Philipp Degen
Encyclopedia
Philipp Degen in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
) is a Swiss footballer. Degen is usually a right back but can also play at left back or on the right wing. Degen reached the last 16 in the 2006 World Cup
2006 FIFA World Cup
The 2006 FIFA World Cup was the 18th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international football world championship tournament. It was held from 9 June to 9 July 2006 in Germany, which won the right to host the event in July 2000. Teams representing 198 national football associations from all six...
with the Switzerland
Switzerland national football team
The Swiss national football team is the national football team of Switzerland...
and was selected again for Euro 2008 but did not play any games.
He began his professional career at the local Swiss club FC Basel
FC Basel
Fussball Club Basel 1893, widely known as FC Basel is a Swiss football club based in Basel. They are one of the most successful clubs in Swiss football, having won the Swiss Super League 14 times, the third most for any Swiss club. They were most successful in the late 1960s and 1970s, winning the...
, playing four seasons in the first team before moving to Borussia Dortmund
Borussia Dortmund
Ballspielverein Borussia Dortmund, commonly BVB, are a German sports club based in Dortmund, North Rhine-Westphalia. Dortmund are one of the most successful clubs in German football history. Borussia Dortmund play in the Bundesliga, the top league of German football...
. He spent three years at the German club, his last season being marred by injury. Degen signed for Liverpool on a free transfer on 3 July 2008, his stay at Liverpool was also blemished by many injuries. His Liverpool contract was terminated by mutual consent on 31 August 2011 and he returned to Basel.
Basel
Degen made the transition to professional football in 1995, signing for the Swiss team FC BaselFC Basel
Fussball Club Basel 1893, widely known as FC Basel is a Swiss football club based in Basel. They are one of the most successful clubs in Swiss football, having won the Swiss Super League 14 times, the third most for any Swiss club. They were most successful in the late 1960s and 1970s, winning the...
. He spent five seasons in the youth team before making his first team debut in 2001. In the first four seasons of his senior career Degen made 82 Basel first team appearances in the Swiss Football League
Swiss Football League
The Swiss Football League is organised in several leagues.-Proposed system from 2012-13 season onwards:-External links:* * * * *...
scoring four goals. Over this four year period he claimed three league titles and one domestic cup with Basel, managed by Christian Gross
Christian Gross
Christian Gross is a professional football coach and former player who currently manages Young Boys Bern. Before that he managed VfB Stuttgart until his dismissal in October 2010. He was manager of FC Basel from 1 July 1999 to 27 May 2009.-Playing career:Gross began his playing career at...
.
Aarau
Philipp Degen spent the 2002–03 season out on loan to FC AarauFC Aarau
FC Aarau is a Swiss football club, based in Aarau. They play in the Swiss Challenge League.-History:FC Aarau was formed on 26 May 1902 by workers from a local brewery. The early days of the club were a success and they won the Swiss championship in 1911/12 and then again in 1913/14...
making 16 appearances and playing in the same team as his twin brother
Twin
A twin is one of two offspring produced in the same pregnancy. Twins can either be monozygotic , meaning that they develop from one zygote that splits and forms two embryos, or dizygotic because they develop from two separate eggs that are fertilized by two separate sperm.In contrast, a fetus...
, David
David Degen
David Degen is a Swiss footballer currently playing for BSC Young Boys, mostly as a right midfielder, in the Swiss Super League. He is half Dutch as his mother is from the Netherlands...
.
Borussia Dortmund
Degen was then signed by Borussia DortmundBorussia Dortmund
Ballspielverein Borussia Dortmund, commonly BVB, are a German sports club based in Dortmund, North Rhine-Westphalia. Dortmund are one of the most successful clubs in German football history. Borussia Dortmund play in the Bundesliga, the top league of German football...
of the German Bundesliga and in three seasons at the club he made 68 first team appearances, scoring 1 goal. Degen's last season at Dortmund the 2007–08 season was marred by injury as he only made 16 first team appearances.
