Andrej Kvašňák (19 May 1936 – 18 April 2007) was a Slovak

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

player. Born in

Košice Košice is the largest city in eastern Slovakia. It is situated on the river Hornád at the eastern reaches of the Slovak Ore Mountains, near the border with Hungary. With a population of approximately 230,000, Košice is the second-largest cit ...

, he played for

Czechoslovakia Czechoslovakia ( ; Czech language, Czech and , ''Česko-Slovensko'') was a landlocked country in Central Europe, created in 1918, when it declared its independence from Austria-Hungary. In 1938, after the Munich Agreement, the Sudetenland beca ...

, for which he played 47 matches and scored 13 goals. He is usually considered one of the best Czechoslovak footballers. He was a participant in the

1962 FIFA World Cup The 1962 FIFA World Cup was the 7th edition of the FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international football championship for senior men's national teams. It was held from 30 May to 17 June 1962 in Chile. The qualification rounds took place between ...

, where Czechoslovakia finished second, and also in the

1970 FIFA World Cup The 1970 FIFA World Cup was the 9th edition of the FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international Association football, football championship for List of men's national association football teams, men's senior national teams. Held from 31 May to ...

. In his country he played mostly for

Sparta Prague Athletic Club Sparta Praha (), commonly known as Sparta Prague and Sparta Praha, is a professional football club based in Prague. It is the most successful club in the Czech Republic and one of the most successful in central Europe, winning t ...

. From September 1969 he played a few seasons for

Racing Mechelen Koninklijke Racing Club Mechelen, simply known as Racing Mechelen or KRC Mechelen, is a football in Belgium, Belgian association football club from Mechelen in the Antwerp (province), Antwerp province. It is a long-time rival of KV Mechelen. The ...

, a Belgian team. Although often listed as a forward, he was in fact normally an attacking midfield schemer, forging a partnership in the centre of the park with

Josef Masopust Josef Masopust (9 February 1931 – 29 June 2015) was a Czech football player and coach. He played as midfielder and was a key player for Czechoslovakia, helping them reach the 1962 FIFA World Cup Final. He was capped 63 times, scoring ten go ...

at international level. Well known for his technique and passing ability, he was also a prolific goalscorer and fine header of the ball.

References

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Obituary at UEFA.com

Obituary
1936 births 2007 deaths Czechoslovak men's footballers 1960 European Nations' Cup players 1962 FIFA World Cup players 1970 FIFA World Cup players Deaths from lung cancer in the Czech Republic Slovak men's footballers Czechoslovakia men's international footballers Footballers from Košice K.R.C. Mechelen players FC VSS Košice players AC Sparta Prague players FK Viktoria Žižkov players Men's association football midfielders Men's association football forwards Expatriate men's footballers in Belgium {{Slovakia-footy-forward-stub