Sami Hyypiä

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Sami Hyypiä
Personal information
Full name Sami Tuomas Hyypiä
Height 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)[1]
Position(s) Centre Back
Youth career
1980–1989 Pallo-Peikot
1990 Kumu
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1992–1995 MyPa 96 (8)
1995–1999 Willem II 100 (3)
1999–2009 Liverpool 317 (22)
2009–2011 Bayer Leverkusen 43 (3)
International career‡
1992–2011 Finland 105 (5)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 2 January 2011
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 14 October 2010

Sami Tuomas Hyypiä (born 7 October 1973) is a European Cup winning Finnish former footballer who played in the centre back position. He last played for German Bundesliga side Bayer 04 Leverkusen and was the captain of the Finland national football team. He joined Leverkusen in summer 2009, ending a ten year spell at Liverpool. On 2 May 2011, Hyypia announced his intention to retire from profesional football at the end of the 2010/11 season in order to take up a coaching role with Bayer Leverkusen.

Hyypiä began his career with Ykkönen side KuMu and soon moved to Veikkausliiga outfit MyPa. He spent four years at the club, helping them win the Finnish Cup in 1992 and 1995. He moved to Willem II Tilburg in 1995 and spent the next four years there. He became the team captain and was nominated their player of the year after helping them qualify for the UEFA Champions League.

Hyypiä moved to Liverpool, the team he supported as a child, in a deal worth £2.6 million. He quickly established himself in the first team, partnering Stéphane Henchoz in defence. By 2001, he regularly captained the team and that season Liverpool won a slew of honours, completing a cup treble of the League Cup, FA Cup and UEFA Cup, in addition to winning the UEFA Super Cup and FA Community Shield. He became first choice captain in the 2001–02 season and was part of the Football League Cup winning team in 2003. Steven Gerrard superseded him as captain in 2003 but Hyypiä still occasionally captained the side in his absence. Hyypiä won his highest football honour in 2005 as a part of Liverpool's victorious 2004–05 Champions League campaign. He is fondly remembered by many fans as a Liverpool legend.

Hyypiä has been a prominent figure in the Finland national team and has been selected as the Finnish Sports' Journalists and Football Association Player of the Year numerous times. He made his debut in 1992 and since then has captained the team on various occasions, as second choice captain. He is the second most capped Finnish player after Jari Litmanen.

On 2nd May 2011, Hyypiä announced that he will be retiring from all football at the age of 37. Also stating that he will be trying to spend the next year getting a coaching license and plans to coach for his former playing team Bayern Leverkusen.

Early life

Hyypiä was born in Porvoo and raised in Kuusankoski, Finland, 100 miles (160 km) north-east of Helsinki; the son of Irma and Jouko Hyypiä.[1][2][3] Hyypiä's parents were both footballers, his father Jouko playing for Finnish team Pallo Peikot, and his mother an amateur goalkeeper. The young Sami played ice hockey, but his parents' influence was important in him choosing a career in football; as he commented "I guess there was only one career option for me."[4]

Club career

Early career

Hyypiä started his career with Pallo-Peikot where he played every position except his final position of defender and KuMu, before joining Veikkausliiga club MyPa for the 1992 season. He won the Finnish Cup with MyPa in 1992 and 1995.[3]

In 1995 at the age of 22, he went for a trial at Newcastle United, his first taste of English football. Hyypiä said "They (Newcastle) certainly helped my career. I had a two-week trial in 1995 under Kevin Keegan and it gave me an insight into English football. I was a young player in Finland and I didn't really expect it to lead to anything. I just went for the experience, but it was good experience and I enjoyed my time there. It helped me a lot at the time to see a big English club at close hand and I always look forward to going back."[5]

Willem II Tilburg

Later that year, Hyypiä joined Dutch club Willem II and spent four years with the Eredivisie team, soon becoming a favourite with the fans and winning their player of the year award in his final season.[3] Hyypiä captained the side to qualification for the Champions League, thus earning a place in the hearts of supporters although he would not be taking part in the campaign.

