Jiří Jarošík

Jiří Jarošík

Jarošík playing for Krylia Sovetov
Personal information
Full name	Jiří Jarošík
Date of birth	27 October 1977 (1977-10-27)
Place of birth	Ústí nad Labem, Czechoslovakia
Height	1.96 m (6 ft 5 in)
Playing position	Defender
Club information
Current club	Sparta Prague
Number	39
Youth career
1985–1986	Komastav Chuderov
1986–1988	FK Ústí nad Labem
1988–1990	FK Teplice
1990–1996	Sparta Prague
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps†	(Gls)†
1996–2003	Sparta Prague	101	(20)
1997–1999	→ Slovan Liberec (loan)	39	(2)
2003–2005	CSKA Moscow	56	(12)
2005–2006	Chelsea	14	(0)
2005–2006	→ Birmingham City (loan)	24	(5)
2006–2008	Celtic	33	(5)
2008–2010	Krylia Sovetov	47	(4)
2010–2011	Real Zaragoza	55	(5)
2011–	Sparta Prague	13	(2)
National team‡
2000–	Czech Republic	23	(0)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 19 February 2012. † Appearances (Goals). ‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 24 February 2010

Jiří Jarošík (born 27 October 1977) is a Czech footballer who is currently playing for AC Sparta Prague. He played Czech national team, where he played 23 matches. He is a defender and midfielder.

Club career

Early career

Born in Ústí nad Labem, then Czechoslovakia, Jarošík began his career with Sparta Prague in his native Czech Republic. He had a two-year loan spell at Slovan Liberec before establishing himself in the first team at Sparta. Jarošík's appearances caught the eye of CSKA Moscow, who paid a then Russian record of about $3.5 million to acquire him in 2003.

Chelsea

On 6 January 2005, Jarošík was purchased by Premier League club Chelsea for an undisclosed fee, thought to be about £3 million. On 27 February, he started the League Cup final, which Chelsea won 3-2 against Liverpool. Chelsea won the 2004–05 Premier League title and Jarošík made enough league appearances (14) to earn a championship medal.

Birmingham City

In August 2005, after Chelsea purchased Michael Essien, Jarošík found himself out of the first team and was loaned out to fellow Premier League side Birmingham City on for the 2005–06 season. At Birmingham, he was the team's top goalscorer, becoming better known for his long-range shooting than the defensive responsibilities which gave him his name at Moscow. After finishing a disappointing season for the Midlands side, Birmingham had the option to make the deal permanent when the spell ended, but following their relegation, they did not do so. He finished a superb loan period at Saint Andrew's in May 2006 where he was the club's joint-top goalscorer with eight goals, although his goals could not help Birmingham stay in the Premier League. Jarošík returned Chelsea not knowing where his future would lie, due to there being heavy competition for places at the club.

Celtic

On 19 June 2006, Jarošík left Chelsea and signed a three-year deal with Scottish Premier League champions Celtic for an undisclosed fee, rumoured to be around the £2 million mark. He scored on his Celtic debut in a 4-1 victory over Kilmarnock at Celtic Park. Competition from other midfielders such as Evander Sno, Aiden McGeady and Paul Hartley meant that first team opportunities were limited for Jarošík, but he still made several notable contributions to Celtic's success, including winning both the free kicks from which Shunsuke Nakamura scored in the two Champions League group stage matches against Manchester United - the second being the one which put Celtic into the last 16. On 6 December 2006, Jarošík also scored Celtic's goal in a 3-1 Champions League group stage loss at Copenhagen. On 14 January 2007, Jarošík scored the winner in a 2-1 win over Hearts. Celtic won the 2006-07 league title in Jarošík's first season with the club, meaning that he has now won league medals in a record four countries - Czech Republic, Russia, England and Scotland.

Despite the signings of Massimo Donati and Scott Brown for the 2007-08 season, which made midfield competition even tighter than before, Jarošík remained with Celtic. On 3 October, Jarošík made his first Celtic start in over six months in Celtic's 2-1 Champions League group stage victory over A.C. Milan at Celtic Park. On 28 November, Jarošík scored Celtic's equaliser in another Champions League group stage match - this time against Shakhtar Donetsk - with a spectacular left-footed volley. The match ended 2-1 to Celtic.

Krylia Sovetov

On 31 January 2008, Jarošík signed for Russian side Krylia Sovetov for a reported fee of €1 million.

Real Zaragoza

On 14 January 2010, Jarošík signed for Spanish side Real Zaragoza on a free transfer. He scored his first goal for the club with a header in a 1-1 draw with Atlético Madrid in a league match.

Sparta Prague

On 13 August 2011, Jarošík signed for his former club Sparta Prague as a free agent.

International career

Jarošík has played 23 times for the Czech Rupublic national team, although he was not included in the squads for Euro 2004, the 2006 World Cup or Euro 2008.

Honours

Sparta Prague

• Czech League (6): 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2003

PFC CSKA Moscow

• Russian Premier League (1): 2003
• Russian Super Cup (1): 2004

Chelsea

• Premier League (1): 2005
• League Cup (1): 2005

Celtic

• Scottish Premier League (1): 2007
• Scottish Cup (1): 2007

External links

• Jiří Jarošík career stats at Soccerbase
• Jiří Jarošík international stats at the Czech Football Association website (Czech)
• Jarošík's page at Celtic's official site
• Jarošík's page at ESPN's Soccernet