Allan Simonsen
Encyclopedia
Allan Rodenkam Simonsen (born 15 December 1952) is a former Danish
footballer and manager. He most prominently played for German
team Borussia Mönchengladbach
, winning the 1975 and 1979 UEFA Cups, as well as for Barcelona
from Spain
, winning the 1982 Cup WInners' Cup
. Allan Simonsen is the only footballer to have scored in the European Cup
, UEFA Cup, and Cup Winners' Cup finals, and he was named 1977 European Footballer of the Year
.
For the Denmark national football team
, Simonsen was capped
55 times, scoring 20 goals. He represented Denmark at the 1972 Summer Olympics
, 1984 European Championship
and 1986 World Cup
tournaments. He was voted into the Danish Football Hall of Fame in November 2008.
, Simonsen started playing football with Vejle FC, before he joined the youth team of local top-flight club Vejle BK
(VB) in 1963. He made his senior debut for VB on 24 March 1971 in a 3–1 home win against Karlskoga FF
. He won the 1971 and 1972 Danish championship
with the club, as well as the 1972 Danish Cup
to complete The Double. Following an impressive three goals in six matches at the 1972 Summer Olympics
, Simonsen moved to Germany to play professionally for defending German Bundesliga
champions Borussia Mönchengladbach
.
against FC Twente
. In the following season, Simonsen scored 16 goals as Mönchengladbach won the 1975–76 season. He scored four goals in six games of the international 1975–76 European Cup competition, before Mönchengladbach were eliminated in the quarter-finals by Spanish
team Real Madrid
on the away goals rule
.
1977 was the greatest year in Simonsen's career. He scored 12 goals to help Mönchengladbach win its third Bundesliga title in a row in the 1975–76 season. In the 1976–77 European Cup, Simonsen helped Mönchengladbach to the 1977 European Cup Final
against English
team Liverpool
. In the final, Simonsen scored a memorable powerful long range goal to level the game at 1–1, but Mönchengladbach eventually lost 3–1. He was subsequently named the 1977 European Footballer of the Year
, as the first Danish player in history. The race for the award was tight, and Simonsen squeezed past English midfielder Kevin Keegan
by three points and French
midfielder Michel Platini
by four points to win the prestigious prize. The win was notable, in that Simonsen's native Denmark was not among the top footballing nations in the 1970s, leaving him little room to impress at the international tournaments.
In the following two Bundesliga seasons, Simonsen continued his prolific goalscoring, as Mönchengladbach finished 2nd and 8th respectively. He won another international trophy with Mönchengladbach in 1979, when he scored eight goals in eight games to guide the club to the final games of the 1978–79 UEFA Cup. He scored the deciding goal in the 2–1 1979 UEFA Cup Final
win against Red Star Belgrade
. Simonsen had been approached by Spanish club FC Barcelona
in 1978, but Mönchengladbach refused to let him go. Instead, Simonsen waited for his contract to expire, and moved to FC Barcelona in 1979, rejecting offers from Hamburger SV
, Juventus
, and several Arabian clubs.
(20) and Bernd Schuster
(11), as Barcelona finished in fifth place in the 1980–81 La Liga. Simonsen was second goal scorer behind Quini, as the club finished second in the 1981–82 La Liga. He also helped Barcelona reach the final of the continental 1981–82 European Cup Winners' Cup competition. In the 2–1 final victory against Standard Liège
, Simonsen scored the deciding goal on a header
to help Barcelona lift the trophy.
forward Diego Maradona
in 1982, Spanish league restrictions meant Simonsen was to compete with Maradona and Bernd Schuster for only two places allowed for foreign players in each starting line-up. Simonsen saw it as a personal insult, and asked Barcelona for his contract to be annulled. He made a shock move to English Second Division
side Charlton Athletic
for £300,000 in October 1982. He rejected offers from Real Madrid and Tottenham Hotspur, in order to play for a club with less stress and attention. Despite scoring nine times in 16 appearances, the club had trouble funding his transfer and wages after three months, and he was put up for sale. Simonsen then chose to return to his childhood club VB in 1983.
, but never reached his former form. Simonsen retired from football in 1989 at age 37, and played his last game for VB in November 1989. He played a total 282 games and scored 104 goals, including 208 games and 89 goals in the league, for Vejle Boldklub.
under manager Rudi Strittich
in the July 1972 friendly match against Iceland
. He scored two goals as Denmark won 5-2, and Simonsen was included in the Danish squad for the 1972 Summer Olympics
. At the Olympics, he scored three goals in the first three matches to help Denmark advance beyond the first group stage. In the second group stage, Simonsen ran out of steam and he was substituted at half time in two of the last three games as Denmark were eliminated.
