Tomasz Kuszczak

Tomasz Mirosław Kuszczak (Polish pronunciation: [ˈtɔmaʂ ˈkuʂt͡ʂak] (listen); born 20 March 1982) is a Polish professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper, most recently for English club Birmingham City.

Tomasz Kuszczak
Kuszczak with Birmingham City in 2016
Personal information
Full name Tomasz Mirosław Kuszczak[1]
Date of birth (1982-03-20) 20 March 1982[1]
Place of birth Krosno Odrzańskie, Poland
Height 1.91 m (6 ft 3 in)[1]
Playing position(s) Goalkeeper
Youth career
1998–1999 Śląsk Wrocław
1999–2000 Uerdingen
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2000–2004 Hertha BSC II 87 (0)
2001–2004 Hertha BSC 0 (0)
2004–2007 West Bromwich Albion 31 (0)
2006–2007 → Manchester United (loan) 6 (0)
2007–2012 Manchester United 26 (0)
2012 → Watford (loan) 13 (0)
2012–2014 Brighton & Hove Albion 84 (0)
2014–2015 Wolverhampton Wanderers 13 (0)
2015–2019 Birmingham City 89 (0)
National team
1998 Poland U16 3 (0)
2000 Poland U18 3 (0)
2001–2003 Poland U21 14 (0)
2003–2012 Poland 11 (0)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 12:39, 2 June 2019 (UTC)

Born in Krosno Odrzańskie, Kuszczak previously played for Śląsk Wrocław in Poland, as well as for the German clubs KFC Uerdingen 05 and Hertha BSC, before moving in 2004 to England with West Bromwich Albion. During the summer of 2006 he transferred to Manchester United and in 2012 joined Brighton & Hove Albion, who released him at the end of the 2013–14 season. After spending the later part of the 2014–15 season with Wolverhampton Wanderers, he signed for Birmingham City in July 2015.

Kuszczak made 14 appearances for the Poland under-21 side and has been capped 11 times at senior level. He was a member of the nation's squad at the 2006 FIFA World Cup.

Club career

Hertha BSC

Kuszczak was born in Krosno Odrzańskie, Poland. He joined German club Hertha BSC in 2000, spending a year with their reserve team before being promoted to the first team in 2001. He subsequently spent three seasons as the third-choice goalkeeper at the club, behind Gábor Király and Christian Fiedler, and failed to make a single appearance in the Bundesliga. He was out of contract with Hertha when he was signed by West Bromwich Albion manager Gary Megson on 14 July 2004.[2]

West Bromwich Albion

He made his debut for West Brom on 18 September 2004 in a Premier League match against Fulham at The Hawthorns, which ended in a 1–1 draw. He then played in a League Cup match against Colchester United on 21 September 2004, Albion losing 2–1.

Kuszczak had only kept goal in one match in the Premier League before West Brom's game against Manchester United on the penultimate match day of the 2004–05 season, with the Baggies facing a tough relegation battle. He put in a striking performance, having to step in front of the goal after the first choice keeper Russell Hoult was injured in the first half. West Bromwich drew the match 1–1, with Kuszczak remaining unbeaten during his 68 minutes on the pitch. This performance helped Kuszczak earn his first man of the match award in the Premier League. The following week, in the season's last match against Portsmouth, Kuszczak had another impressive game, enabling West Bromwich to win 2–0, and hence stay up in the league.

In 2005–06, Kuszczak was supposed to be the reserve keeper behind Chris Kirkland. With Kirkland injured, Kuszczak kept goal in his first Premier League match of the season on 30 October 2005, but could not prevent Newcastle United from winning 3–0. His performances then improved, allowing him to become the first-choice keeper. This continued despite Kirkland's return from injury. On 15 January 2006, Kuszczak had an impressive game against Wigan Athletic, making a match-winning save late on from Jason Roberts, with West Bromwich winning the game 1–0. The save was voted "Save of the Season" by viewers of BBC TV's Match of the Day programme. Nonetheless, his club were relegated at the end of the season.

