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Stephan Lichtsteiner

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Stephan Lichtsteiner
Lichtsteiner with Switzerland in 2015
Personal information
Full name Stephan Lichtsteiner[1]
Date of birth (1984-01-16) 16 January 1984 (age 40)
Place of birth Adligenswil, Switzerland
Height 1.82 m (6 ft 0 in)[2]
Position(s) Right-back
Right wing-back
Team information
Current team
 Juventus
Number 26
Youth career
1991–1996 FC Adligenswil
1996–2000 Luzern
2000–2001 Grasshopper
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2001–2005 Grasshopper 79 (4)
2005–2008 Lille 89 (5)
2008–2011 Lazio 100 (3)
2011– Juventus 151 (12)
International career‡
2003–2005 Switzerland U21 30 (1)
2006– Switzerland 88 (6)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 18 September 2016
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 13 November 2016

Stephan Lichtsteiner (born 16 January 1984) is a Swiss professional footballer who plays for Italian club Juventus and the Switzerland national team. An attacking right-back or wing-back, he is known for his energetic runs down the right wing, as well as his stamina and athleticism, which earned him the nicknames "Forrest Gump" and "The Swiss Express".[3]

He began his professional career with Grasshopper Zürich, winning a league title in 2002–03, and moved to Lille in 2005, helping the French club to Champions League qualification in his first season with the team. In 2008 he joined Italian club Lazio, and won both the Coppa Italia and Supercoppa Italiana the following year. Since joining Juventus in 2011, Lichtsteiner has won ten honours, including five consecutive Serie A titles with the club.

A full international since 2006, Lichtsteiner has earned over 80 caps for Switzerland, making him their eighth most capped player of all time. He has represented his country at two UEFA European Championships and as many FIFA World Cups.

Early years

Lichtsteiner was born in Adligenswil, Canton of Lucerne. He left home as a teenager to play for Grasshopper Zürich and made his first team debut in 2001–02 in the old Swiss Football League but only made one league appearance. The following season, he began to establish himself as a first team regular and helped the club to the league title. While living in Zürich he completed a banking apprenticeship with Credit Suisse but ultimately chose a career in football.[4]

Club career

Lille

During the 2004–05 season Lichtsteiner sealed a transfer to Lille OSC as one of five Swiss players to enter Ligue 1 during the summer of 2005. He became a regular in his first season and helped Lille to a third-place finish to secure a Champions League spot. His last season ended disappointingly as Lille finished seventh in the league and missed out on European football next season just by a point. However he did end with 4 goals, his highest tally so far.[5]

Lazio

After some good performances at the Euro 2008, several clubs including Paris Saint-Germain and Everton expressed interest in signing Lichtsteiner.[6] He rejected PSG's bid and, in July, signed a four-year contract with S.S. Lazio for an undisclosed fee believed to be in the region of €1.5 million[7] as a replacement for fellow Swiss international Valon Behrami who went to West Ham United.[8] In the April Derby della Capitale, he scored his first goal to put Lazio 3–1 up in a heated derby encounter which ended 4–2 to Lazio and resulted in numerous bookings.[9] He was also booked for a heated confrontation with Roma defender Christian Panucci after the Italian had fouled him.[10] During the season, he formed an attacking tandem down the flanks with Serbian international Aleksandar Kolarov on the other side. Although Lazio finished tenth, they ended the season on a high by winning Coppa Italia and a place next season's Europa League. He played a part in Lazio's successful campaign, scoring in the penalty shoot-out against Sampdoria in the final, and also claiming the Supercoppa Italiana at the beginning of the next season. After Kolarov's departure, his future at Lazio became increasingly in doubt as several clubs expressed interest in him. At the end of the 2010–11 season, he opted not to see out the final year of his contract despite the Biancocelesti qualifying for the Europa League.[11]

Juventus

Lichtsteiner playing for Juventus in December 2013

On 27 June 2011, Juventus confirmed that Lichtsteiner had undergone a medical in Turin and reached an agreement with Lazio to pay €10 million in three installments.[12] The transfer was confirmed on 1 July 2011. He marked his debut on 11 September 2011 against Parma by scoring the first goal in the 4–1 home victory, the first league goal to be scored in Juventus' new stadium.[13] Juventus went on to win the Scudetto and he played a vital part in their strong defensive record, only missing a handful of matches through injury and suspensions.[3] Lichtsteiner repeated his opening matchday feat the following season by converting his left-sided counterpart Kwadwo Asamoah's pass in the 2–0 win.[14] He played fewer matches during 2013–14 season due to injuries but contributed three goals in all competitions and won his third consecutive Serie A title. His crossing and ball-playing ability came to the fore in Conte's 3–5–2 formation. As a result, he finished the season as Juve's top assist-maker in the league with eight.

