Erik Sergiyovych Sviatchenko ( uk, Ерік Сергійович Святченко; born 4 October 1991) is a
Danish
Danish may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to the country of Denmark
People
* A national or citizen of Denmark, also called a "Dane," see Demographics of Denmark
* Culture of Denmark
* Danish people or Danes, people with a Danish a ...
footballer
A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby ...
who plays as a defender and captain of
FC Midtjylland
FC Midtjylland (, "Central Jutland") is a Danish professional football club based in Herning and Ikast in the western part of Jutland. The club is the result of a merger between Ikast FS and Herning Fremad. Midtjylland competes in the Danish Supe ...
.
Club career
FC Midtjylland
Sviatchenko was, during his youth playing years, captain of the
FC Midtjylland
FC Midtjylland (, "Central Jutland") is a Danish professional football club based in Herning and Ikast in the western part of Jutland. The club is the result of a merger between Ikast FS and Herning Fremad. Midtjylland competes in the Danish Supe ...
squad. During his first year as a U/19 player, he and his team finished first in the Danish U/19 league, which was followed up the next season with another first place. In 2009, he was awarded the "Academy Player Of The Year" award, which is given to players who have excelled themselves during their period at the academy.
He has been a starter in almost all of FC Midtjylland's games since his arrival at the club. He missed the
Danish Cup
The Danish Cup ( da, Landspokalturneringen; often referred to as Pokalen) is the official "knockout" cup competition in Danish football, run by the Danish Football Association. The cup has been contested annually since 1955.
The winner will quali ...
final against
FC Nordsjælland
Football Club Nordsjælland, commonly known as FC Nordsjælland, Nordsjælland () or FCN, is a professional Danish football team from the North Zealand town of Farum. Founded as ''Farum Boldklub'' from the merger of the town's two football club ...
in May 2011 and the
UEFA European Under-21 Championship
The UEFA European Under-21 Championship, the UEFA Under-21 Championship or simply the Euro Under-21, is a biennial football competition contested by the European men's under-21 national teams of the UEFA member associations. Since 1992, the comp ...
in Denmark due to a
cruciate ligament
Cruciate ligaments (also cruciform ligaments) are pairs of ligaments arranged like a letter X. They occur in several joints of the body, such as the knee joint and the atlanto-axial joint. In a fashion similar to the cords in a toy Jacob's la ...
injury. In January 2012 he recovered and rejoined the first team in FC Midtjylland and played all the games in the last half of the season. Prior to the season 2013/2014 he was made vice-captain of the first team.
Sviatchenko established himself as a key player for FC Midtjylland, helping them to the Danish title in 2014–15, as well as securing progression to the last 32 stage of the
UEFA Europa League
The UEFA Europa League (abbreviated as UEL, or sometimes, UEFA EL), formerly the UEFA Cup, is an annual football club competition organised since 1971 by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European football clubs. ...
the following season.
Celtic
On 16 January 2016, it was reported that Sviatchenko was in
Glasgow
Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...
undergoing a medical with a view to joining Celtic in a £1.5 million transfer. The transfer was confirmed the following day, with Sviatchenko signing a four-and-a-half year deal with Celtic. Sviatchenko helped Celtic win a domestic treble in 2016–17. He damaged knee ligaments in a 2017–18 UEFA Champions League qualifier against Rosenborg, which prevented him playing for three months.
Return to FC Midtjylland
In January 2018, Sviatchenko returned to
FC Midtjylland
FC Midtjylland (, "Central Jutland") is a Danish professional football club based in Herning and Ikast in the western part of Jutland. The club is the result of a merger between Ikast FS and Herning Fremad. Midtjylland competes in the Danish Supe ...
on loan until the end of the 2017–18 season. That loan move was made permanent on 27 May 2018 for a fee of £1m.
International career
Due to his dual citizenship, Sviatchenko was eligible to play for
Ukraine
Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...
Jores Okore
Tetchi Jores Charlemagne Ulrich Okore (; born 11 August 1992), known as Jores Okore, is a Danish professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for Changchun Yatai.
Okore is considered a capable and aggressive defender, who is known for his ...
. He made his international debut the following day at
NRGi Arena
Ceres Arena (formerly NRGi Arena) is an indoor arena mainly used for handball matches and public events in Aarhus, Denmark. The arena was opened in 2001 and has a capacity of 5,001 spectators (4,394 seats). It is part of the Aarhus Sports Park, w ...
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
in a 3–2 friendly win, in central defence alongside
Simon Kjær
Simon Thorup Kjær (born 26 March 1989) is a Danish professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for club AC Milan and captains the Denmark national team.
He was named 2007 Danish under-19 talent of the year and 2009 Danish Talent of t ...
.
Personal life
His wife, Anne Sviatchenko, is a former professional footballer and has played for
Team Viborg
A team is a group of individuals (human or non-human) working together to achieve their goal.
As defined by Professor Leigh Thompson of the Kellogg School of Management, " team is a group of people who are interdependent with respect to infor ...
's women's team, Skovbakken IK, ASA, Celtic FC and the Denmark national team. Rudmose signed for the Celtic women's team in February 2016, one month after Sviatchenko had joined the men's team.
Career statistics
Club
International
Scores and results table. Denmark's goal tally first:
Honours
FC Midtjylland
*
Danish Superliga
The Danish Superliga ( da, Superligaen, ) is the current Danish football championship tournament, and administered by the Danish Football Association. It is the highest football league in Denmark and is currently contested by 12 teams each ye ...
Danish Cup
The Danish Cup ( da, Landspokalturneringen; often referred to as Pokalen) is the official "knockout" cup competition in Danish football, run by the Danish Football Association. The cup has been contested annually since 1955.
The winner will quali ...
Scottish Premiership
The Scottish Premiership, known as the cinch Premiership for sponsorship reasons, is the top division of the Scottish Professional Football League (SPFL), the league competition for men's professional football clubs in Scotland. The Scottis ...
Scottish Cup
The Scottish Football Association Challenge Cup,2016–17
*
Scottish League Cup
The Scottish League Cup (also known as the Viaplay Cup for sponsorship reasons) is a football competition open to all Scottish Professional Football League (SPFL) clubs. First held in 1946–47, it is the oldest national League Cup in existen ...