Jannik Vestergaard
Vestergaard training with Werder Bremen in 2015
Personal information
Full name Jannik Vestergaard[1]
Date of birth (1992-08-03) 3 August 1992 (age 31)[2]
Place of birth Hvidovre, Denmark
Height 1.99 m (6 ft 6 in)[3]
Position(s) Centre back
Team information
Current team
 Leicester City
Number 23
Youth career
Vestia
Frem
Copenhagen
Brøndby
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2010–2011 1899 Hoffenheim II 22 (4)
2011–2015 1899 Hoffenheim 71 (4)
2015–2016 Werder Bremen 48 (3)
2016–2018 Borussia Mönchengladbach 66 (7)
2018–2021 Southampton 72 (4)
2021– Leicester City 40 (2)
International career‡
2010 Denmark U18 4 (1)
2010–2011 Denmark U19 7 (0)
2011 Denmark U20 2 (0)
2011–2015 Denmark U21 28 (4)
2013– Denmark 37 (2)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 21:38, 13 February 2024 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 09:59, 21 November 2023 (UTC)

Jannik Vestergaard (born 3 August 1992) is a Danish professional footballer who plays as a centre back for EFL Championship club Leicester City and the Denmark national team.

Vestergaard played for various Danish and German clubs before joining Southampton in 2018. He also played for various youth levels and debuted for the senior team in 2013.

Early and personal life

Vestergaard was born to a Danish father and a German mother in the Copenhagen suburb of Hvidovre and grew up in Copenhagen.[4]

His German grandfather Hannes Schröers and uncle Jan Schröers were also footballers for Fortuna Düsseldorf and Bayer 05 Uerdingen respectively.[4] His cousin Mika Schröers played for Borussia Mönchengladbach's youth teams in 2016.[5][6]

He has a girlfriend, Pernille, and a dog, Brady.[7]

Club career

Youth career

Vestergaard played youth football with Vestia, Boldklubben Frem, Kjøbenhavns Boldklub and Brøndby.[8][9][10]

Bundesliga

In 2010, Vestergaard left Denmark to sign for German club TSG 1899 Hoffenheim.[11][12][10] He would make his professional debut as a substitute for Ryan Babel in a Bundesliga fixture against Eintracht Frankfurt on 16 April 2011.[13]

Vestergaard became an established starter during the 2011–12 season and scored his first goal in a 1–1 draw with SV Werder Bremen on 11 February 2012.[14]

After four seasons at Hoffenheim, he moved to Werder Bremen in January 2015.[15][16] He made his debut for Bremen in a 2–0 win over Hertha BSC on 1 February.[17]

On 11 June 2016, Vestergaard joined Borussia Mönchengladbach for a reported transfer of €12 million plus bonuses.[5][6][18] During his first season at Borussia, Vestergaard made his UEFA Champions League debut.[19][20]

Southampton

Vestergaard moved to English club Southampton on 13 July 2018, signing a four-year contract.[21][19] On 12 August 2018, he made his debut in a 0–0 draw against Burnley in the Premier League.[22] He scored his first goal for the club on 31 August 2019, the equaliser in a 1–1 draw against Manchester United.[23]

Leicester City

On 12 August 2021, it was announced that Southampton had accepted a transfer offer from Leicester City for Vestergaard.[24] On 13 August 2021, he signed for Leicester City on a three-year contract, for an undisclosed fee.[25][26] He made his debut for the club one day later in the opening weekend of the Premier League as a 62nd-minute substitute in a 1–0 win against Wolverhampton Wanderers.[27]

After making 19 appearances during his first season at Leicester,[20] Vestergaard did not appear at all during the 2022–23 season, as the club was relegated from the Premier League.[28] He was demoted to the reserves in March 2023 after giving an interview critical of manager Brendan Rodgers;[29] Rodgers was sacked by the club a month later after a poor run of results left Leicester in the relegation zone.[28][30]

Following relegation to the EFL Championship, Vestergaard established himself as a starting central defender for Leicester in their 2023–24 season under new manager Enzo Maresca.[28] On 6 August 2023, he started Leicester's opening match of the Championship, a 2–1 home win over Coventry City. On 21 October, he scored his first goal for the club in a 3–1 away win at Swansea City.[31]

International career

Youth level

Besides Denmark, Vestergaard was also eligible to represent Germany through his German mother.[32]

Vestergaard represented the Denmark national youth teams at under-18, under-19, under-20 and under-21 levels.[9] He received his first call-up to the Denmark senior team in August 2013, describing it as his "dream" to play for the country,[33] and he made his debut later that month in a match against Poland.[34] His first goal for Denmark came in his first competitive game, against Sweden in the European Championship play-off return leg on 17 November 2015.[35]