On 6 June 2015, Lichtsteiner started for Juventus in the 2015 UEFA Champions League Final as the team were defeated 3–1 by Barcelona at Berlin's Olympiastadion; he was involved in Álvaro Morata's temporary equalising goal.[15] On 23 September 2015, Lichtsteiner was substituted at half time during a league match against Frosinone due to breathing difficulty. It was later necessary for heart surgery to be performed to correct cardiac arrhythmia, which caused him to be out for a month.[16] On 3 November 2015, Lichtsteiner returned from injury, starting against Borussia Mönchengladbach in the 2015–16 Champions League and scoring the equalizing goal in the 44th minute of a 1–1 away draw;[17] the goal was later voted one of the best goals of the tournament that season.[18]

International career

Lichtsteiner defending against Sergio Agüero of Argentina in a 2012 friendly match

A former youth international, Lichtsteiner has played in the 1999 U16 and the 2004 U21 European Championships. He was first called up to the senior squad on two occasions in 2005 but was an unused substitute both times. On 11 November 2006, he made his senior debut in a friendly against Brazil which ended in a 2–1 loss.

Although he missed out on the 2006 World Cup, Lichtsteiner was given a chance to prove himself as first choice right back Philipp Degen was out with long-term injury.[19] In May, Köbi Kuhn named him in the squad for the Euro 2008. He played every match at the tournament and eventually replaced Degen as first choice right back. Switzerland ended the tournament with 2 losses and a win but his performances were good enough to attract interest from top clubs and he signed for Lazio. He retained his starting place under new manager Ottmar Hitzfeld and played every minute in 8 of the 10 2010 World Cup qualifiers.

Prior to the 2016 European Championships Lichtsteiner was made captain after long-time captain Gokhan Inler was dropped from the squad due to the lack of playing time at club level.[20] The Swiss made it out of the group stage and faced Poland in the Round of 16. With the score at 1-1, the match was decided by penalties. Lichtsteiner took the first penalty and scored but the Swiss lost as Granit Xhaka missed his penalty.

Personal life

Lichtsteiner is married to Manuela Markworth, an economist and fitness instructor. They have a daughter[21][22] and a son.[23]

Lichtsteiner acquired the nickname "Forrest Gump" from Lazio-supporting Radio Sei commentator Guido de Angelis after making a run down his flank to score in the 4–2 derby victory over crosstown rivals A.S. Roma.[24] His runs and athleticism has also earned him the nickname "The Swiss Express" since moving to Juventus.

Career statistics

Updated 18 September 2016[25]

Club League Season League Cup1 Europe Other2 Total
Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Grasshopper Super League 2001–02 1 0 - - - - - - 1 0
2002–03 25 0 - - - - - - 25 0
2003–04 26 2 - - 2 0 - - 28 2
2004–05 27 2 - - - - - - 27 2
Lille Ligue 1 2005–06 31 1 - - 8 0 - - 39 1
2006–07 24 0 4 0 3 0 - - 31 0
2007–08 34 4 1 0 - - - - 35 4
Lazio Serie A 2008–09 33 1 4 0 - - - - 37 1
2009–10 33 2 2 0 7 0 1 0 43 2
2010–11 34 0 1 0 - - - - 35 0
Juventus 2011–12 35 2 3 0 - - - - 39 2
2012–13 28 4 1 0 10 0 3 0 38 5
2013–14 28 2 1 0 3 0 1 1 30 3
2014–15 29 3 1 0 10 0 1 0 41 3
2015–16 26 0 4 1 6 1 1 0 37 2
2016–17 3 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 1
Swiss Total 79 4 0 0 2 0 0 0 81 4
French Total 89 5 5 0 11 0 0 0 105 5
Italian Total 243 15 19 1 33 1 3 1 298 17
Total 415 24 38 1 53 1 5 1 511 28

