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Sara Thunebro

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Sara Thunebro
With FFC Frankfurt in 2011
Personal information
Full name Sara Kristina Thunebro[1]
Date of birth (1979-04-26) 26 April 1979 (age 45)[1]
Place of birth Strängnäs, Sweden[2]
Height 1.65 m (5 ft 5 in)[1]
Position(s) Defender
Youth career
IK Viljan
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1997–1998 Gideonsbergs IF
1999–2001 Djurgårdens IF
2002 Älvsjö AIK
2003–2009 Djurgårdens IF[a] 230 (19)
2009–2013 FFC Frankfurt 56[3] (6)
2013 Tyresö FF 21 (0)
2014–2015 Eskilstuna United DFF 42 (3)
International career‡
1995 Sweden U17 10[4] (0[4])
1997–1998 Sweden U19 8[4] (0[4])
2004–2015 Sweden 132[5] (5[5])
Medal record
Women's football
Representing  Sweden
FIFA Women's World Cup
Bronze medal – third place 2011 Germany Team
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 05:15, 25 June 2015 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 17:22, 23 June 2015 (UTC)

Sara Kristina Thunebro (born 26 April 1979) is a Swedish former footballer who was a defender for the Sweden women's national team. At club level Thunebro played for Eskilstuna United DFF, Tyresö FF and Djurgårdens IF of the Damallsvenskan, as well as FFC Frankfurt of the Frauen-Bundesliga. Making her international debut in 2004, Thunebro won 132 caps and represented her country at the 2009 and 2013 editions of the UEFA Women's Championship. She also played at the 2007, 2011 and 2015 FIFA Women's World Cups, as well as the 2008 and 2012 Olympic football tournaments. An attacking left-back, her trademark on the field was her white headband.

Club career

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Thunebro began playing at the age of six, eventually rising to the youth club IK Viljan. She advanced through the Damallsvenskan to one of the top-tier teams Djurgårdens IF. With Thunebro on the team, Djurgården won the Swedish Championship in 2003 and 2004. Djurgården also won the Swedish Cup in both 2004 and 2005, securing qualification for the UEFA Women's Cup. In 2005 Djurgården reached the final but were beaten by Turbine Potsdam.

After twice being voted the best defender in Sweden, Thunebro joined FFC Frankfurt in 2009. She extended her contract with the German club for another two years in April 2011.[6]

After playing only three games in the first half of the season she left Frankfurt in March 2013 to join Tyresö FF in Sweden. She aimed to get more match practice ahead of the UEFA Women's Euro 2013 in her home country.

After one season at Tyresö she moved on again, to newly promoted Damallsvenskan club Eskilstuna United DFF. In announcing the transfer in December 2013, Thunebro admitted she moved to be based closer to her family.[7] After the 2015 season in which Eskilstuna finished as runners-up to FC Rosengård, Thunebro made the difficult decision to retire from playing. Coach Viktor Eriksson thanked Thunebro for her part in establishing the club in the top league and described it as an honour to have worked with her for two years.[8]

International career

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A 3–0 defeat to the United States in January 2004 was Thunebro's first appearance for the senior Swedish national team. She had already collected 32 caps at Under-23 level, eight at Under-19 and 10 at Under-17.[9] She remained on the fringes of the squad but was left out of the selection for UEFA Women's Euro 2005. Thunebro travelled to China for the 2007 FIFA Women's World Cup but made just one appearance during Sweden's exit at the group stage. Returning to China for the following year's Olympic football tournament, Thunebro had become a regular starter in the team which reached the quarter-finals.

Thunebro playing for Sweden in 2013

By 2009 Thunebro was an important part of an in–form Swedish team who were enjoying victories over Germany, Brazil and the United States. "Each year I've taken small steps forward," she explained. "I feel in great form now, but I haven't reached my peak yet."[10] At UEFA Women's Euro 2009 Sweden reached the quarter-finals only to be eliminated by Norway.

