Marek Kaljumäe
Encyclopedia
Marek Kaljumäe is a professional footballer who plays as a defender
for FC Levadia Tallinn
in the Meistriliiga
and for the Estonia under-21s
.
at Estonian III Liiga club S.C. Real in his home city of Tallinn
. In August 2009, he signed for Dutch Eredivisie
side AZ Alkmaar. He spent the 2009–10 season playing for the AZ under-19 side. In 2010–11 he moved on loan to SC Telstar, making his debut in September 2010 in a 3–0 league win over Den Bosch.
With Telstar he participated in an unusual corner kick
routine, in which he and teammate Selmo Kurbegovic took turns repeatedly placing the ball by hand within the corner arc in an attempt to confuse the opposition.
On 1 July 2011, following the expiry of his contract with AZ Alkmaar, he signed a two year deal with Estonian top tier club FC Levadia Tallinn
.
Marek has represented his country at under-17, under-18, under-19 and under-21 levels. He played his first competitive game for the Estonia under-21s
in a 5–0 loss to the Republic of Ireland under-21s
in an August 2010 qualifying match
for the 2011 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship
. He scored his first goal at under-21 level in a 3–1 August 2011 defeat to Azerbaijan under-21s
.
Defender (association football)
Within the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield player whose primary role is to prevent the opposition from attacking....
for FC Levadia Tallinn
FC Levadia Tallinn
MTÜ SK FC Levadia Tallinn is an Estonian football club based in Tallinn. The club was founded in 1998, under the name FC Levadia Maardu. FC Levadia currently play in the Meistriliiga, the highest level of Estonian football...
in the Meistriliiga
Meistriliiga
Meistriliiga is the highest division of the Estonian Football Association annual football championship. The league was founded in 1991 and the current, 2011 is the league's 21st season...
and for the Estonia under-21s
Estonia national under-21 football team
The Estonian U-21 national football team is the football team representing Estonia in competitions for under-21 year old players.-2013 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship qualification Group 5:-Current table:-Fixtures and recent results:...
.
Life and career
Marek came through the youth systemYouth system
Youth system is a sporting terminology used to refer to a youth investment program within a particular team or league, which develops and nurtures young talent in farm teams, with the vision of using them in the first team if they show enough promise, and to fill up squads numbers in some teams...
at Estonian III Liiga club S.C. Real in his home city of Tallinn
Tallinn
Tallinn is the capital and largest city of Estonia. It occupies an area of with a population of 414,940. It is situated on the northern coast of the country, on the banks of the Gulf of Finland, south of Helsinki, east of Stockholm and west of Saint Petersburg. Tallinn's Old Town is in the list...
. In August 2009, he signed for Dutch Eredivisie
Eredivisie
The Eredivisie is the highest football league in the Netherlands. The league was founded in 1956 two years after the start of professional football in the Netherlands. It is currently ranked the ninth best league in Europe by UEFA....
side AZ Alkmaar. He spent the 2009–10 season playing for the AZ under-19 side. In 2010–11 he moved on loan to SC Telstar, making his debut in September 2010 in a 3–0 league win over Den Bosch.
With Telstar he participated in an unusual corner kick
Corner kick
A corner kick is a method of restarting play in a game of association football. It was first devised in Sheffield under the Sheffield Rules 1867...
routine, in which he and teammate Selmo Kurbegovic took turns repeatedly placing the ball by hand within the corner arc in an attempt to confuse the opposition.
On 1 July 2011, following the expiry of his contract with AZ Alkmaar, he signed a two year deal with Estonian top tier club FC Levadia Tallinn
FC Levadia Tallinn
MTÜ SK FC Levadia Tallinn is an Estonian football club based in Tallinn. The club was founded in 1998, under the name FC Levadia Maardu. FC Levadia currently play in the Meistriliiga, the highest level of Estonian football...
.
Marek has represented his country at under-17, under-18, under-19 and under-21 levels. He played his first competitive game for the Estonia under-21s
Estonia national under-21 football team
The Estonian U-21 national football team is the football team representing Estonia in competitions for under-21 year old players.-2013 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship qualification Group 5:-Current table:-Fixtures and recent results:...
in a 5–0 loss to the Republic of Ireland under-21s
Republic of Ireland national under-21 football team
The Republic of Ireland national under-21 football team, is the national under-21 football team of the Republic of Ireland and is controlled by the Football Association of Ireland and competes in the biennial European Under-21 Football Championship and has competed since 1978.-Competition...
in an August 2010 qualifying match
2011 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship qualification
The 2011 UEFA European Under-21 Championship started with a qualifying competition which began on 27 March 2009 and finished on 13 October 2010. The final tournament is being held in Denmark between 11–25 June 2011....
for the 2011 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship
2011 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship
UEFA U-21 Championship 2011 was the 18th staging of UEFA's European Under-21 Football Championship. The final tournament was hosted by Denmark between 11 and 25 June 2011....
. He scored his first goal at under-21 level in a 3–1 August 2011 defeat to Azerbaijan under-21s
Azerbaijan national under-21 football team
The Azerbaijan national under-21 football team are a feeder team to the Azerbaijan Senior team.- UEFA U-21 Championship Record:* 2002: Did not qualify. Finished 5th of 6 in qualification group....
.