Grzegorz Rasiak (; born 12 January 1979) is a Polish former professional
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 le ...
.
After starting his career in his native Poland, Rasiak moved to England with
Derby County
Derby County Football Club () is a professional association football club based in Derby, Derbyshire, England. In 2022, it was announced that DCFC was acquired by Clowes Developments (UK) Ltd, a Derbyshire-based property group.
Founded in 1884 ...
in 2004. He subsequently had a spell with
Tottenham Hotspur
Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, commonly referred to as Tottenham () or Spurs, is a professional association football, football club based in Tottenham, London, England. It competes in the Premier League, the top flight of English footba ...
before joining
Southampton
Southampton () is a port city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire built-up area, which also covers Po ...
, as well as periods on loan to
Bolton Wanderers
Bolton Wanderers Football Club () is a professional football club based in Horwich, Bolton, Greater Manchester, England, which competes in . The club played at Burnden Park for 102 years from 1895 after moving from their original home at Pike's ...
and
Watford
Watford () is a town and borough in Hertfordshire, England, 15 miles northwest of Central London, on the River Colne.
Initially a small market town, the Grand Junction Canal encouraged the construction of paper-making mills, print works, a ...
, before joining
Reading
Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of Letter (alphabet), letters, symbols, etc., especially by Visual perception, sight or Somatosensory system, touch.
For educators and researchers, reading is a multifaceted process invo ...
in August 2009. He left Reading for the Cypriot club
AEL Limassol
Athlitiki Enosi Lemesou ( el, Αθλητική Ένωση Λεμεσού, translation=Athletic Union of Limassol) commonly known as AEL, is a Cypriot sports club based in the city of Limassol, most famous for its football team.
AEL also maintain ...
in 2010, spending a season there before returning to Poland where he remained until his retirement in 2014.
From 2002 to 2007, he played for the
Poland national team, earning 37 caps, scoring 8 goals and playing at the
2006 FIFA World Cup
The 2006 FIFA World Cup, also branded as Germany 2006, 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 had won the right to host the ...
.
Club career
Poland
Rasiak was born in
Szczecin
Szczecin (, , german: Stettin ; sv, Stettin ; Latin: ''Sedinum'' or ''Stetinum'') is the capital and largest city of the West Pomeranian Voivodeship in northwestern Poland. Located near the Baltic Sea and the German border, it is a major s ...
.
In the 1996–97 season Rasiak joined second division side
Warta Poznań where he spent two seasons. In 1998, he moved to First Division side
GKS Bełchatów
GKS Bełchatów is a Polish professional football club based in Bełchatów that currently plays in the IV liga.
History
GKS Bełchatów entered Poland's Klasa A in 1977 under the name of Węgiel Brunatny Bełchatów, and gained promotion to ...
, before moving to
Odra Wodzisław Odra may refer to:
Rivers
* Odra (Poland), also known as Oder, a river in Czech Republic, Poland and Germany
* Odra (Kupa), a river in Croatia
* Odra (Spain), a river in Spain
Populated places
* Odra, Silesian Voivodeship, a village in south ...
for the 2000–01 season. The next season, he moved to the club where he first achieved a level of success,
Dyskobolia Grodzisk Wielkopolski
Dyskobolia Grodzisk Wielkopolski (), previously Groclin Grodzisk Wielkopolski, was a Polish football club based in Grodzisk Wielkopolski, Greater Poland Voivodeship.
History
Dyskobolia Grodzisk Wielkopolski was founded on 30 April 1922. Its lo ...
. In three seasons at Dyskobolia he played in 66 league matches, scoring 34 goals, forming a partnership in 2003–04 with
Andrzej Niedzielan
Andrzej Niedzielan (; born 27 February 1979) is a Polish former professional association football, footballer who played as a Striker (association football), striker.
Club career
Born in Żary, Niedzielan began his career began in 1997, when h ...
. His time at Dyskobolia Grodzisk Wielkopolski was when Rasiak made a breakthrough. For three seasons playing in Grodzisk played 66 matches, scoring a total of 34 goals. He worked with
Andrzej Niedzielan
Andrzej Niedzielan (; born 27 February 1979) is a Polish former professional association football, footballer who played as a Striker (association football), striker.
Club career
Born in Żary, Niedzielan began his career began in 1997, when h ...
and few attackers.
In 2004, he was recruited by Italian club
AC Siena
Associazione Calcio Robur Siena 1904, commonly referred to as Siena, is an Italian football club based in Siena, Tuscany. The club was re-incorporated in 2020 after the bankruptcy of the previous legal entity Robur Siena, which itself was the r ...
. It then emerged that he was unable to play for the club, as they had exceeded their limit of foreign players.
Derby County
Rasiak joined
Championship
In sport, a championship is a competition in which the aim is to decide which individual or team is the champion.