He represented the Denmark U21 team at the 2015 UEFA European Under-21 Championship in the Czech Republic, and scored in a 2–1 defeat of the host nation in the opening match at the Eden Arena in Prague.[36]

Senior level

Vestergaard was a member of Denmark's squad at the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia,[37] but did not make any appearances in the tournament.[19]

In June 2021, he was included in the national team's bid for 2020 UEFA Euro, where the team reached the semi-finals.[38]

Career statistics

Club

As of match played 13 February 2024[39]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National cup[a] League cup[b] Europe Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
1899 Hoffenheim 2010–11 Bundesliga 1 0 — — — 1 0
2011–12 Bundesliga 23 2 3 0 — — 26 2
2012–13 Bundesliga 16 0 1 0 — 2 0 19 0
2013–14 Bundesliga 25 1 4 0 — — 29 1
2014–15 Bundesliga 6 1 1 1 — — 7 2
Total 71 4 9 1 0 0 2 0 82 5
Werder Bremen 2014–15 Bundesliga 15 1 1 0 — — 16 1
2015–16 Bundesliga 33 2 5 1 — — 38 3
Total 48 3 6 1 0 0 0 0 54 4
Borussia Mönchengladbach 2016–17 Bundesliga 34 4 5 0 — 10[c] 0 49 4
2017–18 Bundesliga 32 3 2 0 — 0 0 34 3
Total 66 7 7 0 0 0 10 0 83 7
Southampton 2018–19[40] Premier League 23 0 2 0 1 0 — 26 0
2019–20[41] Premier League 19 1 2 0 0 0 — 21 1
2020–21[42] Premier League 30 3 2 0 0 0 — 32 3
Total 72 4 6 0 1 0 0 0 79 4
Leicester City 2021–22[43] Premier League 10 0 1 0 3 0 6[d] 0 20 0
2022–23[44] Premier League 0 0 1 0 2 0 — 3 0
2023–24[45] Championship 30 2 0 0 0 0 — 30 2
Total 40 2 2 0 5 0 0 0 53 2
Career total 297 20 30 2 6 0 18 0 351 22
  1. ^ Includes DFB-Pokal, FA Cup
  2. ^ Includes EFL Cup
  3. ^ Six appearances in UEFA Champions League, four appearances in UEFA Europa League
  4. ^ Three appearances in UEFA Europa League, three appearances in UEFA Europa Conference League

International

As of match played 20 November 2023[46]
Appearances and goals by national team and year
National team Year Apps Goals
Denmark 2013 1 0
2014 1 0
2015 3 1
2016 7 0
2017 3 0
2018 2 0
2019 0 0
2020 3 0
2021 11 0
2022 3 1
2023 2 0
Total 37 2
Scores and results list Denmark's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Vestergaard goal.[47]
List of international goals scored by Jannik Vestergaard
No. Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1 17 November 2015 Parken Stadium, Copenhagen, Denmark  Sweden 2–2 2–2 UEFA Euro 2016 qualifying play-offs
2 26 March 2022 Johan Cruyff Arena, Amsterdam, Netherlands  Netherlands 1–1 2–4 Friendly

