Ragnar Klavan

Ragnar Klavan (born 30 October 1985) is an Estonian professional footballer who plays as a defender for Italian club Cagliari and captains the Estonia national team. A left-footed centre back, he has also played as a left back during his career.

Ragnar Klavan
Klavan with Liverpool in 2017
Personal information
Full name Ragnar Klavan[1]
Date of birth (1985-10-30) 30 October 1985
Place of birth Viljandi, Estonia
Height 1.87 m (6 ft 2 in)[2]
Position(s) Centre back
Club information
Current team
 Cagliari
Number 15
Youth career
Tulevik
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2001–2002 Elva 31 (11)
2002–2003 Tulevik 28 (2)
2003–2005 Flora 28 (2)
2004–2005 → Vålerenga (loan) 2 (0)
2005–2009 Heracles Almelo 95 (4)
2009 → AZ (loan) 12 (0)
2009–2012 AZ 66 (0)
2012–2016 FC Augsburg 125 (4)
2016–2018 Liverpool 39 (1)
2018– Cagliari 54 (0)
National team‡
1999 Estonia U15 4 (0)
2001 Estonia U17 9 (0)
2002 Estonia U18 1 (0)
2003 Estonia U20 1 (0)
2002–2006 Estonia U21 7 (0)
2003–2019 Estonia 127 (3)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 18:14, 10 August 2020 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 17 December 2019

Klavan played for Elva, Tulevik and Flora in Estonia, winning the Meistriliiga with Flora in the 2003 season, before moving to the Netherlands where he represented Heracles Almelo and AZ, winning the Eredivisie with the latter in the 2008–09 season. In 2012, he transferred to FC Augsburg and spent four seasons in the Bundesliga before his move to Liverpool in 2016 for €5 million. In 2018, Klavan signed for Cagliari in a transfer worth £2 million.

Klavan made his senior international debut for Estonia in 2003, and became captain in 2012. In 2015, he became the ninth player to make 100 appearances for Estonia, and is currently the fifth-most capped player in the history of the national team. Klavan has won the Estonian Footballer of the Year award a record seven times, in 2012, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018 and 2019.

Early life

Klavan was born on 30 October 1985 in Viljandi, Estonia to Tiina and Dzintar Klavan.[3][4] His father was a professional footballer who played as a midfielder and represented the Estonia national team. Klavan also started playing football as a midfielder; later stating that Zinedine Zidane was his inspiration.[5]

Club career

Tulevik

Klavan started out playing for his hometown team Tulevik. He made his senior league debut in the Esiliiga on 8 April 2001, playing for Tulevik's reserve team Elva and scoring the winning goal against Sillamäe Kalev in a 2–1 home victory. He moved to Tulevik's first team in 2002 and made his debut in the Meistriliiga on 31 March 2002, at age 16, in a goalless draw against Levadia. While at Tulevik, Klavan had a trial with Sunderland, but was not offered a contract.[6]

Flora

In July 2003, Klavan joined Meistriliiga club Flora.[7] He made his debut for the club on 11 July 2003, when he came on as a 67th-minute substitute and scored on the 85th minute of a 4–4 away draw against TVMK. Klavan won the Meistriliiga title in the 2003 season.[4]

Vålerenga (loan)

On 31 August 2004, Klavan joined Norwegian club Vålerenga on a three-month loan for a fee of 300,000 NOK, with an option to sign permanently for €500,000 when the loan period is over.[8] He made his debut in the Tippeligaen on 19 September 2004, coming on as a substitute in the 86th minute of a 4–1 victory over Molde. Klavan made one more league appearance before spending two matches on the bench as an unused substitute. On 19 November 2004, his loan was extended for a year until 30 November 2005.[9]

Heracles Almelo

On 4 August 2005, Klavan signed a three-year contract with Eredivisie club Heracles Almelo for a fee of €200,000.[10] He made his debut in the Eredivisie on 13 August 2005, in a 1–1 home draw against PSV.[11] Klavan scored his first Eredivisie goal on 31 December 2006, in a 2–2 home draw against Vitesse, and provided the assist for Everton's goal in the same match.[12] He scored his second goal on 24 August 2007, in a 1–2 loss to Roda JC.[13] 30 October 2007, Klavan scored in a 3–0 home victory over FC Omniworld in the third round of the KNVB Cup.[14] On 29 December 2007, Klavan signed a new contract that would extend his stay at the club until 30 June 2009.[15] On 20 April 2008, he scored his side's only goal in a 1–5 loss to Ajax in the last match of the 2007–08 season.[16] In the opening match of the 2008–09 season on 31 August 2008, Klavan set-up Darl Douglas' opening goal and scored the second goal in a 3–1 home victory over Feyenoord.[17]

