Christoph Metzelder

Christoph Metzelder

Personal information
Full name	Christoph Tobias Metzelder
Date of birth	5 November 1980 (1980-11-05)
Place of birth	Haltern, West Germany
Height	1.94 m (6 ft 4 1⁄2 in)
Playing position	Centre back
Club information
Current club	Schalke 04
Number	21
Youth career
1986–1995	TuS Haltern
1995–1996	Schalke 04
1996–1998	Preußen Münster
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps†	(Gls)†
1999–2000	Preußen Münster	32	(4)
2000–2007	Borussia Dortmund	126	(2)
2007–2010	Real Madrid	23	(0)
2010–	Schalke 04	38	(1)
National team
2000–2001	Germany U21	9	(1)
2001–2008	Germany	47	(0)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 21:45, 15 December 2011 (UTC). † Appearances (Goals).

Christoph Tobias Metzelder (born 5 November 1980 in Haltern, North Rhine-Westphalia) is a German footballer who plays for FC Schalke 04 as a central defender.

Most of his professional career, which was spent mostly at Borussia Dortmund, was blighted by injuries. He did manage, however, to collect nearly 50 caps for the German national team, appearing with it at two FIFA World Cups.

Football career

Borussia Dortmund

In the summer of 2000, Metzelder signed by Borussia Dortmund from lowly SC Preußen Münster, and he was an instant success. At the end of his first season in the Bundesliga, he won his first cap for Germany, playing the second half of a 5–2 friendly win in Hungary, on 15 August 2001.

The second season at Dortmund brought him the 2002 national title, and 14 matches with Germany, all the way to the 2002 FIFA World Cup final with Germany. However, he missed the entire 2003–04 due to an Achilles tendon injury, and only took part in 16 league contests in the following campaign.

After over two years out of the national squad, Metzelder was called by new boss Jürgen Klinsmann for a friendly with China, in October 2005. He also netted his first two league goals, in 1–1 draws against 1. FSV Mainz 05 and Hamburger SV, and would be Germany's undisputed starter at the 2006 FIFA World Cup, partnering with SV Werder Bremen's Per Mertesacker.

Real Madrid

On 18 April 2007, after failing to renew his contract at Borussia, Metzelder transferred to Real Madrid at the end of the season on a free transfer. In February 2008, after managing to be injury-free in the first months of his Spanish adventure, Metzelder had surgery on the sole of his foot, resulting in him missing nearly two months of action. On 11 May, after having already missed the UEFA Champions League round of 16 clash against A.S. Roma, he returned and played the full 90 minutes against Real Zaragoza (2–2 away draw).

Despite his lack of playing time, Metzelder featured in all of Germany's matches at UEFA Euro 2008, again partnering Mertesacker. In 2008–09's La Liga, he was the main beneficiary of a 10-match suspension handed to Real's Pepe; after a stellar performance in a 4–2 win at Sevilla FC, he also started in the 2–6 home defeat at the hands of FC Barcelona, for a career-best - in Spain - 11 games.

Metzelder left Real Madrid after his contract expired on 30 June 2010.

Return home

On 27 April, prior to the end of the campaign, Metzelder announced his return to Germany, agreeing on a three-year contract with FC Schalke 04, with which he had already played youth football, 15 years earlier. His first two league games with the club, the first of the 2010–11 season, ended with 1–2 losses, against Hamburger and Hannover 96, respectively.

Metzelder appeared in ten complete matches in the season's Champions League, in an eventual semifinal run. He added five in the domestic cup victorious campaign, including the semifinals against FC Bayern Munich (1–0 win) and the final against MSV Duisburg (5–0).

Honours

Club

• Borussia Dortmund:
  • Fußball-Bundesliga: 2001–02
  • UEFA Cup: Runner-up 2001–02
  • DFB-Ligapokal: Runner-up 2003

• Real Madrid:
  • La Liga: 2007–08
  • Supercopa de España: 2008

• Schalke:
  • DFB-Pokal: 2010–11

Country

• FIFA World Cup: Runner-up 2002; Third-Place 2006
• UEFA European Football Championship: Runner-up 2008

Individual

• Bravo Award: 2002

Club statistics

As of 23 October 2011 (2011 -10-23)

Club	Season	League		Cup		Europe		Total
		Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Borussia Dortmund	2000–01	19	0	2	0	0	0	21	0
	2001–02	25	0	1	0	11	0	37	0
	2002–03	24	0	1	0	10	0	35	0
	2003–04	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
	2004–05	16	0	0	0	0	0	16	0
	2005–06	23	2	1	0	0	0	24	2
	2006–07	19	0	0	0	0	0	19	0
	Total	126	2	5	0	21	0	152	2
Real Madrid	2007–08	9	0	1	0	3	0	13	0
	2008–09	12	0	2	0	1	0	15	0
	2009–10	2	0	1	0	0	0	3	0
	Total	23	0	4	0	4	0	31	0
Schalke 04	2010–11	32	1	6	0	10	0	48	1
	2011–12	5	0	0	0	1	0	6	0
	Total	37	1	6	0	11	0	54	1
Career total		186	3	15	0	36	2	237	3

Personal

Metzelder's younger brother, Malte, is also a footballer (and a centre back), and both played for Borussia Dortmund.

He has one daughter, Emma (born 17 October 2009), with then-girlfriend Julia Gödicke.

External links

• Real Madrid profile
• Christoph Metzelder at fussballdaten.de (German)
• BDFutbol profile
• Christoph Metzelder at National-Football-Teams.com
• Official website (German)