Manchester United
Kuszczak training at Manchester United

On 7 July 2006, it was confirmed by West Bromwich Albion manager Bryan Robson that Manchester United had made a bid of around £2 million for Kuszczak. On 3 August, West Brom rejected a £2.5 million bid for Kuszczak from United, citing that a one-year loan spell for United starlet Giuseppe Rossi would also have to be included along with the cash to result in a deal. On 10 August 2006, Kuszczak joined Manchester United in a deal involving the transfers of England Under-18 goalkeeper Luke Steele and defender Paul McShane to West Brom. When officially announcing the move, United failed to state the terms of the deal, leading to suggestions that it was a merely a loan deal. Chief executive David Gill clarified the situation, stating, "Tomasz will be a Manchester United player for the next four years, he has come to us on loan for the first year, and then will join us permanently in July 2007."[3]

Kuszczak made his debut against Arsenal on 17 September 2006, he conceded an early penalty but did redeem himself by saving the ensuing spot-kick from Gilberto Silva. Despite saving the penalty, Arsenal's Emmanuel Adebayor scored a late goal which gave them a 1–0 win at Old Trafford, which was the club's first defeat of the season.[4] His first start came in a 2–1 away win over Crewe Alexandra in the League Cup on 25 October.[5] He had his name misspelled on the back of his shirt during this game, with it incorrectly reading "Zuszczak".[6] Although Kuszczak did not play enough Premier League games in the 2006–07 season, he received a winners medal by special application to the Premier League.

Kuszczak punching the ball away in a 2–1 home win over Blackburn Rovers on 21 February 2009

On 2 July 2007, Manchester United announced that the permanent transfer had been completed,[7] for a fee of £2.125 million.[8] Due to Dutch keeper Edwin van der Sar's continued good form and Ben Foster's knee injury, Kuszczak was named Manchester United's number 2 for the 2007–08 season. During an interview in May 2007 Kuszczak stated that he wanted one day to become the number 1 at Manchester United.

On 8 March 2008, in an FA Cup tie against Portsmouth, Kuszczak replaced the injured Van der Sar at half-time, only to receive a straight red card for a foul on Milan Baroš 30 minutes later. Rio Ferdinand was forced to take over in goal, but failed to save Sulley Muntari's penalty, resulting in United being knocked out of the competition.[9]

In September 2008, Kuszczak signed a two-year extension which would keep him at Old Trafford until 2012.[10] However, after being overlooked in favour of Foster for the 2009 League Cup Final, Kuszczak faced problems in aiming to become United's new first choice after Van der Sar's retirement and expressed discontent with his situation at Manchester United. In 2009, he was said to be considering his long-term future at the club.[11] Kuszczak kept a clean sheet in his first game of the 2009–10 season, a 1–0 home win over Wolverhampton Wanderers in the third round of the League Cup. After Van der Sar suffered an injury, Kuszczak returned to the side for a match against Portsmouth on 28 November. He retained his position in the starting line-up for United's League Cup fifth round match against Tottenham Hotspur, the next league game against West Ham United and the last game of the Champions League group stage against Wolfsburg. Kuszczak kept another clean sheet in United's final game of the decade as they beat Wigan Athletic 5–0 at Old Trafford. However, Van der Sar's return to the team in January 2010 saw him lose his place in the side. He started, however, in the 2010 Football League Cup Final against Aston Villa, which saw him fail to save a penalty in the first minutes of the game, although United went on to win the trophy, after a 2–1 victory.

Kuszczak revealed Alex Ferguson blocked his move to Leeds United on loan.[12] On 3 February 2012, Ferguson confirmed that Kuszczak would be out of contract in the summer and that he would not be signing a new contract with the club.[13] On 21 February, Kuszczak moved on an emergency loan to join Championship side Watford until the end of the season. He stated afterwards that he had joined Watford because he missed being involved on a matchday and wanted to have a chance of being involved in the Euro's in his home country this summer. He started 13 games during his loan spell, missing just one game which was against Middlesbrough on 28 April due to his wife giving birth.

