Thomas Strunz facts for kids
Strunz signing autographs in 2010
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| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | 25 April 1968 | |||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Duisburg, West Germany | |||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in) | |||||||||||||||
| Playing position | Defensive Midfielder | |||||||||||||||
| Youth career | ||||||||||||||||
| 1977–1981 | TuRA 88 Duisburg | |||||||||||||||
| 1981–1986 | MSV Duisburg | |||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | ||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† | |||||||||||||
| 1986–1989 | MSV Duisburg | 94 | (30) | |||||||||||||
| 1989–1992 | Bayern Munich | 59 | (12) | |||||||||||||
| 1992–1995 | VfB Stuttgart | 79 | (9) | |||||||||||||
| 1995–2000 | Bayern Munich | 97 | (11) | |||||||||||||
| Total | 329 | (62) | ||||||||||||||
| National team | ||||||||||||||||
| 1990 | West Germany U21 | 2 | (0) | |||||||||||||
| 1990–1999 | Germany | 41 | (1) | |||||||||||||
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Honours
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Thomas Strunz (born 25 April 1968) is a German former professional footballer. He mostly played as a defensive midfielder. He was known for his strong play in the middle of the field.
Thomas Strunz played for 12 seasons in the Bundesliga, which is Germany's top football league. He played 235 games and scored 32 goals. He represented two famous clubs: Bayern Munich and Stuttgart. During his career, he won 12 major club titles.
Strunz also played 41 games for the German national team over nine years. He was a key player in the team that won the European Championship in 1996.
Contents
Playing Career Highlights
Thomas Strunz was born in Duisburg, North Rhine-Westphalia. He started his football journey with his hometown club, MSV Duisburg. When he was 21, he moved to the famous club FC Bayern Munich.
Early Days at Bayern Munich
Strunz made his first appearance in the Bundesliga on August 31, 1989. It was a great start, as Bayern won 4–0 against Hamburger SV. In his first season, he scored five goals in 20 matches. This showed he was a talented player.
Time at VfB Stuttgart and Return to Bayern
In 1992, Strunz joined VfB Stuttgart. He scored five goals in his first season there. After three years with Stuttgart, he returned to FC Bayern Munich. His second time at Bayern was very successful.
With Bayern, he won four Bundesliga championships. He also won two DFB-Pokal cups, which are national cup competitions. In 1996, he helped Bayern win the 1995–96 UEFA Cup, scoring two goals in nine games during that tournament. Towards the end of his career, injuries made it hard for him to play often. He retired from football in late 2000.
International Football for Germany
Thomas Strunz played for the German national team. His first game was on October 10, 1990. It was a friendly match against Sweden, which Germany won 3–1.
World Cup and European Championship
He represented Germany in two major tournaments. He played in the 1994 FIFA World Cup. He was also part of the team that won the European Championship in 1996.
During Euro 1996, Strunz played in five out of six matches. He was sent off in a game against Italy, which meant he missed the next match. However, he came back strong. In the semi-finals, he successfully scored his penalty kick during the penalty shootout. He then played the entire final game against the Czech Republic, helping Germany win the title.
Achievements and Trophies
Thomas Strunz won many important titles during his football career.
Club Honours
Bayern Munich
- Bundesliga: 1989–90, 1996–97, 1998–99, 1999–2000 (four times)
- DFB-Pokal: 1997–98, 1999–2000 (two times)
- DFB-Ligapokal: 1997, 1998, 2000 (three times)
- DFL-Supercup: 1990
- UEFA Cup: 1995–96
- UEFA Champions League runner-up: 1998–99
VfB Stuttgart
- DFL-Supercup: 1992
International Honours
Germany
- UEFA European Championship: 1996
- U.S. Cup: 1993
Career Statistics: International Games
Here's a look at how many games Thomas Strunz played for the German national team each year and how many goals he scored.
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Germany | 1990 | 2 | 0 |
| 1992 | 1 | 0 | |
| 1993 | 5 | 0 | |
| 1994 | 13 | 0 | |
| 1995 | 4 | 1 | |
| 1996 | 9 | 0 | |
| 1998 | 1 | 0 | |
| 1999 | 6 | 0 | |
| Total | 41 | 1 | |
International Goal Scored
Thomas Strunz scored one goal for the German national team. Here are the details:
| # | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | 7 June 1995 | Vasil Levski, Sofia, Bulgaria |  Bulgaria |
2–0 | 2–3 | Euro 1996 qualifying |
Life After Playing Football
After retiring from playing, Thomas Strunz took on new roles in football.
Working as a General Manager
He worked as a general manager at VfL Wolfsburg for almost a year. Later, in 2008, he took on the same role at Rot-Weiss Essen.
Football Pundit
Strunz also became a football pundit. This means he shared his expert opinions on football matches and news for the German TV channel Sport1.
Fun Fact
On March 10, 1998, Thomas Strunz was mentioned during a very famous press conference. The manager of Bayern, Giovanni Trapattoni, was very angry and spoke in broken German. This event was quite memorable and later helped Strunz become a TV pundit.
Images for kids
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Strunz in 2012
See also
In Spanish: Thomas Strunz para niños