At the 2011 FIFA Women's World Cup in Germany Thunebro won a bronze medal with Sweden, who were beaten by eventual winners Japan in the semi-final. Third place secured Sweden's qualification for the 2012 Olympic football tournament in London. In September 2011 Thunebro announced her intention to retire from international football after the UEFA Women's Euro 2013 tournament in her home country.[11]

After the tournament, Thunebro relented and was selected by national coach Pia Sundhage for Sweden's 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup qualification campaign.[12] In May 2015, Thunebro and Eskilstuna team-mates Olivia Schough and Malin Diaz were confirmed in Sundhage's Sweden squad for the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup in Canada.[13]

Following Sweden's second round elimination in Canada Thunebro quit international football. She had received only 15 minutes of playing time as the team failed to win any of their four matches at the tournament. Thunebro felt that she no longer had coach Sundhage's confidence and did not want to sit on the substitute's bench to make up the numbers.[14]

Matches and goals scored at World Cup & Olympic tournaments

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Key (expand for notes on "world cup and olympic goals")
Location Geographic location of the venue where the competition occurred
Lineup Start – played entire match
on minute (off player) – substituted on at the minute indicated, and player was substituted off at the same time

off minute (on player) – substituted off at the minute indicated, and player was substituted on at the same time
(c) – captain

Min The minute in the match the goal was scored. For list that include caps, blank indicates played in the match but did not score a goal.
Assist/pass The ball was passed by the player, which assisted in scoring the goal. This column depends on the availability and source of this information.
penalty or pk Goal scored on penalty-kick which was awarded due to foul by opponent. (Goals scored in penalty-shoot-out, at the end of a tied match after extra-time, are not included.)
Score The match score after the goal was scored.
Result The final score.

W – match was won
L – match was lost to opponent
D – match was drawn
(W) – penalty-shoot-out was won after a drawn match
(L) – penalty-shoot-out was lost after a drawn match

aet The score at the end of extra-time; the match was tied at the end of 90' regulation
pso Penalty-shoot-out score shown in parentheses; the match was tied at the end of extra-time
Orange background color – Olympic women's football tournament
Blue background color – FIFA women's world cup final tournament
Goal Match Date Location Opponent Lineup Min Score Result Competition
China China 2007 FIFA Women's World Cup
1
 2007-9-11[m 1] Chengdu  Nigeria Start

1–1 D

Group match
2
 2007-9-18[m 2] Tianjin  North Korea 40.

on 40' (off Ljungberg)89. off 89' (on Lundin)

2–1 W

Group match
ChinaBeijing 2008 Women's Olympic Football Tournament
3
 2008-8-6[m 3] Tianjin  China Start

1–2 L

Group match
4
 2008-8-9[m 4] Tianjin  Argentina Start

1–0 W

Group match
5
 2008-8-12[m 5] Beijing  Canada 86.

off 86' (on Paulson)

2–1 W

Group match
6
 2008-8-15[m 6] Shenyang  Germany Start

0–2 L

Quarter-Final
Germany Germany 2011 FIFA Women's World Cup
7
 2011-6-28[m 7] Leverkusen  Colombia Start

1–0 W

Group match
8
 2011-7-2[m 8] Augsburg  North Korea Start

1–0 W

Group match
9
 2011-7-6[m 9] Wolfsburg  United States Start

2–1 W

Group match
10
 2011-7-10[m 10] Augsburg  Australia Start

3–1 W

Quarter-Final
11
 2011-7-13[m 11] Frankfurt  Japan Start

1–3 L

Semi-Final
12
 2011-7-16[m 12] Sinsheim  France Start

2–1 W

Third Place Match
United KingdomLondon 2012 Women's Olympic Football Tournament
13
 2012-7-25[m 13] Coventry  South Africa Start

4–1 W

Group match
14
 2012-7-28[m 14] Coventry  Japan Start

0–0 D

Group match
15
 2012-7-31[m 15] Newcastle  Canada Start

2–2 D

Group match
16
 2012-8-3[m 16] Glasgow  France Start

1–2 L

Quarter-Final
Canada Canada 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup
17
 2015-6-16[m 17] Edmonton  Australia 76.