On 1 June 2012 Kuszczak's release from Manchester United was confirmed on the club's website.[14] After leaving Manchester United, Kuszczak made the accusation that Ferguson held his career back – specifically that he was prevented from joining other clubs by inflating his asking price.[15]

Brighton & Hove Albion
Kuszczak with Brighton & Hove Albion in 2012

On 19 June 2012, Kuszczak joined Brighton & Hove Albion, signing a two-year contract.[16] He revealed that he turned down numerous other clubs to sign for the Seagulls and stated "I spent eight years in the Premier League and that is where I want to be again. I believe I can get there with Brighton because this club is heading in only one direction, and I want to play my part in helping us get there."[17] Kuszczak made a huge impact at the club, earning the Albion player of the month award in early 2013 after several match saving performances. Kuszczak made 84 appearances for Brighton & Hove Albion before being released at the end of the 2013–14 season.[18]

Wolverhampton Wanderers

On 3 November 2014, after a trial with the Championship club, Kuszczak signed a short-term contract with Wolverhampton Wanderers to last until January 2015.[19] This arrangement was then extended until the end of the 2014–15 season.[20] Following an injury to Carl Ikeme, Kuszczak made his Championship debut for Wolves against Reading on 7 February 2015, conceding a goal after 20 seconds.[21]

Birmingham City

On 1 July 2015, Kuszczak signed a two-year contract with another Championship club, Birmingham City.[22] In the eighth minute of stoppage time in the opening match of the season, at home to Reading, Kuszczak saved Orlando Sá's penalty to preserve Birmingham's 2–1 lead.[23] He continued as first-choice goalkeeper throughout the season, and began 2016–17 in post, but was injured in the warm-up before Birmingham's match at Reading on 13 September. His replacement, Adam Legzdins, kept a clean sheet,[24] and kept his place for the next seven matches, even after Kuszczak's return to fitness.[25] Manager Gary Rowett brought Kuszczak back into the side for the local derby against Aston Villa,[26] and he retained the starting spot for the rest of the season as the team narrowly avoided relegation.[27]

He signed a contract for another two years,[27] but new manager Harry Redknapp's first signing was goalkeeper David Stockdale,[28] whom he installed in the starting eleven. After a "solid display" against Derby County in September as replacement for the injured Stockdale, Kuszczak expressed his disappointment at having been "dropped without any chance to get back".[29] He kept his place for two months, despite a groin problem, until Stockdale regained fitness.[30] Kuszczak was given time to recover from the injury, but even then, untried youngster Connal Trueman remained on the bench. During the January 2018 transfer window, there was reported interest from Newcastle United and Derby County, but Redknapp's successor, Steve Cotterill, insisted that he would only leave on Birmingham's terms.[31][32] When Garry Monk replaced Cotterill in March, Kuszczak returned to the bench, but did not play again,[33][34] and at the end of the season the Polish press reported that he had been told he could leave.[31] Neither he nor Stockdale were involved with the first-team squad in 2018–19, and Birmingham confirmed in May 2019 that he would leave the club at the end of his contract.[35]

International career

Kuszczak's international debut came on 11 December 2003 against Malta. Poland won the away game 4–0.

Due to his impressive performances for West Bromwich Albion, he was called up to the 23-man Poland national football team for the 2006 FIFA World Cup. However, in a World Cup warm-up match between Poland and Colombia on 30 May 2006, he conceded a goal directly from a long punt by the opposition goalkeeper, Neco Martínez.[36] Kuszczak subsequently ended up as Artur Boruc's back-up during the tournament and did not play.

Kuszczak was named in Poland's squad for UEFA Euro 2008, but was forced to drop out after picking up a back injury and was replaced by Wojciech Kowalewski.[37] A lack of club football at Manchester United had also seen him slide down the pecking order for his country of late, but he was recalled to the squad for the friendly matches against Romania and Canada by new coach Franciszek Smuda, playing in both matches with mixed results.

Kuszczak was called up for the 2014 World Cup qualifiers against Montenegro and Moldova in September 2013, filling in for injured first choice goalkeeper, Wojciech Szczęsny, but remained an unused substitute. Kuszczak was again called up by Fornalik in October, for the friendly game at home to South Africa and the World Cup qualifier against England. He was tipped to start against South Africa but Fornalik opted for Przemysław Tytoń after becoming out of the fold at PSV Eindhoven. This game ended as a 1–0 win for the Poles. Kuszczak's only chance to play against England was if Tyton's ankle injury got worse, but it did not. On 14 November, Kuszczak came on at half-time in the international friendly against Uruguay.

