–0	Friendly
9	5 May 1971	Lausanne, Switzerland	Switzerland		4–2	Friendly
10	30 August 1972	Regensburg, West Germany	Ghana		4–0	1972 Summer Olympics
11	3 September 1972	Regensburg, West Germany	Denmark		1–1	1972 Summer Olympics
12	5 September 1972	Augsburg, West Germany	Soviet Union		2–1	1972 Summer Olympics
13	8 September 1972	Nürnberg, West Germany	Morocco		5–0	1972 Summer Olympics
14
15	10 September 1972	Munich, West Germany	Hungary		2–1	1972 Summer Olympics
16
17	15 October 1972	Bydgoszcz, Poland	Czechoslovakia		3–0	Friendly
18
19	10 October 1973	Rotterdam, Netherlands	Netherlands		1–1	Friendly
20	17 April 1974	Liège, Belgium	Belgium		1–1	Friendly
21	19 June 1974	Munich, West Germany	Haiti		7–0	1974 FIFA World Cup
22	23 June 1974	Stuttgart, West Germany	Italy		2–1	1974 FIFA World Cup
23	30 June 1974	Frankfurt, West Germany	Yugoslavia		2–1	1974 FIFA World Cup
24	26 March 1975	Poznań, Poland	United States		7–0	Friendly
25
26
27	6 July 1975	Montreal, Canada	Canada		8–1	Friendly
28
29	9 July 1975	Toronto, Canada	Canada		4–1	Friendly
30	22 July 1976	Montreal, Canada	Iran		3–2	1976 Summer Olympics
31	31 October 1976	Warsaw, Poland	Cyprus		8–0	FIFA World Cup 1978 qualifying
32
33	10 July 1977	Lima, Peru	Peru		3–1	Friendly
34	21 September 1977	Chorzów, Poland	Denmark		4–1	FIFA World Cup 1978 qualifying
35	29 October 1977	Chorzów, Poland	Portugal		1–1	FIFA World Cup 1978 qualifying
36	12 November 1977	Wrocław, Poland	Sweden		2–1	Friendly
37	5 April 1978	Poznań, Poland	Greece		5–2	Friendly
38
39	12 April 1978	Łódź, Poland	Republic of Ireland		3–0	Friendly
40	10 June 1978	Rosario, Argentina	Mexico		3–1	1978 FIFA World Cup

Honours

Legia Warsaw

• Polish Championship: 1968–69, 1969–70
• Polish Cup: 1966, 1973

Poland

• Olympic gold medal: 1972
• Olympic silver medal: 1976
• FIFA World Cup bronze medal: 1974

Individual

• Olympic top scorer: 1972
• Polish Footballer of the Year: 1973, 1974
• Ballon d'Or Third place: 1974;
• FIFA World Cup All-Star Team: 1974

See also

In Spanish: Kazimierz Deyna para niños