He played a crucial part for the Danish national team under manager Sepp Piontek, in Denmark's qualifying campaign for the 1984 European Championship. Denmark led their qualifying group with a single point over second placed England
before the two teams met at England's home ground Wembley Stadium
in September 1983. Simonsen scored one of the most important Danish goals ever, as he converted a penalty kick
against English goalkeeper Peter Shilton
. The 1-0 win eventually secured the Danish national team qualification for their first international tournament since the 1972 Olympic Games, and the first European Championship participation since the 1964 tournament
. It effectively ended England's hopes of qualification for the tournament. He subsequently finished third in the vote for the 1983 European Footballer of the Year award.
The 1984 European Championship main tournament was a short experience for Simonsen, as he broke his leg in a challenge by Yvon Le Roux
in Denmark's first match against France
. Even without Simonsen, Denmark reached the semi-finals. He was once more a part of the Danish national team at the 1986 World Cup, Denmark's first World Cup participation. He only played a single match at the tournament, coming on as a substitute against
West Germany
, as younger players had surpassed him. He played a farewell match against Germany
in September 1986 before ending his national team career.
Simonsen played a total 55 games for the Danish national team and scored 20 goals, according to the Danish Football Association
. However, some sources chose to include Simonsen's appearance in a February 1981 charity match, to tally his national team career as 21 goals in 56 games. The match was Italy
vs. Europe for the benefit of the Irpinia earthquake victims. Simonsen started the game, scored a goal, and was substituted at half time as Europe won 3-0.
to the now second-tier Danish 1st Division. He later coached the national teams of the Faroe Islands
from 1994 to 2001 and Luxembourg
from 2001 to 2004.
|1972/73||rowspan="7"|Borussia Mönchengladbach
||rowspan="7"|Bundesliga||8||0
|-
|1973/74||9||2
|-
|1974/75||34||18
|-
|1975/76||34||16
|-
|1976/77||34||12
|-
|1977/78||31||17
|-
|1978/79||28||11
|-
|1979/80||rowspan="3"|Barcelona
||rowspan="3"|La Liga
||32||10
|-
|1980/81||33||10
|-
|1981/82||33||11
|-
|1982/83||Charlton Athletic
||Second Division
||16||9
|-
|1983||rowspan="7"|Vejle||rowspan="7"|First Division||28||13
|-
|1984||13||6
|-
|1985||30||16
|-
|1986||24||13
|-
|1987||25||13
|-
|1988||23||4
|-
|1989||23||5
178||76
98||31
16||9
166||70
458||186
|}
|1972||9||5
|-
|1973||0||0
|-
|1974||2||1
|-
|1975||1||0
|-
|1976||2||1
|-
|1977||2||2
|-
|1978||1||1
|-
|1979||4||1
|-
|1980||5||2
|-
|1981||7||3
|-
|1982||1||0
|-
|1983||7||4
|-
|1984||6||0
|-
|1985||4||0
|-
|1986||4||0
|-
!Total||55||20
|}
European
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
footballer and manager. He most prominently played for German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
team Borussia Mönchengladbach
Borussia Mönchengladbach
Borussia Mönchengladbach is a German association football club based in Mönchengladbach, North Rhine-Westphalia. The team plays in the Bundesliga and is one of the country's most well-known, well-supported, and successful teams. Borussia Mönchengladbach has over 40,000 members and is the sixth...
, winning the 1975 and 1979 UEFA Cups, as well as for Barcelona
FC Barcelona
Futbol Club Barcelona , also known as Barcelona and familiarly as Barça, is a professional football club, based in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain....
from Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
, winning the 1982 Cup WInners' Cup
UEFA Cup Winners' Cup
The UEFA Cup Winners' Cup was a football club competition contested annually by the most recent winners of all European domestic cup competitions. The cup is one of the many inter-European club competitions that have been organised by UEFA. The first competition was held in the 1960–61 season—but...
. Allan Simonsen is the only footballer to have scored in the European Cup
UEFA Champions League
The UEFA Champions League, known simply the Champions League and originally known as the European Champion Clubs' Cup or European Cup, is an annual international club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations since 1955 for the top football clubs in Europe. It...
, UEFA Cup, and Cup Winners' Cup finals, and he was named 1977 European Footballer of the Year
European Footballer of the Year
The "", literally translated as "the golden ball" and often referred to as the European Footballer of the Year award, was an annual association football award. It was presented to the player who had been considered to have performed the best over the previous calendar year...
.
For the Denmark national football team
Denmark national football team
The Denmark national football team represents Denmark in association football and is controlled by the Danish Football Association , the governing body for the football clubs which are organized under DBU...
, Simonsen was capped
Cap (sport)
In sports, a cap is a metaphorical term for a player's appearance on a select team, such as a national team. The term dates from the practice in the United Kingdom of awarding a cap to every player in an international match of association football...
