Zbigniew Kruszyński (born 14 October 1960), commonly known as Detsi Kruszyński or Detzi Kruszyński, is a Polish-German 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 lea ...

. Primarily a

midfielder In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in t ...

, he was also adept in

defence Defense or defence may refer to: Tactical, martial, and political acts or groups * Defense (military), forces primarily intended for warfare * Civil defense, the organizing of civilians to deal with emergencies or enemy attacks * Defense indust ...

and attack. In an 18-year professional career, he played league football in Poland, Germany and England. He is probably best remembered for his three-year spell in Germany with

1. FC Saarbrücken 1. Fußball-Club Saarbrücken () is a German Football in Germany, football club based in Saarbrücken, Saarland. The club plays in the 3. Liga, which is the third tier of football in Germany. History The club began its existence as the footbal ...

, for whom he made over 130 appearances. He also made over 70 First Division appearances for

Wimbledon Wimbledon most often refers to: * Wimbledon, London, a district of southwest London * Wimbledon Championships, the oldest tennis tournament in the world and one of the four Grand Slam championships Wimbledon may also refer to: Places London * W ...

in England. Kruszyński represented

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

at U18 level and was part of the team which finished third at the 1978 European U18 Championship. Kruszyński currently

coaches Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of Athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Coac ...

youth football in

Ohio Ohio ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Erie to the north, Pennsylvania to the east, West Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Indiana to the ...

, United States.

Career

Lechia Gdańsk

Born in

Tczew Tczew (, formerly ) is a city on the Vistula River in the Pomeranian Voivodeship, in northern Poland, with 59,111 inhabitants (December 2021). It is the capital of Tczew County and the largest city of the ethnocultural region of Kociewie within th ...

, Kruszyński began his career as a youth at hometown club Unia Tczew, before moving to

II Liga II liga (Druga liga, ), currently named Betclic II liga due to its sponsorship by Betclic, is a Polish football league that sits at the third tier of the Polish football league system. Until the end of the 2007–08 season, ''II Liga'' referre ...

club

Lechia Gdańsk Lechia Gdańsk () is a Polish football (soccer), football club based in Gdańsk. As of the 2025–26 Ekstraklasa, 2025–26 season, they compete in the Ekstraklasa. The club was founded in 1945 by people Polish population transfers (1944–1946 ...

in 1976. Despite being aged just 16, he made his professional debut in a league match versus Olimpia Poznań on 5 June 1977, coming on as a substitute for

Andrzej Głownia Andrzej Głownia (9 November 1951 – 22 September 2024) was a Polish Association football, footballer who played as a Forward (association football), forward. Biography Głownia started his senior career with Lechia Gdańsk in 1969, making his ...

after 67 minutes. Kruszyński broke into the team the 1977–78 season, making 23 league appearances and scoring two goals and improving again the following year, scoring ten goals in 34 appearances. Kruszyński travelled with the club to take part in a friendly tournament in

West Germany West Germany was the common English name for the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) from its formation on 23 May 1949 until German reunification, its reunification with East Germany on 3 October 1990. It is sometimes known as the Bonn Republi ...

in the summer of 1979 and refused to return to

with the team, which caused the Polish FA to suspend him for a year. He made 61 appearances and scored 13 goals for Gdańsk.

Hamburger SV II

While in West Germany, Kruszyński signed for

Hamburger SV II Hamburger SV II are the reserve team of German association football club Hamburger SV. Until 2005 the team played as Hamburger SV Amateure. The team has qualified for the first round of the DFB-Pokal, the German Cup, on five occasions. They cur ...

in 1979. In a three-season spell, he failed to make an appearance for the club's first team, but trained with high-profile players

Franz Beckenbauer Franz Anton Beckenbauer (; 11 September 1945 – 7 January 2024) was a German professional football player, manager, and official. Nicknamed ("the Emperor"), he is widely regarded as one of the greatest players of all time, and is one of nine p ...

Kevin Keegan Joseph Kevin Keegan (born 14 February 1951) is an English former footballer and manager. Nicknamed "King Kev" or "Mighty Mouse", Keegan was recognised for his dribbling ability, as well as his finishing and presence in the air, and is regard ...

