Marco Streller facts for kids
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Streller in 2006
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Marco Streller | ||
| Date of birth | 18 June 1981 | ||
| Place of birth | Basel, Switzerland | ||
| Height | 1.95 m (6 ft 5 in) | ||
| Position(s) | Forward | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1988–1997 | FC Aesch | ||
| 1997–2000 | FC Arlesheim | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2000–2004 | Basel | 20 | (13) |
| 2001–2002 | → Concordia Basel (loan) | 30 | (16) |
| 2002–2003 | → Thun (loan) | 16 | (8) |
| 2004–2007 | VfB Stuttgart | 55 | (9) |
| 2006 | → 1. FC Köln (loan) | 14 | (3) |
| 2007–2015 | Basel | 213 | (98) |
| Total | 348 | (147) | |
| International career | |||
| 2001–2002 | Switzerland U-20 | 3 | (0) |
| 2002–2003 | Switzerland U-21 | 13 | (6) |
| 2003–2011 | Switzerland | 37 | (12) |
| Managerial career | |||
| 2015–2017 | Basel (sporting adviser) | ||
| 2017–2019 | Basel (sporting director) | ||
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Marco Streller, born on June 18, 1981, is a famous Swiss former footballer. He was a powerful striker, known for playing many years with FC Basel and the Swiss national team. After retiring from playing, he worked as the sporting director for FC Basel from June 2017 to June 2019. Since February 2020, he has been a TV expert for the Swiss Pay TV channel Teleclub.
Contents
Marco Streller's Club Career
Starting in Youth Football
Marco Streller was born in Basel, Switzerland. He started playing youth football at a local club called FC Aesch. He played there from 1988 to 1997, learning the basics of the game. After that, he spent three seasons playing for FC Arlesheim in the 2. Liga, which is a lower division in Swiss football.
First Time at FC Basel
Streller began his professional football journey with his hometown club, FC Basel, in 2000. The team's manager was Christian Gross. Marco made his first league appearance on July 11, 2001, at St. Jakob-Park. He came into the game in the 66th minute during a 3–1 home win against Servette. Interestingly, in the very last minute, he accidentally scored an own goal after a corner kick.
Loan Spells: Concordia and Thun
That own goal was his only game for Basel during that season. He was loaned to a club called FC Concordia Basel for the rest of the year. While at Concordia, he scored 16 goals in 30 games in the Nationalliga B. This impressive performance caught the attention of FC Basel and manager Christian Gross.
Basel called him back in 2002. However, after playing only three games, he was loaned out again in January 2003 to FC Thun. He continued to score goals, netting eight in just 16 games for Thun. Because of his strong play, Basel brought him back again, promising him a regular spot in the first team.
Back to Basel and Bundesliga Interest
During the 2003–04 Swiss Super League season, Marco Streller scored 13 goals in 16 games. This great scoring record made several clubs from the Bundesliga (Germany's top football league), including VfB Stuttgart, interested in him.
Playing in Germany: Stuttgart and Köln
VfB Stuttgart signed Streller for the 2004–05 season. He scored his first goal for Stuttgart on March 14, 2005, during his debut. However, after returning from an injury, he only scored four goals in 28 matches over two years in Stuttgart. To get more playing time, he was loaned to 1. FC Köln for the second half of the 2006 season.
At Köln, he played 14 games and then returned to Stuttgart. He scored five goals in 27 games as Stuttgart won the German Championship. Despite this, the club's management was not fully convinced by his performance.
Return to FC Basel: A Great Success
In June 2007, Stuttgart allowed Streller to return to his childhood club, FC Basel, on a free transfer. This was his fourth time playing for Basel, and it turned out to be very successful. He became Basel's top goal-scorer in the 2007–08 season, scoring twelve league goals and 16 goals in all competitions. In the final game of the season, Valentin Stocker and Marco Streller scored the two goals that helped Basel win the championship with a 2–0 home win over BSC Young Boys.
Streller missed the start of the 2008–09 season because of an injury he got after UEFA Euro 2008. He played his first game of that season in a 1–0 Swiss Cup win on September 20, 2008. In the 2008–09 Swiss Super League season, Streller played 23 league games and scored six goals. Basel finished third, which qualified them for the Europa League.
In the 2009–10 season, Streller played 29 league games and scored an impressive 21 goals. Basel won the Double (both the league and the cup) that year. In the 2010–11 season, Basel successfully defended their league title, giving Streller his fourth Swiss League medal.
Captain and More Trophies
For the 2011–12 Swiss Super League season, coach Thorsten Fink named Marco Streller as the team captain. He scored his first UEFA Champions League goal for Basel on November 22, 2011. This was in a Group C match in Bucharest, where Basel won 3–2 against Oțelul Galați. At the end of the 2011–12 season, Streller won another Double with Basel: the League Championship and the Swiss Cup.
At the end of the 2012–13 Swiss Super League season, Streller won the championship title for the fourth time in a row. Basel also reached the Swiss Cup final but finished as runners-up. In the 2012–13 UEFA Europa League, Basel made it all the way to the semi-finals. They faced the reigning UEFA Champions League champions, Chelsea, but were knocked out after losing 5–2 on aggregate.