Liverpool
On 3 July 2008, Degen signed a 4 year contract with LiverpoolLiverpool F.C.
Liverpool Football Club is an English Premier League football club based in Liverpool, Merseyside. Liverpool has won eighteen League titles, second most in English football, seven FA Cups and a record seven League Cups...
after a bosman free transfer
Bosman ruling
Union Royale Belge des Sociétés de Football Association ASBL v Jean-Marc Bosman is a 1995 European Court of Justice decision concerning freedom of movement for workers, freedom of association, and direct effect of article 39 of the EC Treaty...
. Liverpool manager
Football Manager
Football Manager is a series of football management simulation games developed by Sports Interactive and published by Sega. The game began its life in 1992 as Championship Manager; however, following the break-up of their partnership with original publishers Eidos Interactive, Sports Interactive...
Rafael Benítez
Rafael Benítez
Rafael "Rafa" Benítez Maudes is a football manager, and former player. He is currently unemployed, after leaving as manager of Internazionale in December 2010....
described him as "an offensive player with great energy and a winning mentality. His strength is going forward and I am confident he will be prove to be a quality addition to our squad." On his move to Liverpool, Degen said
Degen made his Liverpool debut on 12 July 2008 as a half-time substitute in a friendly against Tranmere Rovers
Tranmere Rovers F.C.
Tranmere Rovers Football Club are an English team based in Birkenhead, Wirral. The club currently compete in League One, the third tier of the English football league system...
which they won 1–0.
Degen made his competitive Liverpool debut in the third round of the Football League Cup
Football League Cup
The Football League Cup, commonly known as the League Cup or, from current sponsorship, the Carling Cup, is an English association football competition. Like the FA Cup, it is played on a knockout basis...
in the 2–1 home win against Crewe Alexandra
Crewe Alexandra F.C.
Crewe Alexandra Football Club is an English professional football club based in Crewe, Cheshire. Nicknamed The Railwaymen due to the town's links with the rail industry, they currently play in Football League Two, the fourth tier of English football, and are based at the Alexandra Stadium.The club...
, during which he broke two of his ribs and punctured his lung in a collision with team-mate Sami Hyypiä
Sami Hyypiä
Sami Tuomas Hyypiä is a retired European Cup winning Finnish footballer who played in the centre back position. He last played for German Bundesliga side Bayer 04 Leverkusen and was the captain of the Finland national football team. He joined Leverkusen in summer 2009, ending a ten year spell at...
and was out for two months.
On Wednesday, 12 November 2008 he made his first-team comeback in the 4–2 Carling Cup defeat at Spurs, only to suffer a broken metatarsal. Degen was quoted after the game. "This is the worst thing that has ever happened to me," … "I simply burst into tears in the dressing-room. Tottenham's Gareth Bale
Gareth Bale
Gareth Frank Bale is a Welsh footballer who plays for English Premier League club Tottenham Hotspur and the Wales national team. Bale began his professional career with Southampton in 2005 and was transferred to Tottenham two years later...
made a bad challenge on me, and I did not even get a penalty. But the bone in my foot is torn apart, and I will be out another four to six weeks. It is the saddest event of my life – I keep asking myself if I did something wrong in a past life."
In January 2009 Degen suffered another metatarsal injury after scoring in a 2–2 draw with Manchester United reserves. On 9 May 2009, he returned to the Liverpool first team as an unused substitute in Liverpool's 3–0 victory against West Ham
West Ham United F.C.
West Ham United Football Club is an English professional football club based in Upton Park, Newham, East London. They play in The Football League Championship. The club was founded in 1895 as Thames Ironworks FC and reformed in 1900 as West Ham United. In 1904 the club relocated to their current...
at Upton Park
Boleyn Ground
The Boleyn Ground, more commonly referred to as Upton Park due to its location in Upton Park, London is the football stadium of West Ham United.-History:...
.