Championship systems
Various forms of competition can be referred to by the term championship.
Title match system
In this system ...
side
Derby County
Derby County Football Club () is a professional association football club based in Derby, Derbyshire, England. In 2022, it was announced that DCFC was acquired by Clowes Developments (UK) Ltd, a Derbyshire-based property group.
Founded in 1884 ...
on 24 September 2004 for a free transfer. In his
first season with the club he scored 16 goals in 35 matches, as Derby finished in fourth place, but failed to get through the play-offs.
After failing to gain promotion, the club were under financial pressure and were forced by their bankers to raise cash, which led to Rasiak being sold to
Premier League
The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Foo ...
side
Tottenham Hotspur
Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, commonly referred to as Tottenham () or Spurs, is a professional association football, football club based in Tottenham, London, England. It competes in the Premier League, the top flight of English footba ...
for a fee said to be up to £3 million.
Tottenham Hotspur
Rasiak signed on 31 August 2005, the final day of the
transfer window
A transfer window is the period during the year in which a football club can transfer players from other playing staff into their playing staff. Such a transfer is completed by registering the player into the new club through FIFA. "Transfer win ...
. On his arrival, manager
Martin Jol
Maarten Cornelis "Martin" Jol (born 16 January 1956) is a Dutch football manager and former midfielder. He played over 400 games during his career which included spells in the Netherlands, Germany, and England, as well as earning three caps wit ...
described Rasiak as "a tall target man, a hard-working, honest player with a good goal scoring record." Rasiak's time at
White Hart Lane
White Hart Lane was a Association football, football stadium in Tottenham, North London and the home of Tottenham Hotspur F.C., Tottenham Hotspur Football Club from 1899 to 2017. Its capacity varied over the years; when changed to all-seater i ...
was marred by a lack of first team opportunities.
Southampton
In February 2006, Rasiak was loaned from Spurs to Championship side
Southampton
Southampton () is a port city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire built-up area, which also covers Po ...
, where his former Derby manager
George Burley
George Elder Burley (born 3 June 1956) is a Scottish former football player and manager. He had a professional career spanning 21 years as a player, making 628 league appearances and earning 11 Scotland caps. His most successful spell came whi ...
was now in charge. The deal was structured initially as a three-month loan, before becoming permanent in early May 2006, with Rasiak joining Southampton for a fee of £2 million.
In the
2006–07 season he had a strong start, scoring 17 league goals by mid-January, with a further two goals in the
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football competi ...
. This included four braces in the league and one in the FA Cup, all in away matches. After mid-January he lost his place in the starting eleven to fellow countryman
Marek Saganowski
Marek Mirosław Saganowski (; born 31 October 1978) is a Polish professional football manager and former player who played as a striker, currently in charge of II liga club Pogoń Siedlce.
In a much-travelled career, he represented clubs in ...
, but finished the season as the club's top goalscorer with 21 goals.
Bolton Wanderers
On 31 January 2008, Rasiak secured a loan move to
Bolton Wanderers
Bolton Wanderers Football Club () is a professional football club based in Horwich, Bolton, Greater Manchester, England, which competes in . The club played at Burnden Park for 102 years from 1895 after moving from their original home at Pike's ...
until the end of the season after
Gary Megson
Gary John Megson (born 2 May 1959) is an English former football player and manager.
He has previously managed Norwich City, Blackpool, Stockport County, Stoke City, West Bromwich Albion, Nottingham Forest, Leicester City, Bolton Wanderers ...
decided to bolster his attacking options after the departure of
Nicolas Anelka
Nicolas Sébastien Anelka (; born 14 March 1979) is a French professional Manager (association football), football manager and retired Football player, player who played as a Forward (association football), forward. As a player, he regularly fe ...
to
Chelsea
Chelsea or Chelsey may refer to:
Places Australia
* Chelsea, Victoria
Canada
* Chelsea, Nova Scotia
* Chelsea, Quebec
United Kingdom
* Chelsea, London, an area of London, bounded to the south by the River Thames
** Chelsea (UK Parliament consti ...
. Following his loan move Rasiak admitted it was not an easy decision to join Bolton Wanderers, but that he intended to be part of the Poland squad for
UEFA Euro 2008
The 2008 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as UEFA Euro 2008 or simply Euro 2008, was the 13th UEFA European Championship, a quadrennial football tournament contested by the member nations of UEFA (the Union of European ...
. On 9 February 2008, Rasiak made his first appearance for Bolton when he came on as a substitute for
El Hadji Diouf
El Hadji Ousseynou Diouf (; born 15 January 1981) is a Senegalese former professional footballer. Throughout his career, Diouf played as a winger or a forward.
Having started his professional football career in France with Sochaux, Rennes an ...
in a defeat to
Portsmouth
Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council.