Liverpool

In May 1999, Hyypiä was signed by Liverpool, the team he supported as a boy, for £2.6 million, having been recommended to former chief executive Peter Robinson by a TV cameraman.[6][7] Initially, Hyypiä was regarded as an unknown who would not live up to expectations but this preconception was dismissed when he immediately formed a successful central defensive partnership with fellow arrival Stéphane Henchoz.[8] Almost ten years later in a farewell tribute to Hyypiä, Ron Yeats, then the chief scout for Liverpool, commented that the deal was "one of the best bits of business we've done over the years...a steal – a bargain..."[9] In the 2000–01 season, Hyypiä shared the captaincy of Liverpool with Robbie Fowler while Jamie Redknapp, the full-time captain, was suffering from a long-term injury. During that season, Hyypiä and Fowler led the team to a cup treble: the Football League Cup,[10] FA Cup[11] and UEFA Cup.[12] He also went on to claim a "treble" of three consecutive FAF Finnish Footballer of the Year awards from 2001–2003.

In 2002, Hyypiä became first choice Liverpool captain after Redknapp, who had been blighted by long-term injuries, and Fowler both left the club. However, after such a bright start to his Liverpool career came a relative lull and in 2003, Hyypiä was replaced as Liverpool captain by Steven Gerrard. With some of the pressure lifted, his performances generally improved.

In 2003, Hyypiä received a red card against Manchester United, the only red of his career. "Van Nistelrooy was going through and maybe I took his shirt a little bit. The referee thought so. I got a straight red card. They got a penalty. It was an agony to watch the game in the dressing room. The only red card of my career. You remember that sort of thing."[6]

In 2004, new Liverpool manager Rafael Benítez moved Jamie Carragher from fullback to partner Hyypiä in central defence. This seemingly reinvigorated Hyypiä and the team went on to have a successful season, winning the UEFA Champions League, on the back of their solid defence. On 10 August 2005, it was reported that Hyypiä had agreed to a new three-year contract after weeks of talks with the Reds which would keep him at Anfield until 2008.

During the 2005–06 season, Hyypiä was relegated to third-choice captain after Jamie Carragher's ascent as Gerrard's deputy on the field. In the FA Cup Sixth Round against Birmingham City, he scored the opening goal in the first minute as the Reds thrashed the home team 7–0. He started in the victorious 2006 FA Cup Final against West Ham, though he missed his spot kick in the penalty shoot-out. During the season, he climbed into the top 25 in the club's all-time appearances table after featuring in the Carling Cup against Arsenal in January 2007.

Despite speculation in the summer of 2007 linking him to various other Premier League teams, Hyypiä insisted that he would stay at Liverpool for the remainder of his contract.[13] On 25 August 2007 Hyypiä broke his nose during an away match against Sunderland in the Stadium of Light. He quickly returned on the pitch to play against Toulouse in the Champions League qualifying match on 28 August 2007, in which he scored the second goal for Liverpool while wearing the captain's armband in the absence of Steven Gerrard and Jamie Carragher.

In April 2008, Hyypiä signed a new deal until Summer 2009 with Benítez stating he is a good role model for young defenders such as Martin Škrtel and Daniel Agger.[14] The 2008/2009 season marked the defender's tenth season at the club. On 22 August 2008, Premier League newcomers Stoke City F.C. offered £2.5 million for Hyypiä but Liverpool rejected the offer.[15] On 2 March 2008 with his appearance against Bolton Wanderers, Hyypiä made it into the top 20 Liverpool FC player appearances of all time.

Hyypiä was voted in 19th place in Sky Sports' 'Top 50 Premier League Foreign Players',[16] 45th in FourFourTwo magazine's 100 Greatest Foreign Players[17] and 38th in Liverpool's 100 Players Who Shook the Kop survey.[18] Underlining the important role Hyypiä had fulfilled at Liverpool, Ian Rush noted: "He’s got to be up there with the best signings the club has ever made."[19]

In September 2008, he was not included in the 25-man Liverpool squad for the group stages of the Champions League, as new UEFA regulations meant that clubs had to include at least eight home-grown players in their squad.[20] On 4 May 2009, it was announced that Hyypiä had signed two-year contract with Bayer Leverkusen.[21] Liverpool had offered him the chance to stay at Anfield in a coaching capacity but Hyypiä decided to carry on playing, though he expressed interest in returning to Liverpool as a coach once his playing career is over.[22]

Hyypiä's teammates say farewell.