References

  1. ^ "2018/19 Premier League squads confirmed". Premier League. 3 September 2018. Retrieved 4 September 2018.
  2. ^ "FIFA World Cup Russia 2018: List of Players: Denmark" (PDF). FIFA. 15 July 2018. p. 8. Archived from the original (PDF) on 11 June 2019.
  3. ^ "Jannik Vestergaard". Leicester City F.C. 7 August 2022.
  4. ^ a b TSG 1899 Hoffenheim Fußball-Spielbetriebs GmbH (Hrsg.) (30 March 2011). "JANNIK VESTERGAARD: DER LANGE". Achtzehn99 (in German). Archived from the original on 27 April 2016. Retrieved 27 April 2016.((cite web)): CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  5. ^ a b Borussia VfL 1900 Mönchengladbach GmbH (publisher) (11 June 2016). "Borussia verpflichtet Jannik Vestergaard". Borussia Mönchengladbach (in German). Archived from the original on 25 October 2019. Retrieved 12 June 2016.((cite web)): CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  6. ^ a b Borussia VfL 1900 Mönchengladbach GmbH (publisher) (11 June 2016). "Borussia sign Jannik Vestergaard". Borussia Mönchengladbach. Archived from the original on 19 June 2018. Retrieved 12 June 2016.((cite web)): CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  7. ^ "Jannik Vestergaard: 10 things on the Borussia Mönchengladbach and Denmark star". Bundesliga. 9 July 2018. Retrieved 10 September 2018.
  8. ^ "Jeg har aldrig kunne lide at tabe". Tipsbladet.dk.
  9. ^ a b "Profile" (in Danish). DBU. Retrieved 1 February 2015.
  10. ^ a b "Borussia Mönchengladbach holt Jannik Vestergaard". Bundesliga (in German). 10 June 2016.
  11. ^ "Jannik Vestergaard". National Football Teams. Benjamin Strack-Zimmermann. Retrieved 1 February 2015.
  12. ^ Jannik Vestergaard at fussballdaten.de (in German)
  13. ^ "Firmino kommt und bringt die Entscheidung". kicker (in German). Retrieved 24 December 2023.
  14. ^ "EIN GRÜN-WEISSES SCHWARZES SCHAF". SV Werder Bremen (in German). 27 January 2015.
  15. ^ "Vestergaard joins Bremen from Hoffenheim". Bundesliga. 27 January 2015. Archived from the original on 31 January 2015. Retrieved 1 February 2015.
  16. ^ "Bremen land Vestergaard". Soccerway. 27 January 2015. Retrieved 1 February 2015.
  17. ^ "Vestergaard debuterer for Werder Bremen med sejr". DR (in Danish). 1 February 2015.
  18. ^ ""Gute Lösung" mit Vestergaard". Kreiszeitung (in German). 10 June 2016. Retrieved 26 September 2016.
  19. ^ a b c "Jannik Vestergaard: Southampton sign centre-back from Borussia Monchengladbach". BBC Sport. 13 July 2018. Retrieved 13 July 2018.
  20. ^ a b "23. Jannik Vestergaard". Leicester City F.C. Retrieved 24 December 2023.
  21. ^ "Saints seal Vestergaard deal". Southampton FC. 13 July 2018. Retrieved 13 July 2018.
  22. ^ "Southampton 0–0 Burnley: Alex McCarthy and Joe Hart shine in stalemate". Sky Sports. Retrieved 6 March 2021.
  23. ^ "Southampton 1–1 Man Utd: Jannik Vestergaard header earns 10-man Saints a point". BBC Sport. 31 August 2019. Retrieved 2 September 2019.
  24. ^ "Jannik Vestergaard: Southampton accept Leicester bid for defender". Sky Sports.
  25. ^ "Leicester City Sign Defender Jannik Vestergaard". Leicester City F.C. Retrieved 13 August 2021.
  26. ^ "Vestergaard joins Leicester from Saints". BBC Sport. 13 August 2021.
  27. ^ "Leicester 1-0 Wolves: Jamie Vardy hands Bruno Lage defeat in first match". BBC Sport. 14 August 2021. Retrieved 4 January 2024.
  28. ^ a b c "Jannik Vestergaard: Leicester City defender thankful for fresh start under Enzo Maresca". BBC Sport. 28 November 2023.
  29. ^ Tanner, Rob. "Vestergaard exiled from Leicester training after interview". The Athletic.
  30. ^ "Brendan Rodgers: Leicester City sack manager after four years in charge". BBC. 2 April 2023.
  31. ^ "Record-Breaking Foxes Seal Swans Win". Leicester City F.C. 21 October 2023.
  32. ^ Lars Bruun-Mortensen (28 May 2013). "Dansk stortalent føler sig mere og mere tysk" (in Danish). TV2. Retrieved 1 February 2015.
  33. ^ "Jannik V: Drømmen har altid været Danmark" (in Danish). Bold. 12 August 2013. Retrieved 1 February 2015.
  34. ^ Jan Vinberg Eliassen (14 August 2013). "Målrigt opgør endte med dansk nederlag" (in Danish). DBU. Retrieved 1 February 2015.
  35. ^ "Borussia sign Jannik Vestergaard – Borussia Mönchengladbach". Borussia.de. Archived from the original on 19 June 2018. Retrieved 10 July 2018.
  36. ^ "Czech Republic 1–2 Denmark". UEFA. 17 June 2015.
  37. ^ "2018 FIFA World Cup: List of players" (PDF). FIFA. 18 June 2018. p. 8.
  38. ^ "26 spillere klar til EM for Danmark" [26 players ready for the European Championship for Denmark]. Danish Football Association (in Danish). 25 May 2021. Retrieved 25 May 2021.
  39. ^ Jannik Vestergaard at Soccerway. Retrieved 12 August 2018.
  40. ^ "Games played by Jannik Vestergaard in 2018/2019". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 11 March 2019.
  41. ^ "Games played by Jannik Vestergaard in 2019/2020". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 1 March 2020.
  42. ^ "Games played by Jannik Vestergaard in 2020/2021". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 7 March 2021.
  43. ^ "Games played by Jannik Vestergaard in 2021/2022". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 22 December 2021.
  44. ^ "Games played by Jannik Vestergaard in 2022/2023". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 23 August 2022.
  45. ^ "Games played by Jannik Vestergaard in 2023/2024". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 6 August 2023.
  46. ^ "Jannik Vestergaard". EU-Football.info.
  47. ^ "Jannik Vestergaard". Danish FA. Retrieved 14 February 2016.

External links

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