AZ
Klavan with AZ in 2011

On 27 January 2009, Klavan joined AZ on loan until the end of the 2008–09 season with an option to sign permanently.[18] He made his debut for the club on 4 February 2009, in a 1–0 home victory over Roda JC when he came on as a 60th-minute substitute for Kees Luijckx.[19][20] On 14 February, Klavan signed a four-year contract, keeping him with AZ until June 2013.[21] Klavan won the Eredivisie title in the 2008–09 season.[4][22]

On 29 September 2009, Klavan became the first Estonian to play in the UEFA Champions League group stage when he came on as an 82nd-minute substitute for Sébastien Pocognoli in a 1–1 home draw against Standard Liège.[23][24] He saw limited playing time under managers Ronald Koeman and Dick Advocaat, making only 11 league appearances in the 2009–10 season, before becoming a regular starter for AZ under Gertjan Verbeek. On 29 July 2010, Klavan scored his first goal for AZ in a 2–0 home win against IFK Göteborg in the third qualifying round of the UEFA Europa League.[25] He scored the third goal in a 3–0 home victory over FC Eindhoven on 10 November 2010, in the fourth round of the KNVB Cup.[26] On 27 October 2011, Klavan scored his side's second goal in the 3–2 extra time win against FC Dordrecht in the third round of the KNVB Cup.[27]

FC Augsburg

On 2 July 2012, Klavan signed a two-year contract with German club FC Augsburg for an undisclosed fee.[28][29] He made his debut in the Bundesliga on 14 September 2012, when he came on as a 67th-minute substitute for Matthias Ostrzolek in a 0–0 home draw against VfL Wolfsburg.[30] Klavan soon became a first team regular, establishing himself as a first choice centre back alongside Jan-Ingwer Callsen-Bracker. He scored his first Bundesliga goal on 1 March 2014, in a 1–1 home draw against Hannover 96.[31] On 10 May 2014, Klavan scored in a 2–1 home victory over Eintracht Frankfurt.[31]

On 8 February 2015, Klavan scored the opening goal in a 2–2 home draw against Eintracht Frankfurt.[32] Six days later, he scored in a 2–3 away loss to Werder Bremen.[33] Klavan played every minute of the 2014–15 season as FC Augsburg finished fifth in the league, their highest position in history, and qualified for the 2015–16 UEFA Europa League.[34]

Liverpool
Klavan warming up for Liverpool in 2017

On 20 July 2016, Klavan signed a three-year contract with Premier League club Liverpool for a reported fee of £4.2 million (€5 million). The transfer fee of €5 million made him the most expensive Estonian footballer ever. The club confirmed that he would wear the number 17 shirt.[35][36]

Klavan made his debut in the Premier League on 14 August 2016, in a 4–3 victory over Arsenal at Emirates Stadium.[37] He scored his first goal for Liverpool on 20 September 2016, in a 3–0 away victory over Derby County in the third round of the EFL Cup.[38] On 19 December 2016, Klavan was named man of the match for his performance in Liverpool's 1–0 victory in the derby match against Everton at Goodison Park.[39]

On 1 January 2018, Klavan became the first-ever Estonian player to score in the Premier League when he scored the winning goal in the fourth minute of injury time in a 2–1 away win against Burnley.[40] He made eight appearances in the 2017–18 UEFA Champions League and was an unused substitute in Liverpool's 1–3 loss to Real Madrid in the final of the tournament.[41][42]

Cagliari

On 17 August 2018, Klavan signed a two-year contract with Italian club Cagliari for a fee of £2 million.[43] He made his debut in the Serie A on 26 August, in a 2–2 home draw against Sassuolo.[44]

International career

Klavan began his youth career in 1999 with the Estonia under-15 team. He also represented the under-17, under-18, under-20, and under-21 national sides, amassing 22 youth appearances overall.

