Steve Cherundolo

Steve Cherundolo

Personal information
Full name	Steven Emil Cherundolo
Height	1.68 m (5 ft 6 in)
Position(s)	Right back
Team information
Current team	Hannover 96
Number	6
Youth career
1997–1998	Portland Pilots
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1999–	Hannover 96	304	(7)
International career‡
1999	United States U-20	4	(0)
1999–	United States	65	(2)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 07 November 2010 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 10 October 2010

Steven Cherundolo (born February 19, 1979 in Rockford, Illinois) is an American soccer player, who plays as a defender for Hannover 96 of the German Bundesliga.

Early life

Cherundolo grew up in San Diego and attended Mt. Carmel High School in Rancho Peñasquitos. As a youth he played for the La Jolla Nomads club team which won the California State Championship six times with him on the roster.

Before joining Hannover, Cherundolo played two years of college soccer at the University of Portland, from 1997 to 1998. In his freshman season, he was named the West Coast Conference Freshman of the Year.

Career

Cherundolo joined Hannover 96, then playing in the 2. Fußball-Bundesliga, for the end of the 1998–1999 season, and quickly received first-team action, playing in four games his first year. Coming into the 1999–2000 season, Cherundolo established himself at the right back position, starting consistently before suffering a terrible knee injury that kept him out of the end of the season, and ended his chances of playing for the U.S. Olympic team. Cherundolo continued to establish his place in the team during the 2000–2001 season, earning playing time in eighteen games, including ten starts. In the 2001–2002 season, he started thirty of thirty-four games for the team, as he helped the team gain promotion to the 1. Bundesliga. Cherundolo maintained his position in the 2002-03 season, starting thirty-three games for the team, while collecting three assists. In the 2003–2004 season, Cherundolo continued his consistent play, appearing in thirty-three games for the club. Cherundolo is highly thought of at Hannover and serves as the team Captain.

Premier League side Bolton Wanderers agreed to a deal with Hannover for Cherundolo in 2005, but he declined, opting to remain in Germany. He signed another contract extension with Hannover in the summer of 2007.

International career

Cherundolo parlayed his success in the Bundesliga into a role with the United States national team. Cherundolo made his debut against Jamaica on September 8, 1999. Although he was on the roster for the 2002 FIFA World Cup (a late injury replacement for Chris Armas), Cherundolo himself was injured in training shortly before the event began and was unable to play. In the 2005 CONCACAF Gold Cup, Cherundolo sustained a knee injury from a tackle that prematurely ended his participation in the tournament. On March 22, 2006, Cherundolo played in a friendly match with the national team against Germany, including some teammates from Hannover 96. He scored his first international goal in the 4-1 loss. On May 2, 2006, Cherundolo was named to the U.S. roster for the FIFA World Cup in Germany. Cherundolo missed out on the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup due to another injury but returned to captain the U.S. during the 2009 CONCACAF Gold Cup.. Cherundolo was one of seven defenders named to the USA squad for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.

International goals

#	Date	Venue	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition
01.	March 22, 2006	Westfalenstadion, Dortmund, Germany	Germany	1 – 4	1 – 4	Friendly
02.	November 17, 2007	Coca-Cola Park, Johannesburg, South Africa	South Africa	1 – 0	1 – 0	Friendly

Personal

He speaks English and fluent German. Due to his long-standing tenure with Hannover, he has been given the nickname "Mayor of Hannover."

Career statistics

[1] Template:Football player statistics 1 Template:Football player statistics 2 |- |1998–99||rowspan="13"|Hannover 96||rowspan="4"|2. Bundesliga||8||0||||||||||colspan="2"|-|||| |- |1999–2000||12||0||||||||||colspan="2"|-|||| |- |2000–01||18||0||1||0||||||colspan="2"|-|||| |- |2001–02||30||1||2||0||||||colspan="2"|-|||| |- |2002–03||rowspan="9"|Bundesliga||33||0||1||0||||||colspan="2"|-|||| |- |2003–04||29||0||2||0||||||colspan="2"|-|||| |- |2004–05||32||2||3||1||||||colspan="2"|-|||| |- |2005–06||22||1||1||0||||||colspan="2"|-|||| |- |2006–07||32||2||3||0||||||colspan="2"|-|||| |- |2007–08||33||0||2||0||||||colspan="2"|-|||| |- |2008–09||17||0||1||0||||||colspan="2"|-|||| |- |2009–10||26||1||1||0||||||colspan="2"|-|||| |- |2010–11||12||0||1||0||||||colspan="2"|-|||| Template:Football player statistics 3304||7||18||1||||||colspan="2"|-|||| Template:Football player statistics 5304||7||18||1||||||colspan="2"|-|||| Template:Football player statistics end

Honors

Club

Hannover 96

• 2. Bundesliga (1): 2001–02

International

United States

• CONCACAF Gold Cup (1): 2005

External links

• Steve Cherundolo articles on Yanks Abroad
• German fanpage
• Official homepage
• How to pronounce Steve Cherundolo