After 14 months into his Anfield career, Degen made his league debut in the 4–0 win over Burnley
Burnley
Burnley is a market town in the Burnley borough of Lancashire, England, with a population of around 73,500. It lies north of Manchester and east of Preston, at the confluence of the River Calder and River Brun....
on 12 September 2009, coming on as a substitute for Glen Johnson at the hour mark.
On 22 September 2009, Degen started in Liverpool's 1–0 Carling Cup win against Leeds United at Elland Road
Elland Road
Elland Road is an all-seater football stadium in Beeston, Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It has been the permanent residence of Leeds United A.F.C...
. In the next round of the same competition, he started against Arsenal in a 2–1 defeat for Liverpool. Degen got his first Premier League start in an away match against Fulham FC on 31 October 2009, in place of the injured Glen Johnson. He was subsequently sent off for a foul on Clint Dempsey
Clint Dempsey
Clinton Drew "Clint" Dempsey is an American soccer player who plays for Fulham and the United States national team. Dempsey usually plays as either an attacking midfielder, or a striker....
in the 79th minute of the 3–1 defeat. Following another injury to Glen Johnson, Degen featured more in the Liverpool team, both at right back and on the right of midfield. After a 2–0 defeat of Tottenham Hotspur, Degen expressed his pleasure with the win and his performance, saying "I think I can improve a lot. I haven't had the best of luck with injuries during my time with Liverpool and I know there is still more to come from me. I have only played at around 60 per cent of my potential and hope I can show much, much more.". On 10 February 2010, Degen started the game against Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium. On 19 April 2010, Degen played the last 13 minutes of the home 3–0 win versus West Ham United at Anfield
Anfield
Anfield is an association football stadium in the district of Anfield, Liverpool, England, with a seating capacity of 45,522. It has been the home of Liverpool F.C. since their formation in 1892 and was originally the home of Everton F.C. from 1884 to 1892, before they moved to Goodison Park...
.
Stuttgart
On 21 July 2010, Liverpool manager Roy HodgsonRoy Hodgson
Roy Hodgson is a former English footballer and current head coach of West Bromwich Albion.Hodgson, who has managed sixteen different teams in eight countries, guided the Switzerland national team to the last 16 of the 1994 World Cup and qualification for Euro 1996; Switzerland had not qualified...
announced that Degen was free to look for a new club after a meeting between the pair and on 8 August 2010 it was announced that Degen was loaned out to VfB Stuttgart
VfB Stuttgart
Verein für Bewegungsspiele Stuttgart 1893 e. V., commonly known as VfB Stuttgart, is a German sports club based in Stuttgart, Baden-Württemberg. The club is best known for its football team, which has participated in all but two Bundesliga seasons...
until the end of the season. He made just 5 appearance for Stuttgart.
Basel
On 31 August 2011, Liverpool announced the release of Degen. Just a short time later, he made the request to the then Basel manager Thorsten FinkThorsten Fink
Thorsten Fink is a German football coach and former player, currently manager of Bundesliga club Hamburger SV.-Career:...
if he could keep fit with his home clubs first team. Fink left the club in October 2011 and the new manager Heiko Vogel
Heiko Vogel
Heiko Vogel is a German football manager. Presently he is manager of the Swiss Swiss Super League club FC Basel.- Activ Career :...
offered him a contact on 20 November 2011. Following his return he played his first game in the 2011 Swiss Cup
2011–12 Swiss Cup
The 2011–12 Swiss Cup is the 87th season of Switzerland's annual football cup competition. It will begin on 16 September 2011 with the first games of Round 1 and will end in May 2012 with the Final. The winners of the competition will qualify for the third qualifying round of the 2012–13 UEFA...
match against FC Wil
FC Wil
FC Wil, also known as FC Wil 1900, is a Swiss football club, playing in the town of Wil, Canton St. Gallen in the east of Switzerland. The club was founded in 1900, hence the name....
. He scored the equaliser to 2:2 as Basel won 3:2 aet.