Manfred Kaltz Manfred Kaltz (born 6 January 1953) is a German former football player and manager, who played as a right-back. Kaltz played in the Bundesliga for Hamburger SV and 13 times (one goal) for FC Mulhouse in Ligue 1 after initially joining Mulhouse ...

and

Felix Magath Wolfgang Felix Magath (; born 26 July 1953) is a German football manager and former player. The most notable spell of his playing career was with Hamburger SV, with whom he won three Bundesliga titles, the 1977 European Cup Winners' Cup Final a ...

SC Concordia von 1907

Kruszyński joined

Oberliga Nord The Oberliga Nord was the fourth tier of the German football league system in the north of Germany. It covered the states of Lower Saxony, Bremen, Hamburg and Schleswig-Holstein. With the introduction of the 3. Liga, the league ceased to exist fr ...

club SC Concordia von 1907 in 1982 and departed at the end of the 1982–83 season.

1. FC Saarbrücken

Kruszyński moved back up the German pyramid to sign for 2. Bundesliga club

in 1983. He quickly established himself in the team, missing just five league games during the 1983–84 season. Kruszyński made 32 appearances to help Saarbrücken to a third-place finish in the 1984–85 season and though he did not play, the club secured promotion to the

Bundesliga The Bundesliga (; ), sometimes referred to as the Fußball-Bundesliga () or 1. Bundesliga (), is a professional association football league in Germany and the highest level of the German football league system. The Bundesliga comprises 18 teams ...

after winning a playoff versus

Arminia Bielefeld DSC Arminia Bielefeld (; full name: ; commonly known as Arminia Bielefeld (), also known as ''Die Arminen'' or ''Die Blauen'' ), or just Arminia (), is a German sports club from Bielefeld, North Rhine-Westphalia. Arminia is most well known as ...

. Now playing in the Bundesliga, Kruszyński was moved from his forward position back into the

and made 32 appearances in a poor 1985–86 season which saw Saarbrücken relegated straight back to the 2. Bundesliga. Kruszyński departed the club at the end of the 1986–87 season, after disastrous campaign in which Saarbrücken narrowly avoided relegation to the Oberliga. He made 132 appearances and scored ten goals during three years at the

Ludwigsparkstadion Ludwigsparkstadion is a multi-purpose stadium in Saarbrücken, Germany. The stadium was built in 1953 and once held 35,303 people. After renovation, which lasted from 2016 to 2021 and cost €46.5M, the capacity has been reduced to around 16,000 ...

FC Homburg

Kruszyński remained within

Saarland Saarland (, ; ) is a state of Germany in the southwest of the country. With an area of and population of 990,509 in 2018, it is the smallest German state in area apart from the city-states of Berlin, Bremen, and Hamburg, and the smallest in ...

to sign for Bundesliga club

FC 08 Homburg Fußball-Club 08 Homburg or simply FC Homburg is a German association football club based in Homburg, Saarland, that competes in the Regionalliga Südwest. History The club was founded on 15 June 1908 as ''Fussball Club Homburg'' by a group ...

in 1987. He made 34 appearances and scored two goals during a disastrous 1987–88 season, which saw Homburg relegated back to the 2. Bundesliga after just two seasons in the top-flight.

Wimbledon

Kruszyński moved to England to sign for First Division club

in December 1988 for a £100,000 fee and he became the third Pole to play in the English top-flight. Utilised as a

by manager

Bobby Gould Robert Alfred Gould (born 12 June 1946) is an English former footballer and manager. Early life Robert Alfred Gould was born in Wyken, Coventry, Warwickshire on Wednesday, 12 June 1946. He is the son of Henry Gould and Helen McKellar Gould ...

, he struggled to adapt to the physicality of the English game. Kruszyński dropped out of contention during the 1991–92 season and departed the club in August 1992. Kruszyński made 71 league appearances and scored four goals during three and a half years with the Dons.

Brentford

Kruszyński joined Third Division club

Brentford Brentford is a suburban town in West (London sub region), West London, England and part of the London Borough of Hounslow. It lies at the confluence of the River Brent and the River Thames, Thames, west of Charing Cross. Its economy has dive ...

loan In finance, a loan is the tender of money by one party to another with an agreement to pay it back. The recipient, or borrower, incurs a debt and is usually required to pay interest for the use of the money. The document evidencing the deb ...

for the final eight games of the 1991–92 season. He played in each game in midfield and helped the Bees secure the Third Division championship and promotion to the second tier. Kruszyński signed permanently for a £60,000 fee in August 1992, but managed only eight appearances during the whole of the 1992–93 season, as the Bees suffered relegation straight back to the third tier. Kruszyński failed to see eye-to-eye with manager

