Ásgeir Sigurvinsson

Ásgeir "Sigi" Sigurvinsson (born 8 May 1955 in Vestmannaeyjar) is an Icelandic retired football attacking midfielder and coach.

Ásgeir Sigurvinsson
Personal information
Full name Ásgeir Sigurvinsson
Date of birth (1955-05-08) 8 May 1955
Place of birth Vestmannaeyjar, Iceland
Height 1.82 m (6 ft 0 in)
Position(s) Midfielder
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1971–1973 ÍBV Vestmannaeyjar 21 (7)
1973–1981 Standard Liège 249 (57)
1981–1982 Bayern Munich 17 (1)
1982–1990 VfB Stuttgart 194 (38)
Total 481 (103)
National team
1972–1989 Iceland 45 (5)
Teams managed
1993 Fram
2003–2005 Iceland
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only

He spent most of his career in Germany, amassing Bundesliga totals of 211 games and 39 goals for two clubs, mainly Stuttgart.

Club career

One of the first Icelandic footballers to play in a foreign country, Ásgeir played a single game for Rangers' reserve side in late 1972[1] before moving to Belgian club Standard Liège in 1973. He stayed there for eight seasons, amassing more than 300 appearances overall and helping it to the 1981 Belgian Cup. Immediately after, he was bought by FC Bayern Munich, but only lasted one year.

Ásgeir then joined fellow Bundesliga team VfB Stuttgart, where he figured prominently until his retirement at 35. In his second year he scored a career-best – in Germany – 12 goals, being instrumental in a league conquest after a 32-year wait.

During his penultimate season, Ásgeir netted three times from 28 appearances as the Roten finished fifth, still adding all 12 matches (ten complete) in the side's runner-up run in the UEFA Cup. After retiring, he worked at Stuttgart for another three years, as a scout.

Between April and November 1993, Ásgeir had his first coaching experience, with native Knattspyrnufélagið Fram.[2]

International career

Ásgeir gained 45 caps for Iceland and scored five goals,[3] his debut coming on 3 July 1972 at only 17 in a 2–5 friendly home loss against Denmark. He acted as technical director at the Football Association of Iceland for six years, and later coached the national team from 2003 until late 2005.[4]

In November 2003, to celebrate UEFA's 50 anniversary, the Icelandic FA selected Ásgeir as its Golden Player, the most outstanding Icelandic player of the last 50 years.[5]

Honours

ÍBV
Standard Liège
Bayern Munich
Stuttgart

References

  1. "Ásgeir Sigurvinsson – One That Got Away".
  2. "Þjálfaratal Fram" (in Icelandic). Kaninka. 19 September 2007. Archived from the original on 23 April 2008. Retrieved 10 October 2011.
  3. "Iceland – Record International Players". RSSSF. Retrieved 10 October 2011.
  4. "Sigurvinsson follows his beliefs". UEFA.com. 19 August 2003. Retrieved 10 October 2011.
  5. "Golden Players take centre stage". UEFA.com. 29 November 2003. Retrieved 10 October 2011.
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