Klavan made his senior international debut for Estonia on 3 July 2003, at age 17, in 1–5 loss to Lithuania at the 2003 Baltic Cup. He scored his first international goal on 31 May 2006, in a 1–1 home draw against New Zealand in a friendly. Klavan made his 50th appearance for the national team on 11 October 2008, in a 0–3 home defeat to Spain in a qualification match for the 2010 FIFA World Cup. He played in both matches against the Republic of Ireland in the UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying play-offs as Estonia lost 1–5 on aggregate.[45][46]

On 29 February 2012, Klavan captained Estonia for the first time and scored in a 2–0 friendly victory over El Salvador.[47] In 2012, he succeeded Raio Piiroja as Estonia's captain. On 27 March 2015, Klavan made his 100th appearance for Estonia, in a 0–3 away loss to Switzerland in a UEFA Euro 2016 qualifying match.[48] Klavan has been named Estonian Footballer of the Year a record seven times, in 2012, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018 and 2019.[4][49][50]

Personal life

Klavan and his wife, Lili Orel, married on 10 June 2011.[51] They have two sons: Romer and Ronan.[52]

In May 2016, Klavan became president of Estonian football club Tallinna Kalev.[53]

On 19 December 2020 he tested positive for COVID-19.[54]

Career statistics

Club
As of match played 21 January 2021[2][55][56][57]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League Cup[lower-alpha 1] League Cup Europe Other Total
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Elva2001Esiliiga25520———275
2002Esiliiga6600———66
Total311120———3311
Tulevik2002Meistriliiga18000———180
2003Meistriliiga10220———122
Total28220———302
Flora2003Meistriliiga12110—2[lower-alpha 2]000151
2004Meistriliiga16110—1[lower-alpha 2]000181
Total28220—3000332
Vålerenga (loan)2004Tippeligaen2000———20
2005Tippeligaen0020—00—20
Total2020—00—40
Heracles Almelo2005–06Eredivisie15010——2[lower-alpha 3]0180
2006–07Eredivisie32110———331
2007–08Eredivisie29241———333
2008–09Eredivisie19110———201
Total95471——201045
AZ (loan)2008–09Eredivisie12010———130
AZ2009–10Eredivisie11010—1[lower-alpha 2]000130
2010–11Eredivisie28031—8[lower-alpha 4]1—392
2011–12Eredivisie27041—8[lower-alpha 4]0—391
Total78092—171001043
FC Augsburg2012–13Bundesliga30020———320
2013–14Bundesliga30230———332
2014–15Bundesliga34210———352
2015–16Bundesliga31030—6[lower-alpha 4]0—400
Total125490—60—1404
Liverpool2016–17Premier League2001041——251
2017–18Premier League19100108[lower-alpha 2]0—281
Total391105180—532
Cagliari2018–19Serie A15000———150
2019–20Serie A31020———330
2020-21Serie A9010———100
Total56030———580
Career total48124373513412055929
  1. Includes the Estonian Cup, Norwegian Cup, KNVB Cup, DFB-Pokal, FA Cup and Coppa Italia
  2. Appearance(s) in UEFA Champions League
  3. Appearances in UEFA Intertoto Cup play-offs
  4. Appearances in UEFA Europa League

International
As of 17 December 2019[57][58]
Appearances and goals by national team and year
National team Year Apps Goals
Estonia
200350
2004120
200580
200661
2007110
2008100
2009100
201040
201190
201281
201370
201491
201590
201680
201760
201830
201920
Total1273

International goals
As of 17 December 2019. Estonia score listed first, score column indicates score after each Klavan goal.[57][58]
International goals by date, venue, cap, opponent, score, result and competition
No. Date Venue Cap Opponent Score Result Competition
1 31 May 2006A. Le Coq Arena, Tallinn, Estonia27 New Zealand1–01–1Friendly
2 29 February 2012Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles, United States76 El Salvador1–02–0Friendly
3 26 May 2014A. Le Coq Arena, Tallinn, Estonia92 Gibraltar1–01–1Friendly