International career
Degen played for the Swiss teamSwitzerland national football team
The Swiss national football team is the national football team of Switzerland...
in the 2006 FIFA World Cup
2006 FIFA World Cup
The 2006 FIFA World Cup was the 18th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international football world championship tournament. It was held from 9 June to 9 July 2006 in Germany, which won the right to host the event in July 2000. Teams representing 198 national football associations from all six...
, until they were knocked out on penalties by Ukraine
Ukraine national football team
The Ukraine national football team is the national football team of Ukraine and is controlled by the Football Federation of Ukraine. After Ukrainian Independence and breakaway from the Soviet Union, they played their first match against Hungary on 29 April 1992...
in the last 16. Despite having been injured for much of the season, Degen formed part of the Swiss squad for the UEFA Euro 2008 tournament. However, the host nation were knocked out in the group stage of the tournament and Degen did not make any appearances. He has not been called-up to the team since Ottmar Hitzfeld
Ottmar Hitzfeld
Ottmar Hitzfeld is a German former football player and manager, nicknamed der General ....
took over as the new manager due to his preference to play younger players like Stephan Lichtsteiner
Stephan Lichtsteiner
Stephan Lichtsteiner is a Swiss footballer, currently playing for Juventus and the Swiss national team. He is known for his runs down the right flank when on the counterattack, hence his nickname "Forrest Gump"...
and Valon Behrami
Valon Behrami
Valon Behrami is a Swiss footballer of Albanian descent who plays for Fiorentina in the Italian Serie A, as well as the Swiss national team.-Early life:Behrami was born in Titova Mitrovica, Yugoslavia to Albanian parents...
.
Personal life
His twinTwin
A twin is one of two offspring produced in the same pregnancy. Twins can either be monozygotic , meaning that they develop from one zygote that splits and forms two embryos, or dizygotic because they develop from two separate eggs that are fertilized by two separate sperm.In contrast, a fetus...
brother, David
David Degen
David Degen is a Swiss footballer currently playing for BSC Young Boys, mostly as a right midfielder, in the Swiss Super League. He is half Dutch as his mother is from the Netherlands...
, is also a footballer and plays for BSC Young Boys
BSC Young Boys
Berner Sport Club Young Boys 1898 is a Swiss sporting club based in the capital city of Bern. The name is often abbreviated to YB . Abroad, YB is often referred to as Young Boys Bern. The club's colors are yellow and black....
.
Statistics
| Club | Season | Swiss Super League Swiss Super League The Swiss Super League or Axpo Super League is the top tier of the Swiss Football League. The Swiss Super League is currently ranked 16th according to UEFA's ranking of league coefficients, which is based upon Swiss team performances in European competitions.-Names:-Participating clubs:The teams... |
Swiss Cup | -- | Europe UEFA The Union of European Football Associations , almost always referred to by its acronym UEFA is the administrative and controlling body for European association football, futsal and beach soccer.... |
Total | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| App | Goals | App | Goals | App | Goals | App | Goals | App | Goals | ||
| FC Basel FC Basel Fussball Club Basel 1893, widely known as FC Basel is a Swiss football club based in Basel. They are one of the most successful clubs in Swiss football, having won the Swiss Super League 14 times, the third most for any Swiss club. They were most successful in the late 1960s and 1970s, winning the... |
2001–02 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | ||||
| 2002–03 | 16 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |||||||
| FC Aarau FC Aarau FC Aarau is a Swiss football club, based in Aarau. They play in the Swiss Challenge League.-History:FC Aarau was formed on 26 May 1902 by workers from a local brewery. The early days of the club were a success and they won the Swiss championship in 1911/12 and then again in 1913/14... (on loan) |
2002–03 | 16 | 0 | - | - | ||||||
| FC Basel FC Basel Fussball Club Basel 1893, widely known as FC Basel is a Swiss football club based in Basel. They are one of the most successful clubs in Swiss football, having won the Swiss Super League 14 times, the third most for any Swiss club. They were most successful in the late 1960s and 1970s, winning the... |
2003–04 | 32 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 0 | ||||