55 times, scoring 20 goals. He represented Denmark at the 1972 Summer Olympics
1972 Summer Olympics
The 1972 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XX Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event held in Munich, West Germany, from August 26 to September 11, 1972....
, 1984 European Championship
1984 UEFA European Football Championship
The 1984 UEFA European Football Championship final tournament was held in France. West Germany also bid for the hosting of this event. It was the seventh European Football Championship, held every four years and endorsed by UEFA...
and 1986 World Cup
1986 FIFA World Cup
The 1986 FIFA World Cup, the 13th FIFA World Cup, was held in Mexico from 31 May to 29 June. The tournament was the second to feature a 24-team format. Colombia had been originally chosen to host the competition by FIFA but, largely due to economic reasons, was not able to do so and officially...
tournaments. He was voted into the Danish Football Hall of Fame in November 2008.
Club career
Born in VejleVejle
Vejle is a town in Denmark, in the southeast of the Jutland Peninsula at the head of Vejle Fjord, where the Vejle and Grejs Rivers and their valleys converge. It is the site of the councils of Vejle Municipality and the Region of Southern Denmark...
, Simonsen started playing football with Vejle FC, before he joined the youth team of local top-flight club Vejle BK
Vejle Boldklub
Vejle Boldklub is a Danish football club with proud traditions from the town of Vejle. The club has won the Danish championship five times and the Danish cup title six times....
(VB) in 1963. He made his senior debut for VB on 24 March 1971 in a 3–1 home win against Karlskoga FF
KB Karlskoga FF
KB Karlskoga FF is a Swedish football club located in Karlskoga. The club was founded in 1963 following the merger of IFK Bofors and Karlskoga IF. KB means Karlskoga/Bofors.-Background:...
. He won the 1971 and 1972 Danish championship
Danish football champions
The Danish football champions are the winners of the highest league of football in Denmark. The title has been contested since 1913, in a varying form of competitions. Since 1991, the winners have been found through the Danish Superliga championship...
with the club, as well as the 1972 Danish Cup
Danish Cup
The Danish Cup is the official "knockout" cup competition in Danish football, run by the Danish Football Association. The cup has been contested annually since 1955...
to complete The Double. Following an impressive three goals in six matches at the 1972 Summer Olympics
1972 Summer Olympics
The 1972 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XX Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event held in Munich, West Germany, from August 26 to September 11, 1972....
, Simonsen moved to Germany to play professionally for defending German Bundesliga
Fußball-Bundesliga
The Fußball-Bundesliga is a professional association football league in Germany. At the top of Germany's football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. It is contested by 18 teams and operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the 2. Bundesliga...
champions Borussia Mönchengladbach
Borussia Mönchengladbach
Borussia Mönchengladbach is a German association football club based in Mönchengladbach, North Rhine-Westphalia. The team plays in the Bundesliga and is one of the country's most well-known, well-supported, and successful teams. Borussia Mönchengladbach has over 40,000 members and is the sixth...
.
Borussia Mönchengladbach
In his first two seasons with Borussia Mönchengladbach, Simonsen had a hard time, as he only played a combined 17 games and scored two goals. However, he was a part of the team which won the 1972–73 German Cup trophy. He broke into the starting line-up for the 1974–75 season. He played all 34 games of the season, and scored 18 goals as Mönchengladbach won the Bundesliga championship. Simonsen also scored 10 goals in 12 games in the international 1974–75 UEFA Cup competition, including two goals in the 5–1 final victory1975 UEFA Cup Final
The 1975 UEFA Cup Final was played on 7 May and 21 May 1975 between Borussia Mönchengladbach of West Germany and FC Twente of the Netherlands. Mönchengladbach won 5–1 on aggregate.-First Leg:-Second Leg:-References:*...
against FC Twente
FC Twente
FC Twente is a Dutch professional football club from the city of Enschede, playing in the Eredivisie. The club was formed in 1965 by the merger of 1926 Eredivisie Champions, Sportclub Enschede and Enschedese Boys...
. In the following season, Simonsen scored 16 goals as Mönchengladbach won the 1975–76 season. He scored four goals in six games of the international 1975–76 European Cup competition, before Mönchengladbach were eliminated in the quarter-finals by Spanish
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
team Real Madrid
Real Madrid C.F.
Real Madrid Club de Fútbol , commonly known as Real Madrid, is a professional football club based in Madrid, Spain. The club have won a record 31 La Liga titles, the Primera División of the Liga de Fútbol Profesional , 18 Copas del Rey, 8 Spanish Super Cups, 1 Copa Eva Duarte and 1 Copa de la...
on the away goals rule
Away goals rule
The away goals rule is a method of breaking ties in association football and other sports when teams play each other twice, once at each team's home ground. By the away goals rule, the team that has scored more goals "away from home" will win if scores are otherwise equal...
.