Career statistics

Club
Kuszczak playing for Watford
As of end of 2018–19 season
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League Cup League Cup Other Total
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Hertha BSC 2001–02 Bundesliga0000000000
2002–03 Bundesliga0000000000
2003–04 Bundesliga0000000000
Total 0000000000
West Bromwich Albion 2004–05[38] Premier League301010—50
2005–06[39] Premier League2800020—300
2006–07[40] Championship000000—00
Total 3101030—350
Manchester United (loan) 2006–07[40] Premier League60502000130
Manchester United 2007–08[41] Premier League9010105[lower-alpha 1]0160
2008–09[42] Premier League4000202[lower-alpha 1]080
2009–10[43] Premier League8010302[lower-alpha 1]0140
2010–11[44] Premier League5010202[lower-alpha 1]0100
2011–12[45] Premier League0000000000
Total 32080100110610
Watford (loan) 2011–12[45] Championship130———130
Brighton & Hove Albion 2012–13[46] Championship43000102[lower-alpha 2]0460
2013–14[47] Championship41000002[lower-alpha 2]0430
Total 840001040890
Wolverhampton Wanderers 2014–15[48] Championship13000——130
Birmingham City 2015–16[49] Championship4100010—420
2016–17[50] Championship3800000—380
2017–18[51] Championship1000020—120
2018–19[52] Championship1000020—120
Total 8900030—920
Career total 2610901701503020
  1. Appearances in UEFA Champions League
  2. Appearances in Football League play-offs

International
Poland national team[53]
Year Apps Goals
200320
200620
200710
200810
200920
201020
201210
Total110

Honours

Manchester United[34]

gollark: Some maths books I liked as a younger person.
gollark: I have a fullres version somewhere, but it shows as heptagony/hexagony in Discord fine.
gollark: You can tell it's a hyperbolic tessellation of some kind because of the... hyperbolic tessellationy look... where there are things getting smaller and smaller near the outsides.
gollark: You can actually see heptagons and hexagons if you look at it.
gollark: It means lots of things.

