David Rozehnal (born 5 July 1980) is a Czech former professional footballer who played as a centre-back. He played for a host of European clubs, making over 400 appearances in a career spanning almost two decades, and retired from the professional game in April 2018.

David Rozehnal
Rozehnal with Newcastle United in 2007
Personal information
Full name David Rozehnal[1]
Date of birth (1980-07-05) 5 July 1980 (age 44)
Place of birth Šternberk, Czechoslovakia
Height 1.91 m (6 ft 3 in)
Position(s) Centre-back
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1999–2003 Sigma Olomouc 72 (2)
2003–2005 Club Brugge 50 (1)
2005–2007 Paris Saint-Germain 75 (1)
2007–2008 Newcastle United 21 (0)
2008Lazio (loan) 10 (0)
2008–2009 Lazio 28 (0)
2009–2011 Hamburger SV 23 (1)
2010–2011Lille (loan) 13 (1)
2011–2015 Lille 62 (1)
2015–2018 K.V. Oostende 50 (1)
2018–? Sokol Kožušany (0)
Total 405 (8)
International career
2001–2002 Czech Republic U21 8 (1)
2004–2009 Czech Republic 60 (1)
Medal record
Men's football
Representing  Czech Republic
UEFA European Championship
Bronze medal – third place 2004
UEFA European Under-21 Championship
Winner 2002
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Early life

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Rozehnal was born in Šternberk and raised in Kožušany. He comes from a sports family, his father was a second-league football player, his mother played competitive handball. His father then trained amateur club Sokol Kožušany, where Rozehnal started with football.[2]

Club career

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Paris Saint-Germain

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Rozehnal with Paris Saint-Germain in 2006

Rozehnal signed for Paris Saint-Germain in June 2005.[3] His form resulted in reported interest from Borussia Dortmund, Newcastle United and Sevilla.[4] Sources close to the defender confirmed that he would prefer a move to Newcastle.[5]

Newcastle United

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On 22 June 2007, Rozehnal's agent confirmed that a "definite agreement" had been reached for the player to join Newcastle United. Rozehnal underwent a medical check on 25 June and Newcastle confirmed the transfer had been completed on 29 June for a fee of £2.9 million.[4] He made his league debut against Bolton Wanderers the same year on 11 August.[6]

Lazio

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On 31 January 2008, Rozehnal left Newcastle for Lazio on loan until the end of the 2007–08 Serie A despite having only signed in June 2007. After only playing seven times for Lazio during his loan spell, it remained unclear if they wanted to sign him permanently. On 9 June 2008, Lazio officially announced they had signed Rozehnal on a permanent basis,[7] with Newcastle recouping the full £2.9 million which they initially paid for the defender.[8]

Later career and retirement

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Rozehnal with Lille in 2014

After only one year in Italy, Rozehnal left Lazio on 29 July 2009 for German club Hamburger SV, signing a contract until 30 June 2012. Due to a poor season with several costly errors by Rozehnal, he was removed from the first team and asked to find a new club.[9]

On 31 August 2010, Hamburg confirmed that Rozehnal left for French side Lille on loan, with the German club still paying part of his salary.[10]

Rozehnal retired from professional football on 4 April 2018 and joined Sokol Kožušany with his brother, Marek. He made his debut for the club the following weekend.[11]

International career

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Rozehnal was part of the Czech Republic national youth football team which won the UEFA U-21 Championships in 2002.[12] He debuted for the senior squad in a 2–2 friendly draw against Italy on 18 February 2004.[13]

Personal life

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Rozehnal is married to Petra and their first child, Luka, was born on 3 October 2007.[14]

Honours

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Club Brugge

Paris Saint-Germain

Lazio

Lille

References

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  1. ^ "UEFA Europa League 2009/2010: Booking List Semi-Finals, Second Leg Match" (PDF). UEFA. p. 2. Retrieved 18 September 2024.
  2. ^ "David Rozehnal" (in Czech). Czech Television. Retrieved 7 May 2022.
  3. ^ "Rozehnal closes on switch to PSG". BBC Sport. BBC. 17 June 2005. Retrieved 5 October 2007.
  4. ^ a b "Newcastle complete Rozehnal deal". BBC Sport. BBC. 29 June 2007.
  5. ^ Chowdhury, Saj (5 June 2007). "Rozehnal eager to join Newcastle". BBC Sport. BBC. Retrieved 1 October 2014.
  6. ^ "Bolton 1-3 Newcastle". BBC Sport. BBC. 11 August 2007. Retrieved 5 October 2007.
  7. ^ "La Lazio riscatta Rozehnal". S.S. Lazio (in Italian). 10 June 2008. Archived from the original on 12 June 2008.
  8. ^ "Rozehnal completes move to Lazio". BBC Sport. BBC. 10 June 2008.
  9. ^ "Veh streicht Tavares und Rozehnal". Kicker (in German). 4 August 2010. Retrieved 6 August 2010.
  10. ^ "HSV-Ladenhüter Rozehnal geht!". Hamburger Morgenpost (in German). 31 August 2010. Archived from the original on 2 September 2010. Retrieved 1 September 2010.
  11. ^ Mazal, Miroslav (9 April 2018). "Rozehnalova premiéra za Kožušany: ztracené vedení, sporný moment a prohra". Deník (in Czech). Olomouc: Vltave Labe Media. Retrieved 8 May 2018.
  12. ^ "European U-21 Championship 2002 | Final Tournament Details". RSSSF. Retrieved 19 April 2022.
  13. ^ Last, First (29 July 2009). "David Rozehnal se stal hráčem Hamburku!". efotbal.cz (in Czech).
  14. ^ "Baby Joy For Czech Mate". Newcastle United F.C. 5 October 2007. Archived from the original on 16 June 2007.
  15. ^ "Club Brugge - La Louvière 1-1". clubbrugge.be. Retrieved 20 April 2022.
  16. ^ "Anderlecht beaten in the Supercup". anderlecht-online.be. Retrieved 20 April 2022.
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