1977 was the greatest year in Simonsen's career. He scored 12 goals to help Mönchengladbach win its third Bundesliga title in a row in the 1975–76 season. In the 1976–77 European Cup, Simonsen helped Mönchengladbach to the 1977 European Cup Final
1977 European Cup Final
The 1977 European Cup Final was an association football match between Liverpool of England and Borussia Mönchengladbach of Germany on 25 May 1977 at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome, Italy. The showpiece event was the final match of the 1976–77 season of Europe's premier cup competition, the European Cup...
against English
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
team Liverpool
Liverpool F.C.
Liverpool Football Club is an English Premier League football club based in Liverpool, Merseyside. Liverpool has won eighteen League titles, second most in English football, seven FA Cups and a record seven League Cups...
. In the final, Simonsen scored a memorable powerful long range goal to level the game at 1–1, but Mönchengladbach eventually lost 3–1. He was subsequently named the 1977 European Footballer of the Year
European Footballer of the Year
The "", literally translated as "the golden ball" and often referred to as the European Footballer of the Year award, was an annual association football award. It was presented to the player who had been considered to have performed the best over the previous calendar year...
, as the first Danish player in history. The race for the award was tight, and Simonsen squeezed past English midfielder Kevin Keegan
Kevin Keegan
Joseph Kevin Keegan, OBE is a former international footballer and former manager of the England national football team and several English clubs, most notably Newcastle United....
by three points and French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
midfielder Michel Platini
Michel Platini
Michel François Platini is a former French football player, manager and current president of UEFA. Platini was a member of the French national team that won the 1984 European Championship, a tournament in which he was the top goalscorer and voted the best player. He participated in the 1978, 1982...
by four points to win the prestigious prize. The win was notable, in that Simonsen's native Denmark was not among the top footballing nations in the 1970s, leaving him little room to impress at the international tournaments.
In the following two Bundesliga seasons, Simonsen continued his prolific goalscoring, as Mönchengladbach finished 2nd and 8th respectively. He won another international trophy with Mönchengladbach in 1979, when he scored eight goals in eight games to guide the club to the final games of the 1978–79 UEFA Cup. He scored the deciding goal in the 2–1 1979 UEFA Cup Final
1979 UEFA Cup Final
The 1979 UEFA Cup Final was played on May 9, 1979 and May 23, 1979 between Red Star Belgrade of SFR Yugoslavia and Borussia Mönchengladbach of Germany. Mönchengladbach won 2-1 on aggregate.-First Leg:-Second Leg:-References:*...
win against Red Star Belgrade
Red Star Belgrade
Red Star Belgrade is a football club from Belgrade, Serbia. The club is a part of the Red Star Sports Society.Red Star Belgrade is the most successful Serbian club, with a record of 25 national championships and 23 national cups in both Serbian and ex-Yugoslav competitions...
. Simonsen had been approached by Spanish club FC Barcelona
FC Barcelona
Futbol Club Barcelona , also known as Barcelona and familiarly as Barça, is a professional football club, based in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain....
in 1978, but Mönchengladbach refused to let him go. Instead, Simonsen waited for his contract to expire, and moved to FC Barcelona in 1979, rejecting offers from Hamburger SV
Hamburger SV
Hamburger Sport-Verein, usually referred to as HSV in Germany and Hamburg in international parlance, is a German multi-sport club based in Hamburg, its largest branch being its football department...
, Juventus
Juventus F.C.
Juventus Football Club S.p.A. , commonly referred to as Juventus and colloquially as Juve , are a professional Italian association football club based in Turin, Piedmont...
, and several Arabian clubs.
Barcelona
Simonsen spent three successful seasons with Barcelona. In his first Barcelona season, Simonsen was the top goal scorer of the team with 10 goals in 32 games, as Barcelona finished in fourth place in the 1979–80 La Liga season. The following season saw several new players at Barcelona, and the club won the 1981 Spanish Cup. Simonsen's 10 goals saw him as third top goalscorer behind new players QuiniQuini
Enrique Castro González , aka Quini, is a retired Spanish footballer who played as a striker.In a career totally connected with Sporting de Gijón and FC Barcelona, he was widely regarded as one of the country's best strikers, having won a total of seven Pichichi Trophy awards, five of those in La...
(20) and Bernd Schuster
Bernd Schuster
Bernhard Schuster is a German football manager and former player, currently unemployed. His nickname is "der Blonde Engel" .-Club career:...
(11), as Barcelona finished in fifth place in the 1980–81 La Liga. Simonsen was second goal scorer behind Quini, as the club finished second in the 1981–82 La Liga. He also helped Barcelona reach the final of the continental 1981–82 European Cup Winners' Cup competition. In the 2–1 final victory against Standard Liège
Standard Liège
Royal Standard de Liège, commonly referred to as Standard Liège Royal Standard de Liège, commonly referred to as Standard Liège Royal Standard de Liège, commonly referred to as Standard Liège (Dutch: Standard Luik [], German: Standard Lüttich , is a Belgian football club from the city of Liège....
