Per Nielsen facts for kids
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Per Lundgren Nielsen | ||
| Date of birth | 15 October 1973 | ||
| Place of birth | Århus, Denmark | ||
| Height | 1.91 m (6 ft 3 in) | ||
| Position(s) | Defender | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1979–1993 | Brøndby IF | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1993–2008 | Brøndby IF | 394 | (23) |
| International career | |||
| 1993 | Denmark U-19 | 1 | (0) |
| 1994–1996 | Denmark U-21 | 19 | (2) |
| 2002–2006 | Denmark | 10 | (0) |
| Managerial career | |||
| 2008–2010 | Brøndby IF (youth) | ||
| 2011–2014 | Hvidovre IF | ||
| 2015– | Brøndby IF (women) | ||
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Per Lundgren Nielsen (born 15 October 1973) is a Danish former professional footballer. He played as a central defender for Brøndby IF in the Danish Superliga. He spent his entire club career with Brøndby IF.
With Brøndby, Nielsen won five Danish championships and three Danish Cups. He played 547 official games for Brøndby IF and scored 26 goals. From 2002 to 2008, he was the team captain. He also played 10 matches for the Denmark national football team. He played 19 matches for the national under-21 team from 1994 to 1996. After retiring as a player, he became a coach. Since 2015, he has been coaching Brøndby's women's team.
Contents
Playing for Brøndby IF
Per Nielsen was born in Århus, Denmark. His parents moved to Brøndby when he was a child. He joined the Brøndby IF club at the age of five.
Early Career and First Team
Nielsen made his first team debut for Brøndby IF on 26 June 1993. He played his first game in the Danish Superliga in March 1995. He was seen as a future star defender for the club. He joined the senior squad in December 1993. He came from a youth team that included other future first-team players. These players included Kim Daugaard, Allan Ravn, and Ebbe Sand.
Becoming a Key Player and Captain
Nielsen became a regular player during the 1995–96 Superliga season. Brøndby won the Danish championship that year. He helped Brøndby win the Superliga again in the 1996–97 Superliga. In 1998, they won both the Superliga championship and the Danish Cup title. This is known as winning "the Double".
After Brøndby won the 2001–02 Superliga championship, the team's goalkeeper Mogens Krogh retired. Per Nielsen was then chosen as the new team captain. After winning his second Danish Cup in 2003, Nielsen was named the 2003 Brøndby IF Player of the Year.
Strike and Later Success
In 2004, there was a strike action by Danish football players. Brøndby was still playing in a European competition. They would have had to play with a team of retired players and youth players. Two days before a match, Nielsen and his teammate Dan Anton Johansen decided to return to training. This caused some discussion. Soon after, the strike ended.
Nielsen led Brøndby to win "the Double" again in the 2004–05 Superliga season. They won both the Superliga and the Danish Cup. He was also named the 2006 Brøndby IF Player of the Year. In February 2008, Nielsen decided to step down as team captain. He wanted to help the club move forward, even if it meant playing less. Stefán Gíslason became the new captain.
Nielsen helped Brøndby win the 2008 Danish Cup. This was his last trophy with the team. He announced his retirement as a player in June 2008. His final game was a special match against Spanish team Deportivo La Coruna on 12 July 2008. Per Nielsen played a total of 547 games for Brøndby in all competitions. This included 394 games in the Superliga, where he scored 23 goals.
Coaching Career
After retiring as a player, Per Nielsen became a coach. He spent three years coaching the Brøndby IF youth team. Then, he was the head coach for Hvidovre IF for four years.
In 2015, he became the coach for the Brøndby IF women's team. In April 2019, Per Nielsen extended his contract with the Brøndby IF women's team until 2021. The team won the championship in 2019.
Playing for Denmark
Nielsen's first international game was for the under-19 national team in December 1993. He was then called up to play for the Danish national under-21 team in March 1994. He played 19 games and scored two goals for the under-21 team until July 1996.
Even though he won many trophies with Brøndby, Nielsen did not play for the main Danish national team right away. However, he was chosen to play for the league national team. This team was made up of the best players from the Danish Superliga. He went on his first trip with this team in 1997. He played three games at the US Cup in California, United States. He also played with the league national team in Colombia, Ecuador, and Venezuela in 1999.
Nielsen was included in the Danish league national team's trip to California again in 2004. There, he made his 10th and last appearance for that team. In January 2006, Nielsen was called up for his sixth trip with the Danish league national team. However, he chose not to travel to the Carlsberg Cup in Hong Kong for personal reasons. The national team coach, Morten Olsen, understood his decision.
Nielsen finally made his debut for the main Danish national team in September 2002. He came on as a substitute late in the game. He played a total of 10 national team games until November 2006. He helped Denmark qualify for the 2004 European Championship.
Achievements
As a Player
- Danish Superliga:
* 1995–96 * 1996–97 * 1997–98 * 2001–02 * 2004–05
- Danish Cup:
* 1997–98 * 2002–03 * 2004–05 * 2007–08
- Brøndby IF Player of the Year: 2003, 2006
As a Manager
- Danish Women League:
* 2015 * 2017 * 2019
See also
In Spanish: Per Nielsen para niños
