Kristofer Hæstad Explained

Kristofer Hæstad
Full Name:Kristofer Krüger Hæstad[1]
Birth Date:9 December 1983[2]
Birth Place:Kristiansand, Norway
Height:1.72 m
Position:Midfielder
Youthclubs1:Randesund
Youthclubs2:Vigør
Years1:2001–2007
Clubs1:Start
Years2:2007
Years3:2008–2014
Clubs2:Wigan Athletic (loan)
Clubs3:Vålerenga
Caps1:156
Goals1:20
Caps2:2
Goals2:0
Caps3:147
Goals3:9
Nationalyears1:2005–2014
Nationalteam1:Norway
Nationalcaps1:27
Nationalgoals1:1

Kristofer Krüger Hæstad (born 9 December 1983) is a Norwegian former professional footballer who played as a midfielder.

Early life

Hæstad was born in Kristiansand, Agder.[3]

Club career

Early career

Hæstad played for the youth teams of Randesund and Vigør.

Start

He was signed by Start in 2001, and debuted in the Norwegian Premier League in 2002, when the youthful Start squad only made 11 points and were relegated.

After two seasons in the First Division, Start were once again promoted in 2004, with Hæstad as one of the team's central players. Hæstad has continued in great form after the promotion, and was named player of the month by NRK in April 2005.

In July 2006, Hæstad launched a music single This Is For Real together with four other professional Norwegian footballers – Morten Gamst Pedersen, Freddy dos Santos, Raymond Kvisvik, and Øyvind Svenning. They call their band The Players.

On 29 December 2006, it was announced that Premier League club Wigan Athletic had secured Hæstad on six-month loan.[4] The Norwegian newspaper VG would later reveal that it not was a standard loan contract, but an intricate deal that could see Hæstad stay at Wigan until July 2010, if they pick up an option to buy him at the end of the current season.[5] Hæstad made his Premier League debut on 13 January 2007 against Chelsea,[6] but was released from his loan contract at Wigan Athletic by mutual consent on 1 April 2007.[7]

Hæstad made a scoring return for Start on his return to Norway after scoring the fourth goal in a 4–2 victory away to Aalesund.

Vålerenga

On 2 January 2008, Hæstad signed a four-year contract with Vålerenga. On 29 March 2008, Hæstad made his competitive debut for Vålerenga in the season's first game against Aalesund. After a poor first season plagued by injuries, and failing to score a goal, rumors said that he was heading away from the club, most likely back to his former club Start. However, he stayed at Vålerenga and had a great second season. He scored his first goal against Start in a 2–3 loss. He also scored two goals against Lyn which ended 4–4.

Hæstad announced his retirement from professional football on 1 July 2014.

International career

24 May 2005, Hæstad debuted for the national team in a private match against Costa Rica.

Career statistics

Club

ClubSeasonLeagueCupTotal
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Start2001Adeccoligaen810081
2002Tippeligaen25240292
2003Adeccoligaen25020270
2004Adeccoligaen30900309
2005Tippeligaen23341274
2006Tippeligaen22331254
2007Tippeligaen23220252
Wigan Athletic2006–07Premier League201030
Vålerenga2008Tippeligaen21050260
2009Tippeligaen28452336
2010Tippeligaen27300273
2011Tippeligaen24010250
2012Tippeligaen24110251
2013Tippeligaen23140271
2014Tippeligaen002020
Career Total3052934433933

International goals

Honours

Individual

midfielder of the year in 2005

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Kristofer Krüger Hæstad . Norwegian Football Federation . 5 May 2022 . no.
  2. Web site: Kristofer Haestad: Overview . Premier League . 5 May 2022.
  3. Web site: Kristofer Hæstad: Profile . worldfootball.net . HEIM:SPIEL . 5 May 2022.
  4. Source: BBC Sport
  5. Source: VG
  6. Web site: Tactical Formation. Football-Lineups.com. 20 January 2007.
  7. News: Wigan release Norwegian Haestad . BBC Sport . 1 April 2007 . 1 April 2007.