, Simonsen scored the deciding goal on a header
Header
Header may refer to: Computers and engineering* Header , supplemental data at the beginning of a data block** E-mail header** HTTP header* Header file, a text file used in computer programming...
to help Barcelona lift the trophy.
Charlton Athletic
When Barcelona signed ArgentinianArgentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
forward Diego Maradona
Diego Maradona
Diego Armando Maradona is a retired Argentine football player and widely regarded as one of the greatest football players of all time. Over the course of his professional club career Maradona played for Argentinos Juniors, Boca Juniors, Barcelona, Napoli, Sevilla and Newell's Old Boys, setting...
in 1982, Spanish league restrictions meant Simonsen was to compete with Maradona and Bernd Schuster for only two places allowed for foreign players in each starting line-up. Simonsen saw it as a personal insult, and asked Barcelona for his contract to be annulled. He made a shock move to English Second Division
Football League Second Division
From 1892 until 1992, the Football League Second Division was the second highest division overall in English football.This ended with the creation of the FA Premier League, prior to the start of the 1992–93 season, which caused an administrative split between The Football League and the teams...
side Charlton Athletic
Charlton Athletic F.C.
Charlton Athletic Football Club is an English professional football club based in Charlton, in the London Borough of Greenwich. They compete in Football League One, the third tier of English football. The club was founded on 9 June 1905, when a number of youth clubs in the southeast London area,...
for £300,000 in October 1982. He rejected offers from Real Madrid and Tottenham Hotspur, in order to play for a club with less stress and attention. Despite scoring nine times in 16 appearances, the club had trouble funding his transfer and wages after three months, and he was put up for sale. Simonsen then chose to return to his childhood club VB in 1983.
Vejle BK
He missed the last half of the 1984 season for VB because of an injury he sustained at the 1984 European Championship, but the club managed to win the 1984 Danish championship without him. He returned as a profile of the top-flight Danish 1st DivisionDanish 1st Division
The 1st Division has been the name of the second highest football league in Denmark since 1991. From 1945 to 1991 the 1st Division was the name of the highest level of football in Denmark...
, but never reached his former form. Simonsen retired from football in 1989 at age 37, and played his last game for VB in November 1989. He played a total 282 games and scored 104 goals, including 208 games and 89 goals in the league, for Vejle Boldklub.
International career
He debuted for the Danish national teamDenmark national football team
The Denmark national football team represents Denmark in association football and is controlled by the Danish Football Association , the governing body for the football clubs which are organized under DBU...
under manager Rudi Strittich
Rudi Strittich
Rudi Strittich was an Austrian football coach and former player.-Club career:He debuted for Vorwärts Steyr, and later played for First Vienna FC. While with First Vienna, he went on a tour of the Middle East and upon returning was arrested along with two other players for smuggling narcotics into...
in the July 1972 friendly match against Iceland
Iceland national football team
The Iceland national football team is the national football team of Iceland and is controlled by the Football Association of Iceland. It has never advanced to the finals of any major international competition....
. He scored two goals as Denmark won 5-2, and Simonsen was included in the Danish squad for the 1972 Summer Olympics
1972 Summer Olympics
The 1972 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XX Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event held in Munich, West Germany, from August 26 to September 11, 1972....
. At the Olympics, he scored three goals in the first three matches to help Denmark advance beyond the first group stage. In the second group stage, Simonsen ran out of steam and he was substituted at half time in two of the last three games as Denmark were eliminated.
He played a crucial part for the Danish national team under manager Sepp Piontek, in Denmark's qualifying campaign for the 1984 European Championship. Denmark led their qualifying group with a single point over second placed England
England national football team
The England national football team represents England in association football and is controlled by the Football Association, the governing body for football in England. England is the joint oldest national football team in the world, alongside Scotland, whom they played in the world's first...
before the two teams met at England's home ground Wembley Stadium
Wembley Stadium
The original Wembley Stadium, officially known as the Empire Stadium, was a football stadium in Wembley, a suburb of north-west London, standing on the site now occupied by the new Wembley Stadium that opened in 2007...
in September 1983. Simonsen scored one of the most important Danish goals ever, as he converted a penalty kick
Penalty kick
A penalty kick is a type of direct free kick in association football, taken from twelve yards out from goal and with only the goalkeeper of the defending team between the penalty taker and the goal.Penalty kicks are performed during normal play...
against English goalkeeper Peter Shilton
Peter Shilton
Peter Leslie Shilton OBE is a former English footballer who played as a goalkeeper. He currently holds the record for playing more games for England than anyone else, earning 125 caps....
