Stéphane Henchoz facts for kids
Henchoz (foreground) in 2017
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Stéphane Henchoz | ||
| Date of birth | 7 September 1974 | ||
| Place of birth | Billens, Switzerland | ||
| Height | 1.84 m | ||
| Playing position | Centre-back | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1989–1991 | FC Bulle | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 1992–1995 | Servette | 5 | (0) |
| 1992–1995 | Neuchâtel Xamax | 103 | (2) |
| 1995–1997 | Hamburger SV | 49 | (2) |
| 1997–1999 | Blackburn Rovers | 70 | (0) |
| 1999–2005 | Liverpool | 135 | (0) |
| 2005 | Celtic | 6 | (0) |
| 2005–2006 | Wigan Athletic | 26 | (0) |
| 2006–2008 | Blackburn Rovers | 12 | (0) |
| Total | 406 | (4) | |
| National team | |||
| 1993–2006 | Switzerland | 72 | (0) |
| Teams managed | |||
| 2008–2009 | Blackburn Rovers (U18) | ||
| 2009–2010 | FC Bulle | ||
| 2015–2019 | Neuchâtel Xamax (assistant) | ||
| 2019 | Neuchâtel Xamax | ||
| 2019 | Sion | ||
| 2020 | Neuchâtel Xamax | ||
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Stéphane Henchoz (born 7 September 1974) is a Swiss football coach and a former professional player. He played as a centre-back, which is a defender who plays in the middle of the field. He is best known for playing for the English club Liverpool. Stéphane played 72 games for the Swiss national team from 1993. He also played in two big tournaments: Euro 1996 and Euro 2004.
Contents
Stéphane Henchoz's Football Journey
Early Playing Days
Stéphane Henchoz was born in Billens, Switzerland. He first became known while playing in Germany for Hamburger SV in the Bundesliga, which is Germany's top football league.
Time at Blackburn Rovers
In June 1997, Stéphane had the chance to join Manchester United. However, he chose to sign with Blackburn Rovers instead. Blackburn paid about £3 million for him. He had a great first season in the Premier League (England's top league) as Blackburn finished sixth in 1997–98. Sadly, Blackburn was moved down to a lower league at the end of the next season. But Stéphane stayed in the Premier League.
Playing for Liverpool
Stéphane Henchoz joined Liverpool for £3.5 million. He quickly became a key player for the team during his five and a half years there. Fans really liked him.
He formed a strong defensive partnership with Sami Hyypiä. This duo was very important when Liverpool won three major cups in 2001. This amazing achievement is often called a "cup treble."
- In the League Cup final against Birmingham City, Stéphane accidentally caused a penalty in the last minute. Liverpool still won the game after a penalty shootout.
- In the FA Cup final that same year, he blocked a shot from Thierry Henry with his arm. Liverpool then won the match with two goals from Michael Owen.
Later, injuries caused him to miss some games. But he still played over 200 games for Liverpool by 2003–04. The strong Henchoz-Hyypiä partnership returned in 2003–04. This helped Liverpool finish fourth in the league.
Moving to Celtic
When a new manager, Rafael Benítez, came to Liverpool, he decided to try Jamie Carragher as a central defender. This meant Stéphane's time at Liverpool was ending. Stéphane then joined Celtic in Scotland for six months in January 2005.
Playing for Wigan Athletic
After his contract with Celtic ended, Stéphane returned to the Premier League. He signed a one-year deal with the newly promoted team, Wigan Athletic. He played 26 league games in the 2005–06 season. Wigan did better than expected, finishing in the top half of the league. Stéphane also played in the 2006 Football League Cup Final for Wigan.
Back to Blackburn Rovers
Stéphane left Wigan after just one year. He signed a contract with Blackburn Rovers again until the end of the 2006–07 season. He played when other players were injured and did well. His second time at Blackburn ended on 19 May when the club released him.
Stéphane Henchoz officially stopped playing football on 13 October 2008.