1 Includes Coupe de France/Coupe de la Ligue and Coppa Italia
2 Includes Supercoppa Italiana

International goals

Scores and results list Switzerland's goal tally first
Goal Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1. 11 October 2011 St. Jakob Park, Basel  Montenegro 2–0 2–0 UEFA Euro 2012 Qualifying
2. 26 May 2012 St. Jakob Park, Basel  Germany 4–2 5–3 Friendly
3. 6 September 2013 Stade de Suisse, Bern  Iceland 1–1 4–4 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification
4. 3–1
5. 3 June 2014 Swissporarena, Lucerne  Peru 1–0 2–0 Friendly
6. 13 November 2016 Swissporarena, Lucerne  Faroe Islands 2–0 2–0 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification

Honours

Club

Grasshopper Zürich[26]
Lazio[26]
Juventus[26]

References

  1. ^ "2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil: List of Players" (PDF). FIFA. 11 June 2014. p. 30. Retrieved 25 June 2014.
  2. ^ "Stephan Lichtsteiner". juventus.com.
  3. ^ a b "Champions of Italy: Stephan Lichtsteiner". juventus.com. 7 June 2012.
  4. ^ "The Down-to-Earth Powerhouse". credit-suisse.com. 15 October 2013.
  5. ^ "Lichtsteiner: We can progress". fifa.com. 2 May 2008.
  6. ^ "Lichtsteiner vers la Lazio" (in French). L'Équipe. 17 July 2008.
  7. ^ "Calciomercato Lazio: preso Lichtsteiner". piazzadellalibertà.it (in Italian). Archived from the original on 17 July 2008. Retrieved 16 July 2008.
  8. ^ "Lazio è arrivato lo svizzero Lichtsteiner" (in Italian). Corriere Dello Sport. 16 July 2008.
  9. ^ "Championnat d'Italie: Lichtsteiner à la fête dans le derby romain" (in French). Le Matin. 11 April 2009.
  10. ^ "WGATU: Rivalries boil-over on the pitch". ESPN.com.
  11. ^ "Conte key for Lichtsteiner". ESPN Soccernet. 28 June 2011.
  12. ^ "Lichtsteiner non-ha dubbi "La Juve è sempre la Juve"" (in Italian). La Gazzetta dello Sport. 10 July 2011.
  13. ^ "Juventus Stadium". UEFA.com. 24 June 2013. Retrieved 3 January 2016.
  14. ^ "Lightning strikes twice for Lichtsteiner". juventus.com. 26 August 2012.
  15. ^ "Barcelona see off Juventus to claim fifth title". UEFA. 6 June 2015.
  16. ^ "Surgeon: 'One month for Lichtsteiner' - Football Italia".
  17. ^ "Juventus' Stephan Lichtsteiner marks heart surgery return with volleyed goal". The Guardian. 4 November 2015. Retrieved 5 November 2015.
  18. ^ "Top ten goals of the 2015/16 Champions League". UEFA.com. 18 July 2016. Retrieved 18 July 2016.
  19. ^ "Liege-Einheit für Stephan Lichtsteiner" (in German). Neue Zürcher Zeitung. 15 October 2007.
  20. ^ "Interview with Switzerland captain Stephan Lichtsteiner". World Soccer. 31 May 2016.
  21. ^ "Stephan Lichtsteiner ist Papa geworden" (in German). Schweizer Fernsehen. 6 February 2011.
  22. ^ "Er ist Vater geworden!" (in German). Schweizer Illustrierte. 5 February 2011.
  23. ^ "Baby Nummer 2: Nati-Star Stephan Lichtsteiner im Papa-Glück" (in German). srf.ch. 29 October 2014.
  24. ^ ""Forrest Gump" Lichtsteiner trifft – Kommentator dreht durch" (in German). Blick. 12 April 2009.
  25. ^ "Stephan Lichtsteiner".
  26. ^ a b c "S. Lichsteiner". Soccerway. Retrieved 13 December 2015.
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