. The 1-0 win eventually secured the Danish national team qualification for their first international tournament since the 1972 Olympic Games, and the first European Championship participation since the 1964 tournament
1964 UEFA European Football Championship
-Semi-finals:-----Third place play-off:-Final:-Goalscorers of the final tournament:There were 13 goals scored in 4 games, for an average of 3.25 goals per game.2 goals Ferenc Bene Dezső Novák Jesús María Pereda...
. It effectively ended England's hopes of qualification for the tournament. He subsequently finished third in the vote for the 1983 European Footballer of the Year award.
The 1984 European Championship main tournament was a short experience for Simonsen, as he broke his leg in a challenge by Yvon Le Roux
Yvon Le Roux
Yvon Le Roux is a former football defender from France, who earned 28 international caps for the French national team during the mid-1980s...
in Denmark's first match against France
France national football team
The France national football team represents the nation of France in international football. It is fielded by the French Football Federation , the governing body of football in France, and competes as a member of UEFA, which encompasses the countries of Europe...
. Even without Simonsen, Denmark reached the semi-finals. He was once more a part of the Danish national team at the 1986 World Cup, Denmark's first World Cup participation. He only played a single match at the tournament, coming on as a substitute against
West Germany
Germany national football team
The Germany national football team is the football team that has represented Germany in international competition since 1908. It is governed by the German Football Association , which was founded in 1900....
, as younger players had surpassed him. He played a farewell match against Germany
Germany national football team
The Germany national football team is the football team that has represented Germany in international competition since 1908. It is governed by the German Football Association , which was founded in 1900....
in September 1986 before ending his national team career.
Simonsen played a total 55 games for the Danish national team and scored 20 goals, according to the Danish Football Association
Danish Football Association
The Danish Football Association is the governing body of football in Denmark. It is the organization of the Danish football clubs and runs the professional Danish football leagues and the men's and women's national teams. It is based in the city of Brøndby and is a founding member of both FIFA...
. However, some sources chose to include Simonsen's appearance in a February 1981 charity match, to tally his national team career as 21 goals in 56 games. The match was Italy
Italy national football team
The Italy National Football Team , represents Italy in association football and is controlled by the Italian Football Federation , the governing body for football in Italy. Italy is the second most successful national team in the history of the World Cup having won four titles , just one fewer than...
vs. Europe for the benefit of the Irpinia earthquake victims. Simonsen started the game, scored a goal, and was substituted at half time as Europe won 3-0.
Managing career
Following his retirement, Simonsen went on to coach his former club Vejle Boldklub from 1991 to 1994. During his time at the club, VB were relegated from the new top-flight Danish SuperligaDanish Superliga
The Danish Superliga is the current Danish football championship tournament, and administered by the Danish Football Association. It is the highest association football league in Denmark and is currently contested by 12 teams each year, with 2 teams to be relegated, which proves to be one of the...
to the now second-tier Danish 1st Division. He later coached the national teams of the Faroe Islands
Faroe Islands national football team
The Faroe Islands national football team represents the Faroe Islands in association football and is controlled by the Faroe Islands Football Association, the governing body for football in the Faroe Islands. The Faroe Islands became a member of FIFA in 1988 and UEFA in 1990 and are the third...
from 1994 to 2001 and Luxembourg
Luxembourg national football team
The Luxembourg national football team is the national football team of Luxembourg, and is controlled by the Luxembourg Football Federation. The team play most of their home matches at the Stade Josy Barthel, in Luxembourg.- History :...
from 2001 to 2004.
Club statistics
|-|1972/73||rowspan="7"|Borussia Mönchengladbach
Borussia Mönchengladbach
Borussia Mönchengladbach is a German association football club based in Mönchengladbach, North Rhine-Westphalia. The team plays in the Bundesliga and is one of the country's most well-known, well-supported, and successful teams. Borussia Mönchengladbach has over 40,000 members and is the sixth...
||rowspan="7"|Bundesliga||8||0
|-
|1973/74||9||2
|-
|1974/75||34||18
|-
|1975/76||34||16
|-
|1976/77||34||12
|-
|1977/78||31||17
|-
|1978/79||28||11
|-
|1979/80||rowspan="3"|Barcelona
FC Barcelona
Futbol Club Barcelona , also known as Barcelona and familiarly as Barça, is a professional football club, based in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain....
||rowspan="3"|La Liga
La Liga
The Primera División of the Liga Nacional de Fútbol Profesional , commonly known as La Liga or, for sponsorship reasons, Liga BBVA since 2008, is the top professional association football division of the Spanish football league system...
||32||10
|-
|1980/81||33||10
|-
|1981/82||33||11
|-
|1982/83||Charlton Athletic
Charlton Athletic F.C.