Playing for Switzerland
Stéphane Henchoz played 72 games for the Swiss national team. His first game was in 1993. He represented his country in two big European tournaments: Euro 96 and Euro 2004. He was expected to play in the 2006 FIFA World Cup. However, due to health issues, he stopped playing for the national team on 31 March 2006.
Becoming a Coach
After he stopped playing, Stéphane Henchoz became a coach.
- From 2008 to June 2009, he managed the Under-18 team for Blackburn Rovers.
- Then, for the 2009–10 season, he managed FC Bulle.
- In December 2015, he became an assistant manager for Neuchâtel Xamax.
- On 6 February 2019, he took over as manager for Neuchâtel Xamax for the rest of the season. He left this role at the end of March 2019.
- On 27 May 2019, Stéphane became the manager of Sion for the 2019–20 season. He resigned on 4 November 2019 after the team lost five out of six league games.
- In July 2020, he returned to Neuchâtel Xamax again.
Career Statistics
| Club | Season | League | National cup | League cup | Europe | Other | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Servette | 1990–91 | Nationalliga A | 5 | 0 | – | – | 5 | 0 | ||||||
| Neuchâtel Xamax | 1991–92 | Nationalliga A | – | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |||||||
| 1992–93 | Nationalliga A | 35 | 0 | – | 2 | 0 | 37 | 0 | ||||||
| 1993–94 | Nationalliga A | 33 | 2 | – | – | 33 | 2 | |||||||
| 1994–95 | Nationalliga A | 35 | 0 | – | – | 35 | 0 | |||||||
| Total | 103 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 106 | 2 | ||||
| Hamburger SV | 1995–96 | Bundesliga | 31 | 2 | 1 | 0 | – | 0 | 0 | – | 32 | 2 | ||
| 1996–97 | Bundesliga | 18 | 0 | 4 | 0 | – | 5 | 0 | – | 27 | 0 | |||
| Total | 49 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 59 | 2 | ||
| Blackburn Rovers | 1997–98 | Premier League | 36 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | – | – | 41 | 0 | ||
| 1998–99 | Premier League | 34 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | – | 41 | 0 | ||
| Total | 70 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 82 | 0 | ||
| Liverpool | 1999–2000 | Premier League | 29 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | 33 | 0 | |
| 2000–01 | Premier League | 32 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 10 | 0 | – | 53 | 0 | ||
| 2001–02 | Premier League | 37 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 15 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 56 | 0 | |
| 2002–03 | Premier League | 19 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 32 | 0 | |
| 2003–04 | Premier League | 18 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 | – | 27 | 0 | ||
| 2004–05 | Premier League | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | – | 4 | 0 | ||
| Total | 135 | 0 | 15 | 0 | 16 | 0 | 36 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 205 | 0 | ||
| Celtic | 2004–05 | Scottish Premier League | 6 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | 8 | 0 | |
| Wigan Athletic | 2005–06 | Premier League | 26 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | 32 | 0 | |
| Blackburn Rovers | 2006–07 | Premier League | 12 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | – | 16 | 0 | |
| 2007–08 | Premier League | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | 0 | 0 | ||
| Total | 12 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 16 | 0 | ||
| Career total | 406 | 4 | 32 | 0 | 25 | 0 | 47 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 513 | 4 | ||
Awards and Trophies
Stéphane Henchoz won many awards and trophies during his career:
With Liverpool
- FA Cup: 2000–01 (a major English cup)
- Football League Cup: 2000–01, 2002–03 (another English cup)
- FA Charity Shield: 2001 (a match played before the season starts)
- UEFA Cup: 2000–01 (a big European club competition)
- UEFA Super Cup: 2001 (a match between winners of two European cups)
With Celtic
- Scottish Cup: 2004–05 (Scotland's main cup competition)
With Wigan Athletic
- Football League Cup runner-up: 2005–06 (they reached the final but didn't win)
Individual Awards
- Credit Suisse Player of the Year: 2001, 2002 (He was named the best player in Switzerland twice!)
See also
In Spanish: Stéphane Henchoz para niños
