Klaus Berggreen
Encyclopedia
Klaus Berggreen is a Danish
former football
player, who most prominently played for Italian
clubs Pisa
and A.S. Roma
. He played 46 matches and scored five goals for the Danish national team
, and he represented his country at the 1986 World Cup
and two European Championship
tournaments.
, he started playing football at nearby club Lyngby Boldklub
at the age of six. He made his senior debut in 1975, in a Lyngby team which struggled to establish itself in the secondary Danish 2nd Division
league. Berggreen was Lyngby's top goalscorer in several seasons, and scored 15 goals when the club won promotion
for the top-flight Danish 1st Division
in 1979. He made his Danish national team debut in August 1979, in the first game of newly appointed national manager Sepp Piontek. He played one more national team game, before his international career went on a hiatus.
In 1982, he moved abroad to play for newly promoted club SC Pisa in the Italian Serie A
championship. Berggreen helped the club stay in the Serie A, and was recalled to the Danish national team in October 1982. In the 1983-84 Serie A
season, Pisa were relegated into the Serie B, but Berggreen chose to stay with the club. He was selected to compete for the Danish national team at the 1984 European Championship
, where he played four matches, and scored a goal in the 5-0 victory against Yugoslavia
. In the semi-final against Spain
, Berggreen was sent off in injury time, as Denmark were eliminated on penalty shootout.
He helped Pisa win the 1985 Serie B series, to reenter the Serie A championship. Pisa were relegated once more at the end of the 1985-86 Serie A
season. For the national team, Berggreen played an important part in Denmark's first ever qualification for a World Cup
tournament. In the penultimate match of the qualification stage in October 1985, Denmark were trailing Norway
by 0-1 at half-time
. Ten minutes after the break, Berggreen snapped the ball from a Norwegian defender
, and made the assist as Michael Laudrup
equalised the game. Berggreen himself went on to score two goals, as Denmark eventually won 5-1. He was included in the Danish squad for the 1986 World Cup
main tournament, and played three games, before Denmark were once again eliminated by Spain.
After the World Cup, Berggreen opted to stay in the Serie A, and signed with vice-champions AS Roma. He played a single season at Roma, which ended in a seventh place in the 1986-87 Serie A
. He moved on to league rivals Torino Calcio, whom he helped finish in sixth place the next season. He was selected to represent Denmark at the 1988 European Championship
in June 1988, where he played two games as a substitute. Berggreen ended his national career after the tournament, having played 46 matches and scored five goals since his national team debut in 1979.
Berggreen moved back to Denmark, where he ended his career with Lyngby, in a combined role as both active player and Lyngby sports director. He ended his active career in March 1990, 32 years old, after more than 200 games for Lyngby. Lyngby struggled financially, and Berggreen left his job as a sports director in November 1992. He went on to concentrate on his clothes company.
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...
former football
Football (soccer)
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...
player, who most prominently played for Italian
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
clubs Pisa
Pisa Calcio
Associazione Calcio Pisa 1909 is an Italian association football club, based in Pisa, Tuscany. The club was founded in 1909 as Pisa Sporting Club and refounded in 1994 as A.C. Pisa , after the cancellation of the old one because of economical troubles...
and A.S. Roma
A.S. Roma
Associazione Sportiva Roma, commonly referred to as simply Roma, is a professional Italian football club based in Rome. Founded by a merger in 1927, Roma have participated in the top-tier of Italian football for all of their existence but one season in the early 50s...
. He played 46 matches and scored five goals for the Danish national 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...
, and he represented his country at the 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...
and two European Championship
UEFA European Football Championship
The UEFA European Football Championship is the main football competition of the men's national football teams governed by UEFA . Held every four years since 1960, in the even-numbered year between World Cup tournaments, it was originally called the UEFA European Nations Cup, changing to the current...
tournaments.
Biography
Born in VirumVirum
-Geography:Virum is a town in Denmark, located north of Kongens Lyngby on the island of Zealand in Region Hovedstaden. It is part of the northern suburbs of Copenhagen. Comprising mostly residential areas, Virum also has lakes, forests and recreational areas. The town is known for the local...
, he started playing football at nearby club Lyngby Boldklub
Lyngby Boldklub
Lyngby Boldklub is a professional Danish football club founded in 1921. It is based at Lyngby Stadion in Kongens Lyngby, Denmark. From 1994 to 2001 the club was known as Lyngby FC.-History:...
at the age of six. He made his senior debut in 1975, in a Lyngby team which struggled to establish itself in the secondary Danish 2nd Division
Danish 2nd Division
The 2nd Division is the third tier Danish football league, just after the 1st Division.It was founded in 1945, after World War II, as the second-best Danish football division. When the Danish Superliga was founded in 1991, the 2nd Division became the third level league...
league. Berggreen was Lyngby's top goalscorer in several seasons, and scored 15 goals when the club won promotion
Promotion and relegation
In many sports leagues around the world, promotion and relegation is a process that takes place at the end of each season. Through it, teams are transferred between divisions based on their performance that season...
for the top-flight Danish 1st Division
Danish 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...
in 1979. He made his Danish national team debut in August 1979, in the first game of newly appointed national manager Sepp Piontek. He played one more national team game, before his international career went on a hiatus.
