Thomas Helveg- another footballer with experience in both halves of San Siro
Thomas Lund Helveg is a Danish defensive midfielder and defender who currently plays for Odense Boldklub in the Danish Superliga, where he returned for a second spell. Helveg was named the Danish Player of the Year in 1994, which was also the year when he made his international debut for the Denmark national team.
He played about 108 games and scored two goals, these stats make him the second most capped player for his country. He participated in the 1996, 2000 and 2004 European Championships and the 1998 and 2002 FIFA World Cups as well.
Helveg started his senior career at his home club, Odense Boldklub in the Danish first division. He started off as a substitute and played only two matches in their first division winning season and next season secured his place in the first team with the likes of national players Allan Nielsen and Brian Steen Nielsen.
He represented Denmark in the 1992 Summer Olympics and managed to feature in all three matches. When OB took on Arsenal in the Cup Winners’ Cup, it was Helveg who was assigned to take on Ian Wright, the English International striker who was considered the best in the country at that time.
He handled the English forward very well and received praise for his performance. In 1993, he was loaned out by OB to Italian club Udinese Calcio for six months. The Italian side was battling relegation in the Seri A championship and Helveg’s arrival revitalized the side. He played 22 games in his debut season and scored two goals during that period.
Despite his efforts, Udinese were relegated and were now a Seri B side. While his club career wasn’t doing too good, he got his first call up for the national team. His first appearance earned him rave reviews and despite their troubles Udinese signed him on a permanent basis.
For the five seasons that he was with the Italian side, he remained in the starting lineup, while he played 30 out of 38 games which saw Udinese finishing second in the Seri B and they were soon promoted to Seri A. In the 1997 season, fellow Danish player Martin Jorgensen arrived at Udinese and the pair developed a good partnership.
Helveg maintained his regular spot in the team, making 30 appearances in a total of 34 games. That season, Udinese finished 5th in the Seri A. It was before the 1998 World Cup that Helveg was sold to AC Milan at a price of £6 million, which made him the most expensive Danish player of his time. Helveg continued his good form at Milan, with the Italian giants winning the Lo Scudetto in the 1998-1999 season.
He was the first choice defender up until 2001, when his position was challenged by younger, more aggressive players such as Gennaro Gattuso and Massimo Ambrosini. By 2001-2002, he was no longer a part of the first team, playing less than half of Milan’s fixtures in the Seri A.
It was after that, in the 2002-2003 season that he moved to rivals, Inter Milan, hoping to get more play time. During this unstable period with the club he had the most success with country. He was selected to represent Denmark in the Euro 2000 and the 2002 World Cup. None of these competitions were a success for the Danish team and it was a personal disappointment for Helveg also, who suffered a knee injury which kept him sidelined throughout.
After his time at Inter Milan, he joined English side Norwich City on a free transfer. The side had been recently promoted to the English Premier League and Helveg was brought in because of his experience and skill, which could establish the side in the top flight. However, after a few appearances, he suffered another injury which kept him out for a while. His next stop was the German club, Borussia Monchengladbach, which lasted for only four appearances due to his achilles tendon injury. In 2007, he returned to his first club OB.
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