Valter Birsa facts for kids
Birsa in November 2009
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | 7 August 1986 | ||
| Place of birth | Šempeter pri Gorici, SR Slovenia, SFR Yugoslavia | ||
| Height | 1.84 m | ||
| Playing position | Winger, attacking midfielder | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1991–2004 | Bilje | ||
| 2004–2005 | Gorica | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 2003 | Primorje | 1 | (0) |
| 2004 | Bilje | 7 | (6) |
| 2004–2006 | Gorica | 61 | (26) |
| 2006–2009 | Sochaux | 66 | (8) |
| 2009 | → Auxerre (loan) | 15 | (1) |
| 2009–2011 | Auxerre | 68 | (8) |
| 2011–2013 | Genoa | 9 | (0) |
| 2012–2013 | → Torino (loan) | 17 | (2) |
| 2013–2015 | AC Milan | 15 | (2) |
| 2014–2015 | → Chievo (loan) | 35 | (0) |
| 2015–2019 | Chievo | 122 | (18) |
| 2019–2020 | Cagliari | 25 | (0) |
| Total | 441 | (71) | |
| National team | |||
| 2001 | Slovenia U15 | 7 | (1) |
| 2004 | Slovenia U19 | 1 | (0) |
| 2004–2005 | Slovenia U20 | 2 | (0) |
| 2004–2006 | Slovenia U21 | 12 | (5) |
| 2006 | Slovenia B | 1 | (0) |
| 2006–2018 | Slovenia | 90 | (7) |
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Valter Birsa (born August 7, 1986) is a retired Slovenian footballer. He was known for playing as a winger, which is a player who runs down the sides of the field.
Contents
Valter Birsa's Football Journey
Valter Birsa started his football journey very young. He was born in Šempeter pri Gorici, Slovenia. He grew up in Nova Gorica, another city in Slovenia.
Early Life and First Clubs
Valter began playing football at just five years old. His first team was ND Bilje, a local club in the village of Bilje. He was a very talented player, so he quickly moved to bigger clubs. First, he played for Primorje, and then at 17, he joined Gorica.
Playing in France
In 2006, Valter moved to France to play for Sochaux. This team was in Ligue de Football Professionnel, which is a top French football league. While playing for Sochaux, he helped them win the French Cup in 2007. The final game was against Olympique de Marseille. It ended in a 2–2 tie, so they had to decide the winner with penalty kicks. Valter scored his penalty, and his team won!
Loan to Auxerre
On January 22, 2009, Valter joined Auxerre on a temporary loan from Sochaux. He scored his first goal for Auxerre against Olympique Lyonnais. Auxerre was so impressed that they decided to sign him permanently on May 29, 2009. In the 2010–11 season, Valter scored an amazing goal from 23 yards out. This was also his first goal in the UEFA Champions League, a big European club competition, against Ajax.
Moving to Italy
On February 2, 2011, Valter signed a four-year contract with Serie A club Genoa in Italy. Even big English teams like Liverpool and Fulham were interested in him. In his first season in Italy, he played in nine games.
Loan to Torino
On August 31, 2012, Valter went on loan to Torino. He played 17 games for Torino and scored 2 goals. However, Torino did not sign him permanently, so he went back to Genoa.
Playing for AC Milan
Valter joined AC Milan, another famous Italian club, on August 31, 2013. This was part of a player swap deal. He was given the number 14 jersey. He scored his first goal for AC Milan on September 28, 2013, against Sampdoria. This goal helped his team win the game.
Time at Chievo
On July 9, 2014, Valter moved to Chievo on loan. Chievo liked him so much that they signed him permanently on July 2, 2015, with a three-year contract. He played many games for Chievo.
Final Club: Cagliari
On January 9, 2019, Valter signed with Cagliari, another team in Italy's Serie A league.
International Career
Valter Birsa also played for the Slovenian national team from 2006 to 2018. He scored his first goal for his country on September 9, 2009. This was in a World Cup qualifying game against Poland, which Slovenia won 3–0.
At the 2010 FIFA World Cup, Valter scored a fantastic long-range curving shot. This was in Slovenia's second group game against the United States. That game ended in a 2–2 tie.
He played a total of 90 games for the national team and scored 7 goals. His last game for Slovenia was a friendly match against Belarus in March 2018.
Personal Life
Valter Birsa was born in Šempeter pri Gorici, which is now part of Slovenia. In 2012, he married his longtime girlfriend, Mateja. They have a son named Nolan.
Honours
Valter Birsa won several awards and championships during his career:
Gorica
- Slovenian PrvaLiga: 2004–05, 2005–06 (This is the top football league in Slovenia)
Sochaux
- Coupe de France: 2006–07 (This is the main cup competition in French football)
Individual
- Slovenian Footballer of the Year: 2010 (He was named the best footballer in Slovenia)
See also
In Spanish: Valter Birsa para niños
- Slovenian international players