on 76' (off Rubensson)

1–1 D

Group match

Matches and goals scored at European Championship tournaments

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Goal Match Date Location Opponent Lineup Min Score Result Competition
Finland2009 European Championship
1
 2009-8-25[m 18] Turku  Russia Start

3–0 W

Group match
2
 2009-8-28[m 19] Turku  Italy Start

2–0 W

Group match
3
 2009-8-31[m 20] Turku  England Start

1–1 D

Group match
4
 2009-9-4[m 21] Helsinki  Norway Start

1–3 L

Quarter-Final
Sweden2013 European Championship
5
 2013-7-10[m 22] Gothenburg  Denmark Start

1–1 D

Group match
6
 2013-7-13[m 23] Gothenburg  Finland Start

5–0 W

Group match
7
 2013-7-16[m 24] Halmstad  Italy 79.

off 79' (on Schough)

3–1 W

Group match
8
 2013-7-21[m 25] Halmstad  Iceland Start

4–0 W

Quarter-Final
9
 2013-7-24[m 26] Gothenburg  Germany Start

0–1 L

Semi-Final

Personal life

[edit]

Thunebro enjoys playing golf and rides a motorcycle. Throughout her career she did not employ an agent.[15] Part of the reason she wore her trademark headband was to allow her grandmother to easily identify her while watching on the television.[16]

Honours

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Club

[edit]
Djurgården/Älvsjö
FFC Frankfurt

Country

[edit]
Sweden
Sweden U19

Individual

[edit]

Footnotes

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  1. ^ 2003–2006 as Djurgården/Älvsjö.