Charlton Athletic Football Club is an English professional football club based in Charlton, in the London Borough of Greenwich. They compete in Football League One, the third tier of English football. The club was founded on 9 June 1905, when a number of youth clubs in the southeast London area,...
||Second Division
Football League One
Football League One is the second-highest division of The Football League and third-highest division overall in the English football league system....
||16||9
|-
|1983||rowspan="7"|Vejle||rowspan="7"|First Division||28||13
|-
|1984||13||6
|-
|1985||30||16
|-
|1986||24||13
|-
|1987||25||13
|-
|1988||23||4
|-
|1989||23||5
178||76
98||31
16||9
166||70
458||186
|}
National team statistics
|-|1972||9||5
|-
|1973||0||0
|-
|1974||2||1
|-
|1975||1||0
|-
|1976||2||1
|-
|1977||2||2
|-
|1978||1||1
|-
|1979||4||1
|-
|1980||5||2
|-
|1981||7||3
|-
|1982||1||0
|-
|1983||7||4
|-
|1984||6||0
|-
|1985||4||0
|-
|1986||4||0
|-
!Total||55||20
|}
Honours
Domestic- Danish championshipDanish football championsThe Danish football champions are the winners of the highest league of football in Denmark. The title has been contested since 1913, in a varying form of competitions. Since 1991, the winners have been found through the Danish Superliga championship...
: 1971, 1972 and 1984 with Vejle Boldklub - Danish CupDanish CupThe Danish Cup is the official "knockout" cup competition in Danish football, run by the Danish Football Association. The cup has been contested annually since 1955...
: 1972 with Vejle Boldklub - German CupDFB-PokalThe DFB-Pokal or DFB Cup is a German knockout football cup competition held annually. 64 teams participate in the competition, including all clubs from the Bundesliga and the 2nd Bundesliga. It is considered the second most important national title in German football after the Bundesliga...
: 1973 with Borussia M'gladbach - German Bundesliga : 1975, 1976 and 1977 with Borussia M'gladbach
- Spanish Cup : 1981 with FC Barcelona
European
- UEFA CupUEFA CupThe UEFA Europa League is an annual association football cup competition organised by UEFA since 1971 for eligible European football clubs. It is the second most prestigious European club football contest after the UEFA Champions League...
: 1975 and 1979 with Borussia M'gladbach - Cup Winners' Cup : 1982 with FC Barcelona
- European Footballer of the YearEuropean Footballer of the YearThe "", literally translated as "the golden ball" and often referred to as the European Footballer of the Year award, was an annual association football award. It was presented to the player who had been considered to have performed the best over the previous calendar year...
: 1977
International goals
- Scores and results list Denmark's goal tally first.
| # | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | 3 July 1972 | Laugardalsvöllur Laugardalsvöllur Laugardalsvöllur is the national stadium of Iceland. It is located in Reykjavík, and seats 9,800 individuals, another 5,627 people can be seated on concrete benches, but due to FIFA restrictions they are rarely used.-Overview:... , Reykjavik Reykjavík Reykjavík is the capital and largest city in Iceland.Its latitude at 64°08' N makes it the world's northernmost capital of a sovereign state. It is located in southwestern Iceland, on the southern shore of Faxaflói Bay... , Iceland Iceland Iceland , described as the Republic of Iceland, is a Nordic and European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Iceland also refers to the main island of the country, which contains almost all the population and almost all the land area. The country has a population... |
2–2 | 5–2 | Friendly Exhibition game An exhibition game is a sporting event in which there is no competitive value of any significant kind to any competitor regardless of the outcome of the competition... |
|
| 2. | 3 July 1972 | Laugardalsvöllur, Reykjavik, Iceland | 4–2 | 5–2 | Friendly | |
| 3. | 27 August 1972 | Drei Flüsse Stadion Drei Flüsse Stadion Drei Flüsse Stadion is a multi-use stadium in Passau, Germany. It is currently used mostly for football matches and is the home stadium of 1. FC Passau. The stadium has a capacity of 20,000 people and was built in 1972. For the 1972 Summer Olympics in neighboring Munich, it hosted six football... , Passau Passau Passau is a town in Lower Bavaria, Germany. It is also known as the Dreiflüssestadt or "City of Three Rivers," because the Danube is joined at Passau by the Inn from the south and the Ilz from the north.... , Germany Germany Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate... |
1–0 | 3–2 | 1972 Summer Olympics 1972 Summer Olympics The 1972 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XX Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event held in Munich, West Germany, from August 26 to September 11, 1972.... |
|
| 4. | 27 August 1972 | Drei Flüsse Stadion, Passau, Germany | 3–2 | 3–2 | 1972 Summer Olympics | |