He played his last match for Liverpool at Anfield against Tottenham Hotspur on 24 May 2009, coming on as a substitute to replace captain Steven Gerrard after 84 minutes in their 3–1 win. Gerrard passed the captain's armband to him, personally putting it onto Hyypiä's arm. During what remained of the match, Hyypiä managed to get a header from a corner kick in the dying minutes of the game but the attempt was blocked by Heurelho Gomes. After the match ended, an emotional Hyypiä received a standing ovation from Liverpool fans and his teammates held him aloft.[23]

Bayer Leverkusen

Hyypiä moved to Bundesliga side Bayer Leverkusen in the summer 2009,[24] making his debut on 8 August against Mainz. On 24 January 2010 he scored his first league goal in a 3–0 win over Hoffenheim. Just one week later, he scored his second season goal against SC Freiburg.[25]

In November 2009, bundesliga.de, the official website of the Bundesliga, named Hyypiä as the best defender in the league for the first third of the season.[26] At that point, Leverkusen was topping the league table with the fewest goals conceded. He also got this acknowledgment on the end of the season.

In August 2010, after Roy Hodgson was appointed as the new Liverpool manager, it was reported that he was very determined to bring Hyypiä back to Liverpool. He intended to offer him a four-year contract on a playing capacity, and afterward, appoint Hyypiä as his assistant manager. However, Hodgson could not get Hyypiä out of his contract with Bayer Leverkusen, as he became the most important player in the club. "We couldn't get him out of his contract", Hodgson added: "He's one I would also put in the Jamie Carragher-Steven Gerrard mould – Liverpool for life. I can see players like Jamie Carragher and Steven Gerrard never leaving Liverpool Football Club. I can see them always being part of the club. In the same way I'm a bit disappointed that my attempts to bring Sami Hyypiä back failed."[27][28] On 25 September 2010, Hyypiä scored his third Bundesliga goal with a header against VfB Stuttgart in a 4–1 win. Hyypiä announced on 6 October 2010 that he will join Leverkusen as assistant manager after he retires. On 2 May 2011, Hyypiä retired from professional football.[29]

International career

Hyypiä made his debut for the Finnish national football team against Tunisia on 7 November 1992 at age of 19. He went on to be a core member of Finnish national team, participating in five European Championship (EC) and four World Cup (WC) qualifiers and reached milestone of 100 appearances in a friendly against Sweden on 12th August 2009. Currently Hyypiä ranks as second among all-time most capped Finnish players, with total of 105 matches.[30] Hyypiä became the present captain of the Finnish national team in 2008, succeeding former captain Jari Litmanen.

Retirement from football

During press conference in Helsinki in May 2011 Hyypiä confirmed that the season 2010-11 will be his last active. [31] At the time of his announcement he was 37 years old.

Shortly after making his retirement public Hyypiä was named as part of coaching staff for both Finnish national team and Bayer Leverkusen. [32]

International goals

Finland's score first.

# Date Location Opponent Score Result Competition
1. 9 October 1999 Finland Helsinki  Northern Ireland 4–1 Win UEFA Euro 2000 qualifying
2. 12 October 2002 Finland Helsinki  Azerbaijan 3–0 Win UEFA Euro 2004 qualifying
3. 2 February 2003 Northern Ireland Belfast  Northern Ireland 1–0 Win Friendly
4. 7 June 2003 Finland Helsinki  Serbia and Montenegro 3–0 Win UEFA Euro 2004 qualifying
5. 11 October 2006 Kazakhstan Almaty  Kazakhstan 2–0 Win UEFA Euro 2008 qualifying