Honours

Club

Flora

AZ

Liverpool

Individual

See also

References
  1. "Updated squads for 2017/18 Premier League confirmed". Premier League. 2 February 2018. Retrieved 11 February 2018.
  2. "Ragnar Klavan: Overview". Premier League. Retrieved 9 June 2018.
  3. "Europe's ultimate footballing families". UEFA. 28 April 2015.
  4. "Klavan, Ragnar" (in Estonian). ESBL.
  5. Brown, Luke (19 July 2016). "Who is Ragnar Klavan? All you need to know about Liverpool's newest addition". The Daily Telegraph.
  6. "Who is Liverpool transfer target Ragnar Klavan?". Sky Sports.
  7. "Ragnar Klavan mängib nüüd Floras" [Ragnar Klavan now plays for Flora] (in Estonian). Delfi Sport. 11 July 2003.
  8. "Klavan siirdub Norrasse" [Klavan heading to Norway] (in Estonian). Delfi Sport. 1 September 2004.
  9. "Jalgpallur Ragnar Klavan jätkab laenulepinguga karjääri Norras" [Footballer Ragnar Klavan will continue his career in Norway on loan]. Sakala (in Estonian). 23 November 2004.
  10. "Klavanist sai Heraclese mängija" [Klavan became Heracles' player] (in Estonian). Delfi Sport. 5 August 2005.
  11. "Ragnar Klavan tegi Hollandis debüüdi" [Ragnar Klavan made his debut in the Netherlands]. Sakala (in Estonian). 16 August 2005.
  12. "Andres Oper ja Ragnar Klavan tegid Hollandis skoori" [Andres Oper and Ragnar Klavan scored in the Netherlands]. Postimees (in Estonian). 31 December 2006.
  13. "Roda see off Heracles". Sky Sports. 24 August 2007.
  14. "Klavan aitas koduklubi võidule" [Klavan helped his club to a victory]. Postimees (in Estonian). 30 October 2007.
  15. "Klavan pikendas Heraclesega aasta võrra lepingut" [Klavan extended contract with Heracles for a year]. Postimees (in Estonian). 30 December 2007.
  16. "Ragnar Klavan lõi Amsterdami Ajaxile värava" [Ragnar Klavan scored against Ajax Amsterdam]. Postimees (in Estonian). 20 April 2008.
  17. "Ragnar Klavan valiti Hollandis nädala mängijate hulka" [Ragnar Klavan voted to team of the week]. Postimees (in Estonian). 3 September 2008.
  18. "Klavan vahetas Hollandis klubi" [Klavan switches clubs in the Netherlands]. Postimees (in Estonian). 27 January 2009.
  19. "Klavan debüteeris Operi klubi vastu" [Klavan debuted against Oper's club]. Postimees (in Estonian). 5 February 2009.
  20. "Estonia's Klavan targets Dutch glory with AZ". UEFA. 13 February 2009.
  21. "Klavan sõlmis AZga lepingu 2013. aastani" [Klavan signed a contract with AZ until 2013]. Postimees (in Estonian). 14 February 2009.
  22. "Eindhoven aitas Klavani klubi Hollandi meistriks" [Eindhoven helped Klavan's club to become Dutch champions]. Postimees (in Estonian). 19 April 2009.
  23. "Ragnar Klavan tegi Meistrite Liigas ajalugu!" [Ragnar Klavan made history in the Champions League!] (in Estonian). Delfi Sport. 29 September 2009.
  24. "Video: Ragnar Klavani debüüt Meistrite liigas" [Video: Ragnar Klavan's debut in the Champions Leagu]. Postimees (in Estonian). 30 September 2009.
  25. "Klavan lõi Euroopa liigas värava" [Klavan scored in the Europa League]. Postimees (in Estonian). 30 July 2010.
  26. "Video: Ragnar Klavan lõi AZ Alkmaari võidumängus iluvärava" [Video: Ragnar Klavan scored a stunning goal in AZ Alkmaar's victory]. Postimees (in Estonian). 11 November 2010.
  27. "Ragnar Klavan sai karikamängus jala valgeks" [Ragnar Klavan scored in a cup match] (in Estonian). ERR Sport. 27 October 2011.
  28. "Ragnar Klavan sõlmis lepingu Bundesligas mängiva Augsburgiga" [Ragnar Klavan signed a contract with a Bundesliga club Augsburg] (in Estonian). ERR Sport. 2 July 2012.
