Libor Sionko facts for kids
Libor Sionko
|
|||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | 1 February 1977 | ||
| Place of birth | Ostrava, Czechoslovakia | ||
| Height | 1.71m | ||
| Playing position | Right winger | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1984–1986 | TJ Vítkovice | ||
| 1986–1993 | Baník Ostrava | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 1993–1994 | Banik Ostrava | 1 | (0) |
| 1994–1996 | TŽ Třinec | 12 | (3) |
| 1996–1997 | VTJ Znojmo | 0 | (0) |
| 1997–1999 | Banik Ostrava | 45 | (11) |
| 1999–2004 | Sparta Prague | 95 | (25) |
| 2004 | Grazer AK | 15 | (2) |
| 2004–2006 | Austria Wien | 63 | (8) |
| 2006–2007 | Rangers | 18 | (3) |
| 2007–2009 | F.C. Copenhagen | 54 | (9) |
| 2010–2012 | Sparta Prague | 40 | (7) |
| Total | 343 | (68) | |
| National team | |||
| 1998–2000 | Czech Republic U21 | 19 | (7) |
| 1999–2010 | Czech Republic | 41 | (8) |
|
|||
Libor Sionko, born on February 1, 1977, is a former professional football player from the Czech Republic. He mostly played as a midfielder.
He started his football journey in his hometown of Ostrava, playing for youth teams like TJ Vítkovice and Baník Ostrava. As a professional, he played in his home country until 2004 for clubs such as Ostrava and Sparta Prague.
Later, he moved abroad to play in Austria for Grazer AK and Austria Wien. After that, he went to Scotland to play for Rangers. He also spent time in Denmark with F.C. Copenhagen before returning to the Czech Republic. He finished his career with Sparta Prague, retiring in 2012.
For his country, Sionko first played for the Czech Republic in 1999. He took part in three big tournaments: the 2000 Olympics, the 2006 World Cup, and Euro 2008. He played for his national team until 2010, scoring 8 goals in 41 games.
Contents
Libor Sionko's Club Career
Starting His Football Journey
Libor Sionko was born in Ostrava. He began playing football as a young boy for TJ Vítkovice and Baník Ostrava.
In 1999, he joined Sparta Prague. He was very successful there, playing in the Czech First League and the UEFA Champions League. He helped Sparta get past the group stage of the Champions League twice, in the 1999–2000 and 2003–2004 seasons.
Sionko left Prague in February 2004 to join the Austrian club Grazer AK. He helped them win their first-ever Austrian championship. His team also won the Austrian Cup for the fourth time. After this, he moved to Austria Wien. He played a key role in their successful run to the quarter-finals of the 2004–05 UEFA Cup. In the 2005–06 season, he helped Austria Wien win both the Austrian league and cup.
Playing for Rangers and Copenhagen
On May 16, 2006, Sionko joined Rangers in Scotland on a three-year contract. This was a free transfer, known as a Bosman transfer.
He scored a goal in his very first game in the Scottish Premiership against Motherwell on July 30, 2006. Rangers won that game 2–1. However, he often had injuries, which meant he didn't play as much as he could have. He started playing more regularly in December 2006, scoring against Hibernian and Aberdeen. This helped Rangers improve their performance after a tough start to the season.
After playing 24 games for Rangers in his first season, Sionko signed a two-year contract with Danish champions F.C. Copenhagen in the summer of 2007.
He made his debut for F.C. Copenhagen on August 4, assisting the only goal in a 1–0 win against AGF. His first goal for the club came in his second game, which was his home debut at Parken Stadium. He scored in a 5–2 victory against Esbjerg fB. He then started the next six matches on the bench. On September 23, he was back in the starting lineup for his first New Firm Derby against Brøndby IF. F.C. Copenhagen won 1–0, with Sionko assisting the goal. He later scored twice in a cup match and once against Lyngby Boldklub. He was named man of the match in both games.
After the Lyngby match, Sionko shared that his family was happy in Copenhagen. He even called Copenhagen his second home.
Returning to Sparta Prague
In the autumn of 2009, Sionko didn't play much for F.C. Copenhagen's first team. In January 2010, he left the club and signed with Sparta Prague. He signed a contract with the Czech club until June 2012.
Libor Sionko retired from football on August 27, 2012. This was after his contract with Sparta Prague ended and he couldn't find a new club.
Libor Sionko's International Career
Sionko played for his country at many youth levels, including Under 17, Under 18, Under 20, and Under 21. He also played in an unofficial friendly tournament in May 1998. He played his first full game for the Czech Republic national team in a friendly match against Poland on April 24, 1999. He played 41 games for his country and scored 8 goals. For a long time, he was a substitute because Karel Poborský usually played in his position as a right winger.
2000 Summer Olympics
Sionko played in all three games at the 2000 Summer Olympics. The Czech team drew with the United States and Cameroon, and lost to Kuwait. This meant they were knocked out in the group stage, finishing last in their group.
2006 FIFA World Cup
He was chosen for the Czech team for the 2006 World Cup because Vladimír Šmicer was injured. However, he only played as a late substitute in some games. The Czech team was knocked out in the group stage of the competition. Sionko's first World Cup game was against Ghana on June 17, 2006. Ghana won the game 2–0.
UEFA Euro 2008
On June 11, Sionko scored for the Czech Republic in their second game of Euro 2008. They lost 3–1 to Portugal, which sent Portugal into the quarter-finals. Sionko scored in the 17th minute, after Deco had scored for Portugal in the 8th minute. However, Cristiano Ronaldo and Ricardo Quaresma scored two more goals for Portugal in the second half. This meant the Czechs had to fight against Turkey in their final group game.
International Goals Scored by Libor Sionko
- Scores and results list the Czech Republic's goal tally first. The score column shows the score after each of Sionko's goals.
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 12 November 2003 | Na Stínadlech, Teplice, Czech Republic |  Canada |
4–0 | 5–1 | Friendly |
| 2 | 6 September 2006 | Tehelné pole, Bratislava, Slovakia |  Slovakia |
1–0 | 3–0 | UEFA Euro 2008 qualifying |
| 3 | 2–0 | |||||
| 4 | 17 October 2007 | Allianz Arena, Munich, Germany |  Germany |
1–0 | 3–0 | UEFA Euro 2008 qualifying |
| 5 | 30 May 2008 | Letná, Prague, Czech Republic |  Scotland |
1–0 | 3–1 | Friendly |
| 6 | 3–1 | |||||
| 7 | 11 June 2008 | Stade de Genève, Geneva, Switzerland |  Portugal |
1–1 | 3–1 | UEFA Euro 2008 |
| 8 | 15 October 2008 | Na Stínadlech, Teplice, Czech Republic |  Slovenia |
1–0 | 1–0 | 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifying |
Football Achievements and Awards
Libor Sionko won several important titles during his career:
- Austrian Football Bundesliga: 2003–04, 2005–06
- Austrian Cup: 2003–04, 2004–05, 2005–06
- Danish Superliga: 2008–09
- Danish Cup: 2008–09
- Czech First League: 1999–2000, 2000–01, 2002–03
- Czech Cup: 2003–04
See also
In Spanish: Libor Sionko para niños
