Pascal Zuberbühler facts for kids
Zuberbühler with Switzerland in 2008
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Pascal Zuberbühler | ||
| Date of birth | 8 January 1971 | ||
| Place of birth | Frauenfeld, Switzerland | ||
| Height | 1.97 m | ||
| Playing position | Goalkeeper | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1983–1992 | Frauenfeld | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 1992–1999 | Grasshoppers | 187 | (0) |
| 1999–2006 | Basel | 178 | (0) |
| 2000 | → Aarau (loan) | 2 | (0) |
| 2000–2001 | → Bayer Leverkusen (loan) | 14 | (0) |
| 2006–2007 | West Bromwich Albion | 15 | (0) |
| 2007–2008 | Neuchâtel Xamax | 51 | (0) |
| 2008–2011 | Fulham | 0 | (0) |
| Total | 446 | (0) | |
| National team | |||
| 1994–2008 | Switzerland | 51 | (0) |
| Teams managed | |||
| 2011 | Philippines (goalkeeper coach) | ||
| 2011–2012 | Young Boys (goalkeeper coach) | ||
| 2012 | Philippines (goalkeeper coach) | ||
| 2013–2015 | Servette (goalkeeper coach) | ||
| 2015 | Philippines (goalkeeper coach) | ||
| 2015–2017 | Derby County (goalkeeper coach) | ||
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Pascal Zuberbühler (born January 8, 1971) is a former professional footballer from Switzerland. He was a goalkeeper.
He played for several teams in the Swiss Super League, including Grasshoppers, Basel, and Neuchâtel Xamax. He also played on loan for Bayer Leverkusen in Germany's Bundesliga. Later in his career, he played for West Bromwich Albion and Fulham in England.
Zuberbühler played 51 games for the Swiss national team between 1994 and 2008. He was part of the Swiss squads for UEFA Euro 2004, the 2006 FIFA World Cup, and UEFA Euro 2008. During the 2006 World Cup, Switzerland made history by being the only team ever to be knocked out of the tournament without letting in a single goal.
Contents
Playing Career: Club Highlights
Starting Out in Switzerland
Pascal Zuberbühler was born in Frauenfeld, Switzerland. He started playing football with his local team, Frauenfeld, as a young player. He then joined their main team, which played in the third-highest league in Switzerland.
In 1992, he signed his first professional contract with Grasshoppers. He played his first game for them on April 8, 1992. Zuberbühler stayed with Grasshoppers for over seven years. During this time, he played 187 league games. He helped the team win the Nationalliga A three times (in 1995, 1996, and 1998). He also won the Swiss Cup once in 1994.
Success with FC Basel
In 1999, Zuberbühler moved to Basel. He played his first league game for them on July 7, 1999.
The next season, Basel loaned him to Bayer 04 Leverkusen in Germany. He played 13 league games and five Champions League games for them. However, he decided to leave Leverkusen early because he wasn't playing as much.
When he returned to Basel, another goalkeeper was playing well. So, Zuberbühler was loaned out again, this time to Aarau, where he played two games. In the 2001–02 season, Zuberbühler became Basel's main goalkeeper again. He played in all their important games and helped the club win both the league and the cup. They also reached the final of the UEFA Intertoto Cup, but lost.
In 2002, Zuberbühler became well-known for his great saves in a 1–1 draw against Liverpool in a Champions League game. In the 2002–03 season, Basel finished second in the league but won the cup again. Zuberbühler kept a clean sheet as Basel beat Xamax 6–0 in the final.
Basel and Zuberbühler won the Swiss league championship two more times, in 2004 and 2005. Between 1999 and 2006, Zuberbühler played a total of 340 games for Basel. This included 214 league games and many games in European competitions.
Time in England
In 2006, Zuberbühler signed a two-year contract with West Bromwich Albion in England. He played his first game for them on August 5, keeping a clean sheet in a 2–0 win.
After starting 15 games, he was dropped from the team. He returned for one more game, an FA Cup win against Wolverhampton Wanderers in January 2007. Soon after, he moved back to Switzerland to play for Neuchatel Xamax.
In 2008, Zuberbühler joined Fulham in England. He played only one game for the club, a League Cup match in September 2008. He signed new one-year contracts in 2009 and 2010. He was the backup goalkeeper for Mark Schwarzer and was part of the squad for the Europa League Final in 2010. He left Fulham in 2011 when his contract ended.
Playing for Switzerland
Pascal Zuberbühler played 51 times for the Swiss national team. He was chosen for the Swiss squads in Euro 2004, the 2006 FIFA World Cup, and Euro 2008. All these tournaments were under the coach Kobi Kuhn.
At the 2006 World Cup in Germany, Switzerland won their group, finishing ahead of France, South Korea, and Togo. They then lost in the round of 16 to Ukraine in a penalty shootout. Zuberbühler saved Ukraine's first penalty shot. This Swiss team is famous for being the only team in World Cup history to be eliminated without letting in a single goal during regular play.
On June 15, 2008, he played his last game for the Swiss national team. It was a 2–0 victory over Portugal during Euro 2008, which was held in Switzerland.
Life After Playing: Coaching Career
After retiring as a player, Zuberbühler became a goalkeeping coach. He worked with the Philippines national football team several times, in 2011, 2012, and 2015. He also coached goalkeepers for Swiss clubs Young Boys (2011–2012) and Servette FC (2013–2015).
In 2015, Zuberbühler joined Derby County in England as a goalkeeping coach. He left the club in 2017. In November 2017, he started working for FIFA as a goalkeeping specialist.
See also
In Spanish: Pascal Zuberbühler para niños