  29. "Leping käes: Ragnar Klavan mängib uuel hooajal Bundesligas" [Contract signed: Ragnar Klavan to play in the Bundesliga in the coming season]. Postimees (in Estonian). 2 July 2012.
  30. "Ragnar Klavanist sai esimene Saksamaa Bundesligas mänginud eestlane" [Ragnar Klavan became the first Estonian to play in the German Bundesliga] (in Estonian). ERR Sport. 14 September 2012.
  31. "Ragnar Klavan tegi Augsburgi viigimängus ajalugu" [Ragnar Klavan made history in Augsburg draw] (in Estonian). ERR Sport. 1 March 2014.
  32. "Klavan lõi värava, kuid Augsburg mängis eduseisu maha" [Klavan scored, but Augsburg lost the lead] (in Estonian). ERR Sport. 8 February 2015.
  33. "Klavani värav Augsburgi ei päästnud, Bayern küttis Hamburgile sauna" [Klavan's goal didn't save Augsburg, Bayern demolish Hamburg] (in Estonian). ERR Sport. 14 February 2015.
  34. "Klavan läbis hooaja minutitki vahele jätmata" [Klavan went through the season without skipping a minute] (in Estonian). ERR Sport. 23 May 2015.
  35. "Ragnar Klavan: Liverpool sign Estonia defender from Augsburg". BBC Sport. 20 July 2016.
  36. "Klavan to Postimees: length of contract reveals Liverpool believes in me". Postimees. 21 July 2016. Archived from the original on 8 August 2016.
  37. "Võidukas debüüt: Klavan ja Liverpool seljatasid pöörases mängus Arsenali" [Victorious debut: Klavan and Liverpool defeated Arsenal in a thrilling match]. Postimees (in Estonian). 14 August 2016.
  38. "Derby County 0–3 Liverpool". BBC Sport. 20 September 2016.
  39. "Everton 0–1 Liverpool". BBC Sport. 19 December 2016.
  40. Oscroft, Tim (1 January 2018). "Burnley 1–2 Liverpool". BBC Sport.
  41. Ragnar Klavan – UEFA competition record
  42. McNulty, Phil (26 May 2018). "Real Madrid 3–1 Liverpool". BBC Sport. Retrieved 4 December 2018.
  43. "Ragnar Klavan: Liverpool defender joins Cagliari for £2m". BBC Sport. 17 August 2018.
  44. "Klavan ja Cagliari jäid dramaatilise lõpplahendusega mängus võidust ilma" [Klavan and Cagliari left without a win in a dramatic finish] (in Estonian). ERR Sport. 26 August 2018.
  45. "Republic of Ireland 1–1 Estonia (5–1 agg)". BBC Sport. 14 November 2011.
  46. "Ireland make sure with Estonia draw". UEFA. 15 November 2011.
  47. "Eesti alustas aastat 2:0 võiduga El Salvadori üle" [Estonia started the year with a 2–0 victory over El Salvador] (in Estonian). Estonian Football Association. 1 March 2012.
  48. "Centurion Klavan refuses to let Estonia dream die". UEFA. 27 March 2015.
  49. "Estonia – Player of the Year Awards". Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation.
  50. "Aasta parim meesjalgpallur on Ragnar Klavan" [Best men's player of the year is Ragnar Klavan] (in Estonian). Estonian Football Association. 15 December 2019.
  51. "Palju õnne: ka Ragnar Klavan sai sõrmuse sõrme" [Congratulations: Ragnar Klavan also gets a ring on his finger]. Õhtuleht (in Estonian). 14 June 2011.
  52. "Palju õnne! Ragnar Klavan sai teist korda isaks" [Congratulations! Ragnar Klavan becomes father for the second time] (in Estonian). Delfi Sport. 10 August 2014.
  53. "Ragnar Klavanist saab Tallinna Kalevi president" [Ragnar Klavan becomes the president of Tallinna Kalev] (in Estonian). Soccernet.ee. 2 May 2016.
  54. "Comunicato della Società" [Press release] (Press release) (in Italian). Cagliari. 19 December 2020. Retrieved 20 December 2020.
  55. "Ragnar Klavan" (in Estonian). Estonian Football Association.
  56. "R. Klavan". Soccerway.
  57. "Klavan, Ragnar". National-Football-Teams.com.
  58. "Ragnar Klavan" (in Estonian). Estonian Football Association.
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