On September 18, 2013, Streller scored the winning goal with a header against Chelsea in their opening group game of the 2013–14 UEFA Champions League. At the end of the 2013–14 Super League season, Streller won his seventh league championship with Basel, which was his fifth in a row. They also reached the final of the 2013–14 Swiss Cup but lost 2–0 to Zürich after extra time.
The 2014–15 season was also very successful for Basel and their captain, Marco Streller. They won the championship for the sixth time in a row that season. In the 2014–15 Swiss Cup, they reached the final again. However, for the third season in a row, they finished as runners-up, losing 3–0 to FC Sion in the final. Basel entered the Champions League in the group stage. They reached the knockout phase after a 1–1 draw at Anfield against Liverpool on December 9, 2014. Basel then lost to Porto in the Round of 16.
Retirement from Professional Football
At the end of the 2014–15 FC Basel season, Marco Streller retired from professional football. Between 2000 and 2004, and again from 2007 to 2015, Streller played a total of 418 games for Basel. He scored an impressive 185 goals during his time with the club.
Marco Streller's International Career
Youth International Teams
Streller represented Switzerland at both the Under-20 and Under-21 levels. He made his Swiss U-20 debut on November 7, 2001, in a 1–3 away loss against the Dutch U-20 team.
His U-21 debut was on August 21, 2002, in a 1–0 home win against the Austrian U-21 team. He scored his first goal for the U-21 team on January 15, 2003, scoring both Swiss goals in a 2–3 loss against the German U-21 team. Just four days later, on January 19, 2003, he scored a hat-trick against the Qatar national under-23 football team, helping Switzerland win 3–1.
Playing for the Senior National Team
Streller made his debut for the senior national team on October 11, 2003. He came on as a substitute during a 2–1 home win against the Republic of Ireland. This was the final match of the qualifying group for UEFA Euro 2004. Streller was chosen for the Euro 2004 squad but had to withdraw due to an injury.
During a 2006 World Cup qualifier against Turkey, he was involved in an incident with a Turkish player. He played at the 2006 FIFA World Cup. In the tournament's knockout stage, he missed a penalty kick during Switzerland's penalty shootout against Ukraine, and Ukraine won the match.
Before UEFA Euro 2008, during a friendly game against Liechtenstein, some Swiss fans booed Streller. They were unhappy with his performance in that match. Because of this, Streller announced he would retire from international football after Euro 2008, saying he didn't feel he had "the full support of the fans." However, Ottmar Hitzfeld, who was set to become the Swiss manager in July 2008, convinced Streller to continue playing for the national team.
Streller scored Switzerland's second goal in a 4–1 victory against Wales in a Euro 2012 qualifier on October 13, 2010.
On April 5, 2011, he decided to step down from the national team along with Alexander Frei. This decision came after they were strongly criticized by home fans following a 0–0 draw with Bulgaria in a Euro 2012 qualifier.
Marco Streller's International Goals
Scores and results list Switzerland's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Streller goal.
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 16 November 2005 | Şükrü Saracoğlu Stadium, Istanbul, Turkey |  Turkey |
2–3 | 2–4 | 2006 World Cup qualifier |
| 2 | 3 June 2006 | Hardturm, Zürich, Switzerland |  China |
2–0 | 4–1 | Friendly |
| 3 | 4–0 | |||||
| 4 | 6 September 2006 | Stade de Genève, Geneva, Switzerland |  Costa Rica |
1–0 | 2–0 | Friendly |
| 5 | 11 October 2006 | Tivoli-Neu, Innsbruck, Austria |  Austria |
1–2 | 1–2 | Friendly |
| 6 | 7 February 2007 | Esprit Arena, Düsseldorf, Germany |  Germany |
1–3 | 1–3 | Friendly |
| 7 | 22 March 2007 | Lockhart Stadium, Fort Lauderdale, United States |  Jamaica |
1–0 | 2–0 | Friendly |
| 8 | 2 June 2007 | St. Jakob-Park, Basel, Switzerland |  Argentina |
1–1 | 1–1 | Friendly |
| 9 | 7 September 2007 | Ernst-Happel-Stadion, Vienna, Austria |  Chile |
2–1 | 2–1 | Friendly |
| 10 | 13 October 2007 | Letzigrund, Zürich, Switzerland | Austria |
1–0 | 3–1 | Friendly |
| 11 | 3–1 | |||||
| 12 | 12 October 2010 | St. Jakob-Park, Basel, Switzerland |  Wales |
2–1 | 4–1 | Euro 2012 qualifier |
Marco Streller's Football Achievements
Here are some of the major titles and awards Marco Streller won during his career:
With FC Basel
- Swiss Super League Champion:
* 2003–04 * 2007–08 * 2009–10 * 2010–11 * 2011–12 * 2012–13 * 2013–14 * 2014–15
- Swiss Cup Winner:
* 2007–08 * 2009–10 * 2011–12
With VfB Stuttgart
- Bundesliga Champion:
* 2006–07
Individual Awards
- Swiss Super League Team of the Year:
* 2013–14 * 2014–15
See also
In Spanish: Marco Streller para niños