Portsmouth is the most dens ...
at the
Reebok Stadium
The University of Bolton Stadium is the home ground of Bolton Wanderers F.C. in Horwich, Greater Manchester, England.
Opening in 1997, it was named the Reebok Stadium, after club sponsors Reebok. In 2014, Bolton Wanderers signed a naming righ ...
. His second appearance came during the second half of Bolton's local derby against
Blackburn Rovers
Blackburn Rovers Football Club is a professional football club, based in Blackburn, Lancashire, England, which competes in the , the second tier of the English football league system. They have played home matches at Ewood Park since 1890. T ...
at
Ewood Park
Ewood Park () is a football stadium in Blackburn, Lancashire, England, and the home of Blackburn Rovers F.C., founding members of the Football League and Premier League, who have played there since 1890. It is an all seater multi-sports facili ...
where he scored within a couple of minutes of his introduction from the substitutes bench, only for the linesman to rule the goal out for offside. Rasiak went on to make 7 appearances for Bolton Wanderers and Megson decided not to take him up on a permanent basis.
Watford
On 15 August 2008 Rasiak signed on loan with fellow Championship side
Watford
Watford () is a town and borough in Hertfordshire, England, 15 miles northwest of Central London, on the River Colne.
Initially a small market town, the Grand Junction Canal encouraged the construction of paper-making mills, print works, a ...
until the end of the
2008–09 season, with the option of a permanent transfer. He made his debut on 16 August 2008 against
Charlton Athletic
Charlton Athletic Football Club is an English professional football club based in Charlton, south-east London, which compete in . Their home ground is The Valley, where the club have played since 1919. They have also played at The Mount in C ...
, coming on as a substitute for
Tamás Priskin on 65 minutes. He scored his first goal for the club in a 3–2 defeat at home to Wolverhampton Wanderers on 25 October 2008.
In January 2009, Rasiak scored in FA Cup matches against
Scunthorpe United
Scunthorpe United Football Club is a professional association football club based in the town of Scunthorpe, Lincolnshire, England. The side currently competes in the National League, the fifth tier of the English football league system. The tea ...
and
Crystal Palace
Crystal Palace may refer to:
Places Canada
* Crystal Palace Complex (Dieppe), a former amusement park now a shopping complex in Dieppe, New Brunswick
* Crystal Palace Barracks, London, Ontario
* Crystal Palace (Montreal), an exhibition building ...
to help set up an unexpected fifth round tie against
Chelsea
Chelsea or Chelsey may refer to:
Places Australia
* Chelsea, Victoria
Canada
* Chelsea, Nova Scotia
* Chelsea, Quebec
United Kingdom
* Chelsea, London, an area of London, bounded to the south by the River Thames
** Chelsea (UK Parliament consti ...
.
He was ruled out for a month after picking up an injury against Nottingham Forest in March which was a blow to Watford as Raziak appeared to be forging an unbeatable partnership with Priskin. Both strikers got on the scoresheet in both of Watford's wins against
Charlton Athletic
Charlton Athletic Football Club is an English professional football club based in Charlton, south-east London, which compete in . Their home ground is The Valley, where the club have played since 1919. They have also played at The Mount in C ...
and
Nottingham Forest
Nottingham Forest Football Club is an association football club based in West Bridgford, Nottinghamshire, England. Nottingham Forest was founded in 1865 and have been playing their home games at the City Ground, on the banks of the River Tren ...
(the same match in which Rasiak got injured) that took place within three days of each other in March 2009.
In May 2009, Watford opened negotiations with Southampton to sign Rasiak permanently, but the clubs were unable to agree on a fee with Watford unable to afford to sign him.
Reading
After making four appearances for the "Saints" in August 2009, he joined
Reading
Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of Letter (alphabet), letters, symbols, etc., especially by Visual perception, sight or Somatosensory system, touch.
For educators and researchers, reading is a multifaceted process invo ...
on 27 August for an undisclosed fee, signing a two-year contract. He scored his first goal for Reading in a 1–1 draw with his former club Watford on 26 September 2009. He scored his second and third goals in a 3–1 win over
Coventry City
Coventry City Football Club is a professional association football club based in Coventry, West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. The team currently compete in the EFL Championship, Championship, the second tier of the English footbal ...
, scoring after 31 seconds and then scoring his second of the game in the second half. However, Rasiak failed to hold down a regular first-team spot under then manager
Brian McDermott.
AEL Limassol
Rasiak was given a
free transfer to
AEL Limassol
Athlitiki Enosi Lemesou ( el, Αθλητική Ένωση Λεμεσού, translation=Athletic Union of Limassol) commonly known as AEL, is a Cypriot sports club based in the city of Limassol, most famous for its football team.