Career statistics

As of 26 September 2010

Template:Football player statistics 1 Template:Football player statistics 2 |- |1992||rowspan="4"|MyPa||rowspan="4"|Veikkausliiga||33||0||||||||||0||0||33||0 |- |1993||12||0||||||||||1||0||13||0 |- |1994||25||5||||||||||4||0||29||5 |- |1995||26||3||||||||||4||0||30||3 Template:Football player statistics 2 |- |1995–96||rowspan="4"|Willem II Tilburg||rowspan="4"|Eredivisie||14||0||0||0||colspan="2"|-||0||0||14||0 |- |1996–97||30||1||5||1||colspan="2"|-||0||0||35||2 |- |1997–98||30||0||3||0||colspan="2"|-||0||0||33||0 |- |1998–99||26||2||1||0||colspan="2"|-||4||0||31||2 Template:Football player statistics 2 |- |1999–00||rowspan="10"|Liverpool||rowspan="10"|Premier League||38||2||2||0||2||0||0||0||42||2 |- |2000–01||35||3||6||0||6||1||11||0||58||4 |- |2001–02||37||3||2||0||1||0||16||2||56||5 |- |2002–03||36||3||3||0||4||0||12||2||55||5 |- |2003–04||38||4||4||0||1||0||8||1||51||5 |- |2004–05||32||2||1||0||1||0||15||1||49||3 |- |2005–06||36||1||6||1||1||0||14||0||57||2 |- |2006–07||23||2||0||0||1||1||5||0||29||3 |- |2007–08||27||1||4||1||0||0||13||2||44||4 |- |2008–09||15||1||1||0||2||1||0||0||18||2 Template:Football player statistics 2 |- |2009–10||rowspan="2"|Bayer Leverkusen||rowspan="2"|Bundesliga||32||2||2||0||||||colspan="2"|-||34||2 |- |2010–11||11||1||0||0||||||colspan="2"|-||11||1 Template:Football player statistics 396||8||||||||||9||0||105||8 Template:Football player statistics 4100||3||9||1||colspan="2"|-||4||0||113||4 Template:Football player statistics 4317||22||29||2||19||3||94||8||459||35 Template:Football player statistics 4|43||3||2||0||0||0||0||0||45||3 Template:Football player statistics 5553||36||39||3||19||3||107||8||719||50 Template:Football player statistics end[33] Template:Football player national team statistics |- |1992||1||0 |- |1993||0||0 |- |1994||2||0 |- |1995||4||0 |- |1996||5||0 |- |1997||4||0 |- |1998||7||0 |- |1999||7||1 |- |2000||6||0 |- |2001||7||0 |- |2002||6||1 |- |2003||9||2 |- |2004||8||0 |- |2005||8||0 |- |2006||7||1 |- |2007||9||0 |- |2008||5||0 |- |2009||8||0 |- |2010||2||0 |- !Total||105||5 |}

Career honours

MyPa

Winner:

Runner-up:

Willem II Tilburg

Runner-up

Liverpool

Winner:

Runner-up:

Personal awards

  • Finnish Sports' Journalists Player of the Year: 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2005, 2006,[34] 2009,[35] 2010[36]
  • Finnish Football Association Player of the Year: 1999, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2008, 2009,[34] 2010[37]
  • Finnish Sportsperson of the Year: 2001[38]
  • UEFA Team of the Year selection: 2001[39]
  • Premier League Player of the Month: November 1999[40]
  • Goal.com Central Defender of the Decade: December 2009[41]
  • Goal.com Team of the Decade selection: December 2009[41]
  • Soccer Aid Winner – 2010