| 2004–05 | 31 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 10 | 0 | |||||
| Total | 98 | 4 | 7 | 0 | 16 | 0 | 121 | 4 | |||
| Bundesliga Fußball-Bundesliga The Fußball-Bundesliga is a professional association football league in Germany. At the top of Germany's football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. It is contested by 18 teams and operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the 2. Bundesliga... |
DFB Cup DFB-Pokal The DFB-Pokal or DFB Cup is a German knockout football cup competition held annually. 64 teams participate in the competition, including all clubs from the Bundesliga and the 2nd Bundesliga. It is considered the second most important national title in German football after the Bundesliga... |
-- | Europe UEFA The Union of European Football Associations , almost always referred to by its acronym UEFA is the administrative and controlling body for European association football, futsal and beach soccer.... |
Total | |||||||
| Borussia Dortmund Borussia Dortmund Ballspielverein Borussia Dortmund, commonly BVB, are a German sports club based in Dortmund, North Rhine-Westphalia. Dortmund are one of the most successful clubs in German football history. Borussia Dortmund play in the Bundesliga, the top league of German football... |
2005–06 | 31 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | ||||
| 2006–07 | 27 | 0 | 2 | 0 | - | - | |||||
| 2007–08 | 10 | 0 | 2 | 0 | - | - | |||||
| Total | 68 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 75 | 1 | |||
| Premier League | FA Cup FA Cup The Football Association Challenge Cup, commonly known as the FA Cup, is a knockout cup competition in English football and is the oldest association football competition in the world. The "FA Cup" is run by and named after The Football Association and usually refers to the English men's... |
League Cup League Cup In association football, a League Cup or Secondary Cup generally signifies a cup competition for which entry is restricted only to teams in a particular league. The first national association football tournament to be called "League Cup" was held in Scotland in 1946/47 and was entitled the Scottish... |
Europe UEFA The Union of European Football Associations , almost always referred to by its acronym UEFA is the administrative and controlling body for European association football, futsal and beach soccer.... |
Total | |||||||
| Liverpool Liverpool F.C. Liverpool Football Club is an English Premier League football club based in Liverpool, Merseyside. Liverpool has won eighteen League titles, second most in English football, seven FA Cups and a record seven League Cups... |
2008–09 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 2009–10 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 0 | |
| Total | 7 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 12 | 0 | |
| Bundesliga Fußball-Bundesliga The Fußball-Bundesliga is a professional association football league in Germany. At the top of Germany's football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. It is contested by 18 teams and operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the 2. Bundesliga... |
DFB Cup DFB-Pokal The DFB-Pokal or DFB Cup is a German knockout football cup competition held annually. 64 teams participate in the competition, including all clubs from the Bundesliga and the 2nd Bundesliga. It is considered the second most important national title in German football after the Bundesliga... |
-- | Europe UEFA The Union of European Football Associations , almost always referred to by its acronym UEFA is the administrative and controlling body for European association football, futsal and beach soccer.... |
Total | |||||||
| Stuttgart Stuttgart Stuttgart is the capital of the state of Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany. The sixth-largest city in Germany, Stuttgart has a population of 600,038 while the metropolitan area has a population of 5.3 million .... |
10–11 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 8 | 0 | ||
| Total | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 8 | 0 | |||
| Career totals | 178 | 5 | 14 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 20 | 0 | 216 | 5 | |
Honours
FC Basel- Swiss National League A/Swiss Super LeagueSwiss Super LeagueThe Swiss Super League or Axpo Super League is the top tier of the Swiss Football League. The Swiss Super League is currently ranked 16th according to UEFA's ranking of league coefficients, which is based upon Swiss team performances in European competitions.-Names:-Participating clubs:The teams...
: 2001–02, 2003–04, 2004–05 - Swiss Cup: 2002–03