AEL also maintain ...
on 20 August 2010, signing a 2-year contract. After making 17 appearances without scoring, AEL Limassol terminated Rasiak's contract after a contractual dispute with the club.
Return to Poland
In August 2011, while training with
Charlton Athletic
Charlton Athletic Football Club is an English professional football club based in Charlton, south-east London, which compete in . Their home ground is The Valley, where the club have played since 1919. They have also played at The Mount in C ...
, Rasisk scored a penalty on his first appearance, in a friendly match against
Carshalton Athletic in a 2–1 defeat. However, Rasiak left Charlton following his trial when the club decided instead to sign fans favourite
Jason Euell
Jason Joseph Euell (born 6 February 1977) is a former professional association football, footballer who played as either a Forward (association football), forward or a midfielder.
He spent much of his career playing in the Premier League, with ...
to bolster their attack and Rasiak returned to Poland.
One month after leaving Charlton, Rasiak returned to Poland, joining
Jagiellonia Białystok
Jagiellonia Białystok () is a Polish football club based in Białystok that plays in the Ekstraklasa, the top level of Polish football. The club was founded in 1920 by soldiers in the Reserve Battalion in Białystok. Jagiellonia play their home g ...
. The move was delayed by his previous club AEL Limassol failing to send documents which prompted FIFA to intervene.
On 3 December 2011, Rasiak made his debut for Jagiellonia Białystok in a 2–0 defeat against
Podbeskidzie Bielsko-Biała
TS Podbeskidzie Bielsko-Biała () is a football club based in Bielsko-Biała, Poland. They currently compete in the I liga, the second tier of Polish football.
History
The club was essentially founded on 11 July 1997, although it can trace i ...
. On 11 December 2011, Rasiak played his second match where he scored his first goal for the new club in the 1–0 away win over
Lechia Gdańsk
Lechia Gdańsk () is a Polish football club based in Gdańsk. The club was founded in 1945 by people expelled from Lwów, who were supporters of Poland's oldest football team Lechia Lwów, founded in 1903. The club's name comes from Lechia, a ...
. It was his first goal in the Polish league for 7 years. Rasiak stayed with Jagiellonia for one season, and then spent one season with Lechia Gdańsk.
Rasiak then re-joined his old club
Warta Poznań where he became the club's top goalscorer in his final 2013-14 season, with 12 goals in 25 games.
International career
Rasiak made his international debut for
Poland
Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...
on 10 February 2002 in a friendly match with
Faroe Islands
The Faroe Islands ( ), or simply the Faroes ( fo, Føroyar ; da, Færøerne ), are a North Atlantic island group and an autonomous territory of the Kingdom of Denmark.
They are located north-northwest of Scotland, and about halfway bet ...
under manager
Jerzy Engel
Władysław Jerzy Engel (; born 6 October 1952 in Włocławek, Poland) is a Polish former Association football, footballer and coach.
Biography
Playing career
Engel began his career in football at an early age playing at local youth club Juna ...
. He then had to wait a year before his next international appearance under
Paweł Janas
Paweł Janas (; born 4 March 1953) is a Polish football manager and former footballer.
Career
Club
He began his playing career for the Włókniarz Pabianice team in 1965, but later left the club in 1973.
National team
From 1976 to 1984, he wo ...
, before becoming a regular in the Polish team.
In August 2005 he was part of the national team's triumphant performance at the
Valeri Lobanovsky Memorial Tournament
Valeri Lobanovsky Memorial Tournament ( uk, Турнір Пам'яті Валерія Лобановського) is an international football tournament established in honour and memory of Valeri Lobanovsky since his death on 13 May 2002, hence th ...
2005, being the tournament's top goal scorer with three goals.
Rasiak has made 37 appearances for his country, scoring on 8 occasions, and was part of the team that qualified for the
2006 World Cup
The 2006 FIFA World Cup, also branded as Germany 2006, 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 had won the right to host the ...
. He was selected for the 23-man national squad that competed at the World Cup Finals in Germany. Two years later he was not selected for the
2008 European Championships.
International goals
References
External links
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rasiak, Grzegorz
1979 births
Living people
Sportspeople from Szczecin
Ekstraklasa players
Polish footballers
Poland international footballers
Warta Poznań players
GKS Bełchatów players
Odra Wodzisław Śląski players
Dyskobolia Grodzisk Wielkopolski players
Polish expatriate footballers
Derby County F.C. players
Tottenham Hotspur F.C. players
Southampton F.C. players
Bolton Wanderers F.C. players
Watford F.C. players
Reading F.C. players
Premier League players
Expatriate footballers in England
2006 FIFA World Cup players
AEL Limassol players
Cypriot First Division players
Expatriate footballers in Cyprus
Jagiellonia Białystok players
Lechia Gdańsk players
Polish expatriate sportspeople in England
Association football forwards
Olimpia Poznań players