Thomas Gravesen facts for kids
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Thomas Gravesen | ||
| Date of birth | 11 March 1976 | ||
| Place of birth | Vejle, Denmark | ||
| Playing position | Midfielder | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Vejle Boldklub | |||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 1995–1997 | Vejle Boldklub | 58 | (10) |
| 1997–2000 | Hamburger SV | 74 | (6) |
| 2000–2005 | Everton | 141 | (11) |
| 2005–2006 | Real Madrid | 34 | (1) |
| 2006–2008 | Celtic | 22 | (6) |
| 2007–2008 | → Everton (loan) | 8 | (0) |
| Total | 337 | (34) | |
| National team | |||
| 1995 | Denmark U19 | 3 | (0) |
| 1996–1997 | Denmark U21 | 11 | (4) |
| 1998–2006 | Denmark | 66 | (5) |
|
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Thomas Gravesen (born 11 March 1976) is a Danish former professional footballer. He played as a midfielder, a player who helps both defend and attack.
Gravesen played for many famous clubs. These include Vejle Boldklub in Denmark, Hamburger SV in Germany, Everton in England, Real Madrid in Spain, and Celtic in Scotland.
He also played for the Danish national team. He played 66 games and scored five goals for his country. He played for Denmark from 1998 until 2006. Thomas Gravesen represented Denmark in big international tournaments. These included Euro 2000, the 2002 World Cup, and Euro 2004.
He has an older brother, Peter Gravesen, who was also a footballer.
Contents
Club Career Highlights
Starting at Vejle Boldklub
Thomas Gravesen was born in Vejle, Denmark. He started his football journey in 1995 with his hometown club, Vejle Boldklub (VB). He played alongside friends from the VB youth team. At VB, he played as a defensive midfielder. His team won silver medals in the 1996–97 Superliga season. After this success, he moved to the German team Hamburger SV in 1997. He played 94 games and scored six goals for Hamburger SV over three years.
Playing for Everton
After the Euro 2000 tournament, Gravesen moved to the English club Everton. He quickly became a favorite among the fans.
Gravesen was a very important player for Everton. He helped them climb high in the Premier League table during the 2004–05 season. His contract was ending in 2005. This meant he could leave for free. So, Everton decided to sell him to Real Madrid in January 2005 for about £2.5 million. This was a surprisingly low price for such a talented player.
Time at Real Madrid
Gravesen joined Real Madrid to play as a defensive midfielder. This was a slightly different role from what he did at Everton. He started well at Real Madrid. He even scored in one of his first games, a 4–0 win against Espanyol.
However, Gravesen later found himself not playing as much. There were some disagreements about his strong style of play. In August 2006, a small argument happened during a Real Madrid training session. It was after a strong tackle by Gravesen on his teammate Robinho. The manager, Fabio Capello, said Gravesen was "a little bit peculiar." Gravesen decided to leave Real Madrid before the 2006–07 season began. His agent confirmed that clubs like Newcastle United and Celtic were interested in him.
Moving to Celtic
On 28 August 2006, Gravesen went to Celtic Park in Glasgow for a medical check-up. On 30 August, he signed a three-year deal with Celtic. The fee was thought to be around £2 million.
He scored his first goal for Celtic against their big rivals Rangers on 23 September 2006. He then scored the first hat-trick (three goals in one game) of his career. This happened when Celtic won 3–1 against St Mirren on 12 November. Gravesen had a good start at Celtic. But later, another player, Evander Sno, took his place in the starting team. In May 2007, the Celtic manager said he was disappointed that Gravesen wasn't working harder to get his spot back. On 18 August 2008, Celtic and Gravesen went their separate ways.
Returning to Everton (Loan)
Gravesen rejoined Everton on a one-season loan from Celtic on 29 August 2007. In his first game back, he came on as a substitute. He helped Everton win 2–1 against Bolton Wanderers. He took the corner kick that led to the winning goal. He also helped set up a goal in a European game. However, Gravesen did not have as big an impact as fans hoped. After the 2007–08 season, the manager confirmed that Gravesen's loan would not be extended. He returned to Celtic.
Retirement from Football
On 27 January 2009, Thomas Gravesen announced he was retiring from professional football. He could not find a new club after leaving Celtic. In September 2009, he said that some clubs had asked him to return to football. But nothing came of these offers.
It was reported in 2013 that Gravesen had been successful with his investments. He was living in Las Vegas at that time.
International Career
Gravesen played his first game for the Danish national team on 19 August 1998. It was a friendly match against the Czech Republic.
He was chosen to play for Denmark at the Euro 2000. The coach, Morten Olsen, fully supported Gravesen. He made him one of the most important players for the 2002 World Cup and Euro 2004 tournaments.
His performance in a 2002 World Cup qualifying game was amazing. He scored two goals in a 6–0 win against Iceland. The American boxer Mike Tyson was so impressed that he asked for Gravesen's shirt. He wore it during his visit to Denmark! Gravesen played in all four of Denmark's matches at the 2002 World Cup.
He missed the first group match at Euro 2004 because he was suspended. But he played the other three games before Denmark was knocked out. On 15 September 2006, Gravesen decided to stop playing for the national team. He wanted to focus only on his club, Celtic.
Personal Life
Thomas Gravesen now lives in a special community in Los Angeles. Some of his neighbors include famous people like Andre Agassi and Nicolas Cage.
Honours
Celtic
- Scottish Premier League: 2006–07
- Scottish Cup: 2006–07
See also
In Spanish: Thomas Gravesen para niños