Phil Holder Philip Holder (born 19 January 1952) is an English former association football player and manager. As player, he made more than 150 appearances in the Football League representing Tottenham Hotspur, Crystal Palace and AFC Bournemouth, and play ...

and was transfer-listed in September 1992, before being fined two weeks' wages for a training ground bust-up with coach Graham Pearce later in the year. His contract was cancelled at the end of the 1992–93 season, after making 16 appearances in just over a year at

Griffin Park Griffin Park was a association football, football ground in Brentford in the London Borough of Hounslow, England. It was the home ground of Brentford F.C. from its opening in September 1904 to August 2020. The ground was in a predominantly resi ...

Coventry City

After a deal to move back to Germany fell through, Kruszyński remained in England and signed for Premiership club

Coventry City Coventry City Football Club is an English professional football club based in Coventry, West Midlands. The club plays in the EFL Championship, the second tier of English football. The club is nicknamed The Sky Blues after the sky blue colou ...

in September 1993. He made just three appearances and departed the club in December 1993.

Peterborough United

After a proposed move to Second Division club

Birmingham City Birmingham City Football Club is a professional football club based in Birmingham, England. Formed in 1875 as Small Heath Alliance, it was renamed Small Heath in 1888, Birmingham in 1905, and Birmingham City in 1943. The team compete in the ...

failed to materialise, Kruszyński joined First Division club

Peterborough United Peterborough United Football Club is a professional association football club based in Peterborough, Cambridgeshire, England. The team compete in League One, the third level of the English football league system. Peterborough United formed in ...

in December 1993. He managed just five appearances before departing London Road.

Non-League football

Kruszyński dropped into

non-League football Non-League football describes association football, football leagues played outside the top leagues of a country. Usually, it describes leagues which are not fully professional. The term is primarily used for football in England, where it is ...

in 1994 and played for Oxford City, St Albans City, Hayes,

Crawley Town Crawley Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in the town of Crawley, West Sussex, England. The team currently competes in , the fourth level of the English football league system. Founded in 1896 as Crawley Foo ...

, Chertsey Town and Kingstonian before retiring in 1997.

International career

Kruszyński represented

at U18 level and was part of the team which finished third at the 1978 European U18 Championship. Kruszyński's decision to play club football in Germany in 1979 effectively ended his international career, due to citizenship issues.

Coaching career

Since 2001, Kruszyński has coached youth players at his coaching school in

, United States. At one time, the school had links with Spanish club

Barcelona Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...

Personal life

Kruszyński's brothers Bogdan and Andrzej were also footballers.

Career statistics

Honours

1. FC Saarbrücken * 2. Bundesliga: 1984–85 Brentford *

Football League Third Division The Football League Third Division was the third tier of the English football league system in 1920–21 Football League, 1920–21 and again from 1958–59 Football League, 1958 until 1991–92 Football League, 1992. When the FA Premier League ...

: 1991–92 Poland U18 *

UEFA European Under-18 Championship The UEFA European Under-19 Championship, or simply the Euro Under-19, is an annual football competition, contested by the European men's under-19 national teams of the UEFA member associations. Spain is the most successful team in this competit ...

third place:

1978 Events January * January 1 – Air India Flight 855, a Boeing 747 passenger jet, crashes off the coast of Bombay, killing 213. * January 5 – Bülent Ecevit, of Republican People's Party, CHP, forms the new government of Turkey (42nd ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kruszynski, Zbigniew 1960 births Living people Footballers from Tczew Polish men's footballers Poland men's youth international footballers Men's association football defenders Men's association football midfielders Men's association football forwards Men's association football utility players I liga players Premier League players English Football League players Bundesliga players 2. Bundesliga players Hamburger SV players SC Concordia von 1907 players 1. FC Saarbrücken players FC 08 Homburg players Wimbledon F.C. players Brentford F.C. players Coventry City F.C. players Peterborough United F.C. players St Albans City F.C. players Hayes F.C. players Kingstonian F.C. players Isthmian League players Lechia Gdańsk players Oxford City F.C. players Chertsey Town F.C. players Polish expatriate men's footballers Polish expatriate sportspeople in West Germany Expatriate men's footballers in West Germany Polish expatriate sportspeople in England Expatriate men's footballers in England Polish expatriate sportspeople in the United States 20th-century Polish sportsmen Crawley Town F.C. players Southern Football League players