In 1982, he moved abroad to play for newly promoted club SC Pisa in the Italian Serie A
Serie A
Serie A , now called Serie A TIM due to sponsorship by Telecom Italia, is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of the Italian football league system and has been operating for over eighty years since 1929. It had been organized by Lega Calcio until 2010, but a new...
championship. Berggreen helped the club stay in the Serie A, and was recalled to the Danish national team in October 1982. In the 1983-84 Serie A
Serie A 1983-84
The 1983/1984 Serie A season was won by Juventus F.C. It was a tight championship, won only on the last day of the season.-Final classification:-Results:-References and sources:...
season, Pisa were relegated into the Serie B, but Berggreen chose to stay with the club. He was selected to compete for the Danish national team at the 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...
, where he played four matches, and scored a goal in the 5-0 victory against Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia national football team
The Yugoslavia national football team represented the Kingdom of Yugoslavia and the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia in association football. It enjoyed a modicum of success in international competition. In 1992, during the Yugoslav wars, the team was suspended from international...
. In the semi-final against Spain
Spain national football team
The Spain national football team represents Spain in international association football and is controlled by the Royal Spanish Football Federation, the governing body for football in Spain. The current head coach is Vicente del Bosque...
, Berggreen was sent off in injury time, as Denmark were eliminated on penalty shootout.
He helped Pisa win the 1985 Serie B series, to reenter the Serie A championship. Pisa were relegated once more at the end of the 1985-86 Serie A
Serie A 1985-86
-Final classification:-Results:-References and sources:*Almanacco Illustrato del Calcio - La Storia 1898-2004, Panini Edizioni, Modena, September 2005-External links:...
season. For the national team, Berggreen played an important part in Denmark's first ever qualification for a World Cup
FIFA World Cup
The FIFA World Cup, often simply the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of Fédération Internationale de Football Association , the sport's global governing body...
tournament. In the penultimate match of the qualification stage in October 1985, Denmark were trailing Norway
Norway national football team
The Norway national football team represents Norway in association football and is controlled by the Football Association of Norway, the governing body for football in Norway. Norway's home ground is Ullevaal Stadion in Oslo and their head coach is Egil Olsen...
by 0-1 at half-time
Half-time
In some team sports such as association football and rugby, matches are played in two halves. Half-time is the name given to the interval between the two halves of the match...
. Ten minutes after the break, Berggreen snapped the ball from a Norwegian defender
Defender (football)
Within the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield player whose primary role is to prevent the opposition from attacking....
, and made the assist as Michael Laudrup
Michael Laudrup
Michael Laudrup is a retired Danish footballer, who works as a manager and last coached La Liga side RCD Mallorca. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest players in the history of football. His most prominent run of football came with Spanish club Barcelona, with whom he won four straight La...
equalised the game. Berggreen himself went on to score two goals, as Denmark eventually won 5-1. He was included in the Danish squad for the 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...
main tournament, and played three games, before Denmark were once again eliminated by Spain.
After the World Cup, Berggreen opted to stay in the Serie A, and signed with vice-champions AS Roma. He played a single season at Roma, which ended in a seventh place in the 1986-87 Serie A
Serie A 1986-87
The 1986/1987 Serie A season ended with S.S.C. Napoli doing the "domestic double", winning their first Scudetto and third Coppa Italia, spurred on by their talismanic captain Diego Maradona....
. He moved on to league rivals Torino Calcio, whom he helped finish in sixth place the next season. He was selected to represent Denmark at the 1988 European Championship
1988 UEFA European Football Championship
The 1988 UEFA European Football Championship final tournament was held in West Germany. West Germany won the right to host the tournament with five votes ahead of a joint bid from Norway, Sweden and Denmark, who gained 1 vote, and a bid from England. It was the eighth European Football...
in June 1988, where he played two games as a substitute. Berggreen ended his national career after the tournament, having played 46 matches and scored five goals since his national team debut in 1979.
Berggreen moved back to Denmark, where he ended his career with Lyngby, in a combined role as both active player and Lyngby sports director. He ended his active career in March 1990, 32 years old, after more than 200 games for Lyngby. Lyngby struggled financially, and Berggreen left his job as a sports director in November 1992. He went on to concentrate on his clothes company.