Jan Polák

Jan Polák (Czech pronunciation: [ˈjan ˈpolaːk]; born 14 March 1981) is a retired Czech footballer[2] who played as a midfielder.

For the other Czech footballer with the same name, see Jan Polák (footballer, born 1989).
Jan Polák
Polák playing for the Czech national team
Personal information
Full name Jan Polák[1]
Date of birth (1981-03-14) 14 March 1981
Place of birth Brno, Czechoslovakia
Height 1.81 m (5 ft 11 in)
Position(s) Central Midfielder
Youth career
Tatran Bohunice
1991–1998 Zbrojovka Brno
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1998–2002 Zbrojovka Brno 124 (5)
2003–2005 Slovan Liberec 65 (5)
2005–2007 1. FC Nürnberg 62 (4)
2007–2011 Anderlecht 79 (5)
2011–2014 VfL Wolfsburg 73 (2)
2014–2016 1. FC Nürnberg 39 (2)
2016–2018 Zbrojovka Brno 48 (3)
Total 490 (26)
International career
1999–2003 Czech Republic U21 45 (0)
1999–2011 Czech Republic 57 (7)
Medal record
Men's football
Representing  Czech Republic
UEFA European Under-21 Championship
Winner2002 Switzerland
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 20 May 2018

Career

In his younger days he played for FC Zbrojovka Brno and Tatran Bohunice. Formerly a member of the Czech national under-21 side, Polák, alongside players like Petr Čech and Milan Baroš, was a part of the team which won the European Under-21 Football Championship in 2002.[3] He also holds the record for the most appearances for the Czech Republic under-21 team with 45 caps.[4]

In 2005, he was transferred from the Czech First League team FC Slovan Liberec for a fee of €1,500,000 to the Bundesliga side 1. FC Nürnberg. In the same year he played for the first time under Czech national coach Karel Brückner.

On 3 August 2007, Anderlecht bought Polák. He was given number 8. The Czech international reportedly cost €3.5 million and was at the time the second most expensive transfer in Anderlecht's history, as well as one of the highest paid players in Belgian football. He was Anderlecht's box-to-box midfielder playing a crucial role in their 2007–08 Jupiler League season and the 2007–08 UEFA Cup.

Honours

1. FC Nürnberg

Anderlecht

References
  1. "2006 FIFA World Cup Germany: List of Players" (PDF). FIFA. 21 March 2014. p. 8. Archived from the original (PDF) on 10 June 2019.
  2. "Jan Polák". worldfootball.net. Retrieved 27 June 2013.
  3. "European U-21 Championship 2002 - Final Tournament Details". RSSSF. Retrieved 19 April 2022.
  4. "Česko U21 - Historické statistiky - Nejvíce startů". Football Association of the Czech Republic. Retrieved 15 June 2023.

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