References
  1. "FIFA Club World Cup Japan 2008: List of Players: Manchester United" (PDF). FIFA. 5 December 2008. p. 5. Retrieved 2 July 2015.
  2. "West Brom bag keeper". BBC Sport. 14 July 2004. Retrieved 4 July 2007.
  3. "Man Utd clear up Kuszczak details". BBC Sport. 11 August 2006. Retrieved 11 August 2006.
  4. May, John (17 September 2006). "Man Utd 0–1 Arsenal". BBC Sport. Retrieved 17 September 2006.
  5. "Crewe 1–2 Man Utd (aet)". BBC Sport. 25 October 2006. Retrieved 25 October 2006.
  6. "Football shirt typos". The Guardian. London. 2 March 2009. Retrieved 2 March 2009.
  7. Bartram, Steve (2 July 2007). "Reds complete triple signing". Manchester United F.C. Retrieved 2 July 2007.
  8. Peace, Jeremy (14 September 2007). "WBA financial results". West Bromwich Albion F.C. Archived from the original on 17 January 2008.
  9. McNulty, Phil (8 March 2008). "Man Utd 0–1 Portsmouth". BBC Sport. Retrieved 8 March 2008.
  10. Lamkin, Paul (15 September 2008). "Kuszczak signs new deal at Old Trafford". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 15 September 2008.
  11. "Manchester United goalkeeper Tomasz Kuszczak demands Old Trafford showdown over uncertain future". Daily Mail. London. 2 June 2009. Retrieved 2 July 2015.
  12. Bailey, Graeme (5 November 2011). "Fergie blocks Leeds' keeper bid". Sky Sports. Retrieved 2 July 2015.
  13. Marshall, Adam; Thompson, Gemma (3 February 2012). "Sir Alex explains GK call". Manchester United F.C. Retrieved 19 May 2012.
  14. Bartram, Steve (1 June 2012). "Kuszczak released by Reds". Manchester United F.C. Retrieved 1 June 2012.
  15. Lewis, Darren (14 October 2012). "Fergie relegated me! Kuszczak says he was 'price-tagged' out of the Premier League..." Daily Mirror. Retrieved 2 July 2015.
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  17. Nicoli, Luke (20 June 2012). "Kuszczak aims for the top". Brighton & Hove Albion F.C. Archived from the original on 23 June 2012.
  18. "Brighton: Tomasz Kuszczak among six released by Seagulls". BBC Sport. 14 May 2014. Retrieved 2 July 2015.
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  26. Dick, Brian (31 October 2016). "Birmingham City boss Gary Rowett discusses decision to drop Adam Legzdins". Birmingham Mail. Retrieved 18 January 2018.
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  28. "Birmingham sign goalkeeper David Stockdale". Sky Sports. 13 June 2017. Retrieved 18 January 2018.
  29. Ireland, Shane (24 September 2017). "'I've been dropped without any chance to get back' Birmingham City star on his return to action at Derby". Birmingham Mail. Retrieved 18 January 2018.
  30. Kendrick, Mat (16 January 2018). "Birmingham City monitoring non league striker Oladapo Afolayan – reports". Birmingham Mail. Retrieved 18 January 2018.
  31. Zimkowski, Bartosz (28 May 2018). "Tomasz Kuszczak szuka nowego klubu. Celuje w Premier League" [Kuszczak is looking for a new club. Targets the Premier League]. Sportowe Fakty (in Polish). Retrieved 29 May 2018.
  32. Dick, Brian (18 January 2018). "Steve Cotterill's feisty response to Gary Rowett's interest in Tomasz Kuszczak". Birmingham Mail. Retrieved 29 May 2018.
  33. Dick, Brian (6 March 2018). "The Birmingham City players who could benefit most from Garry Monk's 'fresh start'". Birmingham Mail. Retrieved 29 May 2018.
  34. "T. Kuszczak: Summary". Soccerway. Perform Group. Retrieved 29 May 2018.
  35. Chapman, Joseph (5 September 2018). "Tomasz Kuszczak posts message from Birmingham City 'Bomb Squad'". Birmingham Mail. Retrieved 8 October 2018.
    Dick, Brian (16 May 2019). "Three senior players released as Birmingham City start squad rebuild". Birmingham Mail. Retrieved 16 May 2019.
  36. Harasimowicz, Martin (31 May 2006). "Kuszczak defiant despite blunder". BBC Sport. Retrieved 4 July 2007.
  37. "Keeper Kuszczak out of Euro 2008". BBC Sport. 6 June 2008. Retrieved 2 July 2015.
  38. "Games played by Tomasz Kuszczak in 2004/2005". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 19 July 2015.
  39. "Games played by Tomasz Kuszczak in 2005/2006". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 19 July 2015.
  40. "Games played by Tomasz Kuszczak in 2006/2007". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 19 July 2015.
  41. "Games played by Tomasz Kuszczak in 2007/2008". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 19 July 2015.
  42. "Games played by Tomasz Kuszczak in 2008/2009". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 19 July 2015.
  43. "Games played by Tomasz Kuszczak in 2009/2010". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 19 July 2015.
  44. "Games played by Tomasz Kuszczak in 2010/2011". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 19 July 2015.
  45. "Games played by Tomasz Kuszczak in 2011/2012". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 19 July 2015.
  46. "Games played by Tomasz Kuszczak in 2012/2013". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 19 July 2015.
  47. "Games played by Tomasz Kuszczak in 2013/2014". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 19 July 2015.
  48. "Games played by Tomasz Kuszczak in 2014/2015". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 19 July 2015.
  49. "Games played by Tomasz Kuszczak in 2015/2016". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 23 April 2016.
  50. "Games played by Tomasz Kuszczak in 2016/2017". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 7 May 2017.
  51. "Games played by Tomasz Kuszczak in 2017/2018". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 7 May 2018.
  52. "Games played by Tomasz Kuszczak in 2018/2019". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 2 June 2019.
  53. "Tomasz Kuszczak". National Football Teams. Benjamin Strack-Zimmerman. Retrieved 2 July 2015.
  54. "Tomasz Kuszczak: Overview". Premier League. Retrieved 17 April 2018.
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