Michael Laudrup is a Danish professional football coach and former player.
70 Facts About Michael Laudrup
2.
Michael Laudrup is considered to be one of the greatest players of all time.
3.
Michael Laudrup is the older brother of fellow retired footballer Brian Laudrup.
4.
Michael Laudrup was a member of Johan Cruyff's "Dream Team" at Barcelona, where he won nine trophies, including four successive La Liga titles from 1991 to 1994 and the European Cup in 1992.
5.
Michael Laudrup moved to arch-rivals Real Madrid in 1994, with whom he won his fifth La Liga title in a row.
6.
Michael Laudrup made his debut for the Denmark national team on his 18th birthday in 1982, and scored 37 goals in 104 appearances.
7.
Michael Laudrup starred in the 1986 FIFA World Cup, and from November 1994, he captained Denmark for a total of 28 matches, including the victorious 1995 Confederations Cup tournament.
8.
Michael Laudrup played alongside his brother Brian in the Denmark team that reached the quarter-finals of the 1998 World Cup, and retired as an active player after the tournament.
9.
In 1999, Michael Laudrup was voted the Best Foreign Player in Spanish Football over the preceding 25-year period and in April 2000 he was knighted, receiving the Order of the Dannebrog.
10.
Michael Laudrup was officially named the best Danish footballer of all time by the Danish Football Union in November 2006.
11.
Michael Laudrup was named by Pele in the FIFA 100 list of the world's greatest living players at a FIFA awards ceremony in 2004.
12.
On 16 October 2021, at a show celebrating the National Olympic Committee and Sports Confederation of Denmark's 125th anniversary, 125 candidates for the title of the greatest ever Danish sports star had been reduced to eight, and Michael Laudrup was named the winner.
13.
Michael Laudrup took over as coach of Getafe and had notable success there.
14.
Michael Laudrup brought the club comparative success in the Copa del Rey and UEFA Cup, and the team's attacking style received plaudits.
15.
On 15 June 2012, Michael Laudrup was appointed the manager of Premier League club Swansea City on a two-year contract.
16.
Michael Laudrup then managed Qatari clubs Lekhwiya and Al Rayyan between 2014 and 2018.
17.
Michael Laudrup made his senior debut playing for KB in 1981, and made his debut for the Danish under-19 national team in February 1981.
18.
Michael Laudrup scored 15 league goals in 1982, and ended the season as the third top goal scorer of the 1st Division.
19.
Michael Laudrup's accomplishments earned him the 1982 Danish Player of the Year award.
20.
Michael Laudrup was due to sign for Liverpool the same year on a three-year contract, but at the last minute, Liverpool proposed a four-year contract and Laudrup opted not to sign.
21.
Michael Laudrup returned to Juventus in summer 1985 to replace Zbigniew Boniek, playing alongside Michel Platini.
22.
However, the following season was not a success for Michael Laudrup, who suffered multiple injuries.
23.
When Platini retired in 1987, Michael Laudrup was expected to lead the team in his place, playing alongside newly bought Welsh forward Ian Rush.
24.
Immediately, Michael Laudrup enjoyed major success under Cruyff's leadership, citing the Dutchman's philosophy and perception of the game as one of the main assets that helped foster his talent.
25.
Michael Laudrup was one of the restricted three foreign players allowed in the team, alongside Dutch defender Ronald Koeman and Bulgarian striker Hristo Stoichkov, who were the pillars of the Barca "Dream Team", along with rising stars Pep Guardiola, Jose Mari Bakero, and Txiki Begiristain.
26.
Michael Laudrup was twice named the best player of the year in Spain during his Barcelona years.
27.
Michael Laudrup's departure from Barcelona was a huge blow for the fans and his teammates alike.
28.
In 1994, Michael Laudrup completed a controversial move from Barca to Real Madrid after he fell out with Johan Cruyff.
29.
On this, Michael Laudrup stated he did not have a hidden agenda.
30.
Michael Laudrup went on to guide Real Madrid in a championship-winning season that would end the Barca stranglehold, making him the only player ever to win the Spanish league five times in a row playing for two different clubs.
31.
In 1996, Michael Laudrup left Real Madrid to play for Vissel Kobe in Japan.
32.
Michael Laudrup helped Vissel to promotion from the second-tier Japan Football League to the J1 League.
33.
Michael Laudrup was registered as a player in Bosnian Premier League club Celik Zenica in a controversial signing in which he did not play any games for Celik, but was signed as a player.
34.
Michael Laudrup was a part of the disappointing Denmark squad at Euro 1988, though Laudrup experienced personal success, scoring one of Denmark's two goals.