References

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  1. ^ a b c "List of Players - 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup" (PDF). Fédération Internationale de Football Association. Retrieved 24 June 2015.
  2. ^ "Profile". Svenska Fotbollförbundet (in Swedish). Retrieved 25 June 2015.
  3. ^ "Bundesliga statistics at Framba.de". Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 28 March 2013.
  4. ^ a b c d Caps and goals
  5. ^ a b "Caps and goals".
  6. ^ Nora Kruse (5 April 2011). "Sara Thunebro verlängert in Frankfurt" (in German). WomenSoccer.de. Retrieved 6 January 2012.
  7. ^ "Tyresö tappar landslagsspelare till Eskilstuna" (in Swedish). Damfotboll.com. 13 December 2013. Retrieved 13 December 2013.
  8. ^ Mattsson, Sebastian (10 November 2015). "Sara Thunebro slutar: "Varit ett svårt beslut"" (in Swedish). Expressen. Retrieved 30 December 2015.
  9. ^ "Dam: Sveriges VM-trupp" (in Swedish). Svenskfotboll.se. 30 May 2011. Retrieved 6 January 2012.
  10. ^ Sujay Dutt (18 August 2009). "Thunebro says Sweden are soaring". UEFA. Retrieved 6 January 2012.
  11. ^ "Thunebro focusing on the future". FIFA. 22 September 2011. Archived from the original on 24 September 2011. Retrieved 6 January 2012.
  12. ^ Wihlborg, Niklas (3 September 2013). "Sjögran får plats i landslaget" (in Swedish). Sydsvenskan. Retrieved 13 December 2013.
  13. ^ Lundin, Josefin (11 May 2015). "Tre spelare från Eskilstuna United uttagna till VM i Kanada" (in Swedish). Sveriges Radio. Retrieved 31 May 2015.
  14. ^ Frölander, Martin (30 June 2015). "Sara Thunebro slutar i svenska landslaget" (in Swedish). Expressen. Retrieved 30 December 2015.
  15. ^ Hellsten, Carl Magnus (28 June 2013). "Sara Thunebro - En EMinent motståndare" (in Swedish). Golf.se. Retrieved 13 December 2013.
  16. ^ Juchem, Markus (3 May 2011). "Sara Thunebro, die Spätberufene" (in German). WomenSoccer.de. Retrieved 13 December 2013.
  17. ^ "Djurgårdens IF SM-guld på seniornivå" [Djurgården's IF SM gold at senior level] (PDF) (in Swedish). Archived from the original (PDF) on 16 October 2020.
  18. ^ "Övriga utmärkelser — fogis.se".
Match reports
  1. ^ "FIFA Women's World Cup China 2007: MATCH Report: Nigeria - Sweden: Group matches". FIFA. Archived from the original on 2 July 2015.
  2. ^ "FIFA Women's World Cup China 2007: MATCH Report: Korea DPR - Sweden: Group matches". FIFA. Archived from the original on 2 July 2015.
  3. ^ "2008 Olympic Games: MATCH Report: China - Sweden: Group Matches". FIFA. Archived from the original on 2 April 2013.
  4. ^ "2008 Olympic Games: MATCH Report: Sweden - Argentina: Group Matches". FIFA. Archived from the original on 2 April 2013.
  5. ^ "2008 Olympic Games: MATCH Report: Sweden - Canada: Group Matches". FIFA. Archived from the original on 2 April 2013.
  6. ^ "2008 Olympic Games: MATCH Report: Sweden - Germany: Quarter-Finals". FIFA. Archived from the original on 2 April 2013.
  7. ^ "FIFA Women's World Cup Germany 2011: MATCH Report: Colombia - Sweden: Group matches". FIFA. Archived from the original on 30 June 2011.
  8. ^ "FIFA Women's World Cup Germany 2011: MATCH Report: Korea DPR - Sweden: Group matches". FIFA. Archived from the original on 5 July 2011.
  9. ^ "FIFA Women's World Cup Germany 2011: MATCH Report: Sweden - USA: Group matches". FIFA. Archived from the original on 5 July 2011.
  10. ^ "FIFA Women's World Cup Germany 2011: MATCH Report: Sweden - Australia: Quarter-finals". FIFA. Archived from the original on 12 July 2011.
  11. ^ "FIFA Women's World Cup Germany 2011: MATCH Report: Japan - Sweden: Semi-finals". FIFA. Archived from the original on 12 July 2011.
  12. ^ "FIFA Women's World Cup Germany 2011: MATCH Report: Sweden- France: Third Place Match". FIFA. Archived from the original on 20 July 2011.
  13. ^ "2012 Olympic Games: MATCH Report: Sweden - South Africa: Group Matches". FIFA. Archived from the original on 29 June 2015.
  14. ^ "2012 Olympic Games: MATCH Report: Japan - Sweden: Group Matches". FIFA. Archived from the original on 29 June 2015.
  15. ^ "2012 Olympic Games: MATCH Report: Canada - Sweden: Group Matches". FIFA. Archived from the original on 7 June 2015.
  16. ^ "2012 Olympic Games: MATCH Report: Sweden - France: Quarter-Finals". FIFA. Archived from the original on 26 June 2015.
  17. ^ "FIFA Women's World Cup Canada 2015: MATCH Report: Australia - Sweden: Group matches". FIFA. Archived from the original on 28 May 2015.
  18. ^ "2009 European Championship: MATCH Report: Sweden - Russia: Group match". worldfootball.net.
  19. ^ "2009 European Championship: MATCH Report: Italy - Sweden: Group match". worldfootball.net.
  20. ^ "2009 European Championship: MATCH Report: Sweden - England: Group match". worldfootball.net.
  21. ^ "2009 European Championship: MATCH Report: Sweden - Norway: Quarter-finals". worldfootball.net.
  22. ^ "2013 European Championship: MATCH Report: Sweden - Denmark: Group match". UEFA.
  23. ^ "2013 European Championship: MATCH Report: Finland - Sweden: Group match". UEFA.
  24. ^ "2013 European Championship: MATCH Report: Sweden - Italy: Group match". UEFA.
  25. ^ "2013 European Championship: MATCH Report: Sweden - Iceland: Quarter-Finals". UEFA.
  26. ^ "2013 European Championship: MATCH Report: Sweden - Germany: Semi-Finals". UEFA.
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