| 5. | 29 August 1972 | Rosenaustadion Rosenaustadion Rosenaustadion is a multi-purpose stadium in Augsburg, Bavaria, Germany. It is the largest stadium in the city.Until 2009, the stadium was used mostly for football matches by the football club... , Augsburg Augsburg Augsburg is a city in the south-west of Bavaria, Germany. It is a university town and home of the Regierungsbezirk Schwaben and the Bezirk Schwaben. Augsburg is an urban district and home to the institutions of the Landkreis Augsburg. It is, as of 2008, the third-largest city in Bavaria with a... , Germany |
2–0 | 4–0 | 1972 Summer Olympics | |
| 6. | 3 September 1974 | Idrætsparken Idrætsparken Københavns Idrætspark, in daily use Idrætsparken, also known as Parken, was a multi-purpose stadium in Copenhagen, Denmark. It was initially used as the stadium of Denmark national football team and Kjøbenhavns Boldklub. It was replaced by the Parken Stadium in 1992. The capacity of the stadium was... , Copenhagen Copenhagen Copenhagen is the capital and largest city of Denmark, with an urban population of 1,199,224 and a metropolitan population of 1,930,260 . With the completion of the transnational Øresund Bridge in 2000, Copenhagen has become the centre of the increasingly integrating Øresund Region... , Denmark Denmark Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark... |
4–0 | 9–0 | Friendly | |
| 7. | 23 May 1976 | Tsirion Stadium Tsirion Stadium Tsirion Stadium is an all seater multi-purpose stadium in Limassol, Cyprus. It is currently used mostly for football matches and is the home ground of AEL Limassol, Apollon Limassol, Aris Limassol and APEP Pitsilias. In the past, especially in 1990s, it was used as the home ground for the Cyprus... , Limassol Limassol Limassol is the second-largest city in Cyprus, with a population of 228,000 . It is the largest city in geographical size, and the biggest municipality on the island. The city is located on Akrotiri Bay, on the island's southern coast and it is the capital of Limassol District.Limassol is the... , Cyprus Cyprus Cyprus , officially the Republic of Cyprus , is a Eurasian island country, member of the European Union, in the Eastern Mediterranean, east of Greece, south of Turkey, west of Syria and north of Egypt. It is the third largest island in the Mediterranean Sea.The earliest known human activity on the... |
1–1 | 5–1 | 1978 World Cup qualification 1978 FIFA World Cup qualification A total of 107 teams entered the 1978 FIFA World Cup qualification rounds, competing for a total of 16 spots in the final tournament. , as the hosts, and , as the defending champions, qualified automatically, leaving 14 spots open for competition.... |
|
| 8. | 1 May 1977 | Idrætsparken, Copenhagen, Denmark | 1–1 | 1–2 | 1978 World Cup qualification | |
| 9. | 15 June 1977 | Idrætsparken, Copenhagen, Denmark | 2–1 | 2–1 | 1972–77 Nordic Championship | |
| 10. | 20 September 1978 | Idrætsparken, Copenhagen, Denmark | 1–2 | 3–4 | 1980 European Championship qualification | |
| 11. | 6 June 1979 | Idrætsparken, Copenhagen, Denmark | 3–0 | 4–0 | 1980 European Championship qualification | |
| 12. | 21 May 1980 | Idrætsparken, Copenhagen, Denmark | 1–1 | 2–2 | Friendly | |
| 13. | 19 November 1980 | Idrætsparken, Copenhagen, Denmark | 4–0 | 4–0 | 1982 World Cup qualification 1982 FIFA World Cup qualification A total of 109 teams entered the 1982 FIFA World Cup qualification rounds, competing for a total of 24 spots in the final tournament, an increase from 16 in the previous World Cups... |
|
| 14. | 15 April 1981 | Idrætsparken, Copenhagen, Denmark | 1–1 | 2–1 | Friendly | |
| 15. | 26 August 1981 | Idrætsparken, Copenhagen, Denmark | 2–0 | 3–0 | Friendly | |
| 16. | 26 August 1981 | Idrætsparken, Copenhagen, Denmark | 3–0 | 3–0 | Friendly | |
| 17. | 1 June 1983 | Idrætsparken, Copenhagen, Denmark | 3–1 | 3–1 | 1984 European Championship qualification | |
| 18. | 21 September 1983 | Wembley Stadium, London London London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its... , England England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental... |
1–0 | 1–0 | 1984 European Championship qualification | |
| 19. | 12 October 1983 | Idrætsparken, Copenhagen, Denmark | 4–0 | 6–0 | 1984 European Championship qualification | |
| 20. | 16 November 1983 | Olympic Stadium Olympic Stadium (Athens) The Olympic Stadium "Spiros Louis" , is part of the Athens Olympic Sports Complex. It is named after the first modern Olympic marathon race winner in 1896, Spiros Louis.-History:... , Athens Athens Athens , is the capital and largest city of Greece. Athens dominates the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, as its recorded history spans around 3,400 years. Classical Athens was a powerful city-state... , Greece Greece Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe.... |
2–0 | 2–0 | 1984 European Championship qualification |