35.
Notwithstanding their qualification, Michael Laudrup rated Denmark's chances of success so low he stayed on holiday.
36.
Michael Laudrup returned to Nielsen's Danish squad in August 1993, but saw Spain and the Republic of Ireland qualify for the 1994 World Cup ahead of Denmark.
37.
Michael Laudrup scored four goals in ten matches as Denmark qualified for Euro 1996.
38.
Michael Laudrup is considered by many in the sport as one of the best passers of all time, and as one of the most technically accomplished players ever.
39.
Michael Laudrup lifted the ball right over the defence and Romario touched it in first time.
40.
At Barcelona, Michael Laudrup played alongside Hristo Stoichkov, who scored many goals from Michael Laudrup's passes.
41.
Michael Laudrup couldn't take it anymore so he left without a word.
42.
Michael Laudrup had all the abilities to reach it but lacked this ghetto-instinct, which could have driven him there.
43.
Michael Laudrup's success led him to being voted and awarded the Danish Manager of the Year.
44.
Michael Laudrup was associated with several new jobs, including becoming manager of former club Real Madrid and that he would replace Lars Lagerback as head coach of the Sweden national team.
45.
Michael Laudrup's success led him to being voted and awarded the Danish Manager of the Year.
46.
On 21 June 2007, Michael Laudrup was linked to a move to Madrid-based La Liga club Getafe by sports newspaper Marca.
47.
Michael Laudrup almost got the job at Panathinaikos, but according to Danish media, he wanted an option to allow him to leave if he received an offer from a Spanish club.
48.
On 12 September 2008, it was officially announced that Michael Laudrup had signed a one-and-a-half-year contract to manage Spartak Moscow, replacing Stanislav Cherchesov following his dismissal after a string of poor results.
49.
However, Michael Laudrup started on a poor note, winning just one of his first four league matches.
50.
In July 2010, Michael Laudrup was appointed manager of Mallorca on a contract lasting until the end of June 2012.
51.
Michael Laudrup cited great frustration with Lorenzo Serra Ferrer, the club's director of football, leading to a bad work climate as the main reason for his resignation.
52.
On 15 June 2012, Michael Laudrup was appointed manager of Swansea City on a two-year contract, becoming the first Dane to manage in the Premier League.
53.
Michael Laudrup made several new signings after arriving at Liberty Stadium, including Michu, Chico Flores, Pablo Hernandez, Jonathan de Guzman and Ki Sung-yueng.
54.
At Swansea, Alan Tate said that Michael Laudrup was considered to be the best player in training, despite being 48 years old.
55.
Michael Laudrup said it gave him "much more pleasure to see how well" he could do where he did not "have to win all the time".
56.
On 8 March 2013, Michael Laudrup signed a new contract with Swansea, keeping him at the club until 2015.
57.
On 4 February 2014, Michael Laudrup was sacked by Swansea following a poor run of form which left the club two points clear of relegation.
58.
On 30 June 2014, Michael Laudrup became the new manager of Qatar Stars League champions Lekhwiya after signing a one-year deal.
59.
Michael Laudrup guided the Lekhwiya to a club-record Qatar Stars League and a Crown Prince Cup double in his first season.
60.
On 17 June 2015, Michael Laudrup announced that he would not extend his contract, departing the club.
61.
On 3 October 2016, Michael Laudrup was unveiled as the new manager of Al Rayyan on a two-year contract, replacing Jorge Fossati.
62.
Michael Laudrup continued to employ a similar tactical style when he joined Getafe, ushering a new brand of exciting and free-flowing attacking football to help the club to the Copa del Rey final.
63.
Michael Laudrup signed a number of new players, primarily from La Liga, trying to bring the attacking style from Spain to Wales, which saw more goals scored.
64.
Michael Laudrup is part of a family with three generations of footballers.
65.
Michael Laudrup is the son of former Danish national team player Finn Laudrup.
66.
Michael Laudrup has a younger brother, Brian Laudrup, who was a footballer.
67.
Brian Michael Laudrup is the record holder of Danish player of the year awards with four, and was rated by FIFA as the fifth-best player in the world in 1992.
68.
Brian Michael Laudrup was in the Euro 1992 Team of the Tournament and World Cup 98 Team of the Tournament.
69.
In 2004, both the Michael Laudrup brothers were named in the FIFA 100, a list of the 125 greatest living footballers chosen by Pele as part of the celebration of FIFA's 100th anniversary.
70.
Alongside his professional football career, Michael Laudrup began importing Spanish wine to Denmark starting in 1993.