Artur Wichniarek

Artur Mikołaj Wichniarek[2] (Polish pronunciation: [ˈartur vixˈɲarɛk], born 28 February 1977) is a Polish former professional footballer who played as a striker. Having established himself in the Ekstraklasa with Widzew Łódź, Wichniarek moved to Germany in 1999 to join Bundesliga club Arminia Bielefeld. Good performances at Arminia Bielefeld earned him a move to Hertha BSC where he did not become a regular starter. He returned to Arminia Bielefeld in 2006. After three years, he spent another season at Hertha BSC.

Artur Wichniarek
Wichniarek in 2009
Personal information
Date of birth (1977-02-28) 28 February 1977
Place of birth Poznań, Poland
Height 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in)[1]
Position(s) Forward
Youth career
1988–1992 SKS 13 Poznań
Lech Poznań
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1992–1997 Lech Poznań 65 (4)
1996 → Górnik Konin (loan)
1997–1999 Widzew Łódź 57 (28)
1999–2003 Arminia Bielefeld 101 (50)
2003–2006 Hertha BSC 44 (4)
2006–2009 Arminia Bielefeld 111 (33)
2009–2010 Hertha BSC 19 (0)
2010 Lech Poznań 7 (0)
Total 404 (119)
International career
1999–2008 Poland 17 (4)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Career

Early career in Poland

Wichniarek started his professional career at Lech Poznań in 1992–93 season. The following season, he made his Ekstraklasa debut, however, he was not able to secure a place in the starting eleven. In the spring of 1996 was loaned to Polish Second League club Górnik Konin. Upon his return to his home club he managed to win the manager's confidence and in the following 1996–97 season he played 30 times, albeit scoring only four goals. In 1998, Wichniarek joined Widzew Łódź, where he played until 1999, appearing 57 times and scoring 28 goals all together, most of them in the 1998–99 season.

Arminia Bielefeld

His talent drew the attention of Arminia Bielefeld's directors, who brought him to Bielefeld, where he impressed the fans, becoming the club's leading player and best striker. In 2001–02 season he won the title of 2. Bundesliga top scorer, which earned him the nickname King Arthur.[3]

Hertha BSC

Hertha BSC took notice and in 2003 he moved to Olympiastadion, however, he usually appeared only as a sub. After two seasons in Berlin, in the beginning of 2006, with 44 appearances and four goals on his sheet, he moved back to Arminia Bielefeld.[4]

Return to Bielefeld

Wichniarek became one of Arminia's dominant players, scoring 33 goals in three seasons.[5] Wichniarek was named the Bundesliga's Footballer of the Month in August 2008.[6]

Second stint at Hertha

On 3 July 2009, Wichniarek left the newly relegated Arminia Bielefeld and returned to former club Hertha BSC signing a two-year contract. After the relegation of Hertha BSC, Wichniarek was released from his contract on 15 June 2010.

Return to Lech Poznań

Wichniarek signed a one-year contract with first club Lech Poznań on 30 June 2010.[7] His contract was terminated by Lech Poznań on 3 November 2010.

International career

Wichniarek made his first appearance for the Poland national team on 3 March 1999. The fixture was against Armenia where the Poles won 1–0. Wichniarek was not among the manager's favorites and his occasional appearances were usually limited to friendlies. His first international goal was at the expense of the Czech Republic national team on 28 April 1999. All together, he appeared in 17 international matches and four of his shots found their way into the opponents' net.[8] His last significant cap was against Estonia in Tallinn, where he scored one of the two goals for the winners.[9]

International goals
Scores and results list Poland's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Wichniarek goal.[10]
List of international goals scored by Artur Wichniarek
No. Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
128 April 1999Stadion Wojska Polskiego, Warsaw, Poland Czech Republic2–02–1Friendly
29 June 1999Stade Josy Barthel, Luxembourg City, Luxembourg Luxembourg2–03–2UEFA Euro 2000 qualifying
36 June 2003Stadion Poznań, Poznań, Poland Kazakhstan1–03–0Friendly
420 August 2003A. Le Coq Arena, Tallinn, Estonia Estonia2–02–1Friendly

References
  1. "Artur Wichniarek (18)". Hertha BSC. Archived from the original on 22 April 2009. Retrieved 15 December 2009.
  2. "Wichniarek Artur Mikołaj - jaki biznes prowadzi w/g Krajowego Rejestu Sądowego - Baza osób z KRS". www.osoby-krs.pl. Retrieved 16 December 2022.
  3. "König Artur köpft Herthas Traum kaputt". Bild (in German). 6 February 2009. Archived from the original on 8 February 2009. Retrieved 6 February 2009.
  4. "Artur Wichniarek" (in Polish). 90minut.pl. Archived from the original on 12 December 2009. Retrieved 15 December 2009.
  5. Arnhold, Matthias (27 March 2015). "Artur Wichniarek - Matches and Goals in Bundesliga". Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation. Retrieved 30 March 2015.
  6. "Artur auf dem Thron!" (in German). arminia-bielefeld.de. 4 September 2008. Archived from the original on 13 September 2008. Retrieved 5 September 2008.
  7. "Transferowy hit Lecha" (in Polish). onet.pl. 30 June 2010. Archived from the original on 3 July 2010. Retrieved 30 June 2010.
  8. Arnhold, Matthias (27 March 2015). "Artur Wichniarek - International Appearances". Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation. Retrieved 30 March 2015.
  9. "National team profile" (in Polish). PZPN.pl. Archived from the original on 15 March 2009.
  10. "Artur Wichniarek". National Football Teams. Retrieved 23 November 2020.
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