References

  1. ^ a b "Sami Hyypia 1st team squad profile". Liverpool F.C. Archived from the original on 1 August 2008. Retrieved 18 December 2008.
  2. ^ Hyypia, Sami (25 September 2003). "Sami Hyypia: From Voikkaa to the Premiership". Amazon / Mainstream Publishing. Retrieved 7 August 2008. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  3. ^ a b c Winter, Henry (11 September 1999). "Hyypiä happy to fill the gaps in Liverpool's suspect defence". London: The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 7 August 2008. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help) [dead link]
  4. ^ "Hyypiä fears Beckham threat". BBC Sport. 22 March 2001. Retrieved 7 August 2008.
  5. ^ Hetherington, Paul (30 September 2001). "Football: Sami remembers the Tyne of his life". The Sunday Mirror. Retrieved 18 December 2008. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  6. ^ a b Walker, Michael (17 September 2005). "Liverpool's centre of culture". London: The Guardian. Retrieved 18 December 2008. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  7. ^ McNulty, Phil (6 April 2002). "Sami's so unlucky". BBC Sport. Retrieved 18 December 2008.
  8. ^ Walker, Michael (23 March 2002). "Good is not good enough for Anfield's brick wall". London: The Guardian. Retrieved 18 December 2008. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  9. ^ From one colossus to another...
  10. ^ "Blues shot down as Liverpool lift cup". BBC Sport. 25 February 2001. Retrieved 28 May 2009.
  11. ^ "Owen shatters Arsenal in Cup final". BBC Sport. 12 May 2001. Retrieved 28 May 2009.
  12. ^ Winter, Henry (17 May 2001). "UEFA Cup Final: Liverpool hit treble top". Telegraph. London. Retrieved 28 May 2009.
  13. ^ Rice, Jimmy (30 May 2007). "Hyy[oa has no plans to leave". Liverpool F.C. Retrieved 18 December 2008. [dead link]
  14. ^ "Hyypia signs new Liverpool deal". BBC Sport. 7 April 2008. Retrieved 28 May 2009.
  15. ^ Barrett, Tony (22 August 2008). "Rafa Benitez rejects Stoke bid for Sami Hyypia". The Liverpool Echo. Retrieved 18 December 2008. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  16. ^ "Football: Today's Top 20: The best foreign players in the Premiership". The Independent. 6 October 2006. Retrieved 7 August 2008. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help) [dead link]
  17. ^ "Four Four Two's 100 Greatest Foreign Players , To Play in the EPL/SPL". 2008. Retrieved 7 August 2008. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)
  18. ^ "100 Players Who Shook the Kop: The Definitive List". Liverpool F.C. 6 October 2006. Archived from the original on 31 July 2008. Retrieved 7 August 2008.
  19. ^ Rush, Ian (9 December 2008). "Ian Rush: Why bargain buy Sami Hyypia is one of Liverpool's best ever signings". The Liverpool Echo. Retrieved 18 December 2008. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  20. ^ "Hyypia shocked at Reds omission". BBC Sport. 10 September 2008. Retrieved 28 May 2009.
  21. ^ "Hyypia to join Bayer Leverkusen". BBC Sport. 5 May 2009. Retrieved 28 May 2009.
  22. ^ I'd Like to Return to Liverpool as a Coach (in Finnish)
  23. ^ Brett, Oliver (24 May 2009). "Liverpool 3–1 Tottenham". BBC Sport. Retrieved 28 May 2009.
  24. ^ "Hyypia agrees German switch". Sky Sports. 4 May 2009. Retrieved 4 May 2009. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  25. ^ "Barnetta trifft schon wieder!" (in German). Blick. 24 January 2010.
  26. ^ "Top 5 defenders (in German)". bundesliga.de. 11 November 2009. Retrieved 17 November 2009. {{cite web}}: External link in |publisher= (help); Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  27. ^ [1]
  28. ^ [2]
  29. ^ "Ex-Liverpool defender Sami Hyypia ends playing career". BBC. 2 May 2011. Retrieved 2 May 2011.
  30. ^ Pietarinen, Heikki (18 December 2008). "Finland – International Player Records". RSSSF. Retrieved 18 December 2008.
  31. ^ http://www.iltalehti.fi/jalkapallo/2011050213645162_jp.shtml
  32. ^ http://www.iltalehti.fi/jalkapallo/2011050213645435_jp.shtml
  33. ^ http://www.rsssf.com/miscellaneous/hyypia-intl.html
  34. ^ a b Pietarinen, Heikki (31 January 2008). "Finland – Player of the Year Awards". RSSSF. Retrieved 18 December 2008.
  35. ^ YLE Urheilu: Vuoden parhaat valittu, Kontiolle jo 21:s Vuoden paras -titteli
  36. ^ Suomen Palloliitto Sami Hyypiä jälleen urheilutoimittajien ykkönen
  37. ^ http://www.palloliitto.fi/viestinta/?num=176535 Palloliiton Vuoden Pelaaja
  38. ^ "Hyypiä grabs top award". BBC Sport. 28 December 2001. Retrieved 18 December 2008.
  39. ^ "Team of the Year 2001". UEFA. 3 January 2002. Retrieved 18 December 2008.
  40. ^ Hadfield, David (5 December 1999). "Houllier heartened as Hyypia is honoured". London: The Independent. Retrieved 18 December 2008. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  41. ^ a b "Goal.com Player Of The Decade: Results – Position By Position & The Team Of The Decade Revealed". Goal.com. 28 December 2009. Retrieved 28 December 2009. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)

External links

Sporting positions
Preceded by Liverpool F.C. Captain
2002–2003 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Finland football captain
2008– 		Succeeded by
Incumbent

Template:Persondata

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