Carl Hoefkens

Carl Hoefkens

Hoefkens warming up for West Bromwich Albion in 2007
Personal information
Date of birth	6 October 1978
Place of birth	Lier, Belgium
Height	1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)
Playing position	Defender
Club information
Current team	Manchester 62
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps^†	(Gls)^†
1996–2001	Lierse	129	(1)
2001–2003	Lommel	54	(4)
2003	Westerlo	7	(0)
2003–2005	Germinal Beerschot	62	(2)
2005–2007	Stoke City	89	(5)
2007–2009	West Bromwich Albion	52	(0)
2009–2013	Club Brugge	127	(4)
2013–2014	Lierse	20	(0)
2014–2015	Oostende	10	(0)
2015–	Manchester 62	2	(0)
National team
1992–1993	Belgium U15	22	(1)
1994–1995	Belgium U16	5	(1)
1994–1995	Belgium U17	7	(1)
1995–1996	Belgium U18	19	(1)
1995–1996	Belgium U19	7	(0)
1997–1999	Belgium U21	16	(2)
1999–2008	Belgium	22	(1)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 11:35, 7 January 2015 (UTC). † Appearances (goals)

Carl Hoefkens (Dutch pronunciation: [ˈkɑrl ˈɦuf.kəns]; born 6 October 1978) is a Belgian footballer who plays as a defender for Gibraltar Premier Division side Manchester 62, and formerly the Belgium national football team.

Club career

Early career

Born in Lier, Belgium, Hoefkens started his career at K. Lierse S.K. and played there for six years. He made his breakthrough with Lierse in first class and won the Belgian Cup in 1999, beating Standard Liège in the final with 3–1. Afterwards, he made a move to Lommel but his move turned into a nightmare, when Lommel went broke in 2003. In the summer of 2003, he came to Germinal Beerschot, the first class team of the Belgian city of Antwerp. There, he became one of the pillars of the team. In his second season at Germinal Beerschot, he won the cup in the final against FC Bruges, then champions of Belgium. Hoefkens is still appreciated by Beerschot fans; a group of fans from the club have travelled to England on numerous occasions to watch him play.^[1]

Stoke City

In the summer of 2005 Stoke City manager, Johan Boskamp snapped him up for an undisclosed fee.^[2] He made his debut for the club in a 0–0 draw against Sheffield Wednesday on 6 August 2005. Hoefkens became an ever-present in the Stoke line-up and wore the number 2 shirt.

Hoefkens received acclaim for his performances in his first season in English football. He became a fans favourite at Stoke and was crowned 'Fans' Player of the year (2005–06). He then won his 9th cap for his country against Kazakhstan (0–0).

During the January 2007 transfer window he was linked with a return to Belgium, with Club Brugge reportedly interested in him. He was also penalty taker for Stoke before the arrival of Danny Higginbotham, however he still maintained a 100% record for the club. Hoefkens impressed both manager and fans alike with his technical ability during the 2006–07 season. He was also praised for his versatility, as he operated as a winger or a central midfielder on occasions in the latter stages of the season.

It was feared that Hoefkens had broken a bone in his foot in a Euro 2008 qualifier against Portugal however a scan revealed that there was no damage.^[3]

West Bromwich Albion

Stoke accepted a bid for Hoefkens from West Bromwich Albion on 4 August 2007.^[4] He joined Albion on 7 August 2007 in a £750,000 deal and was offered a two-year contract plus a further one-year as an option.^[5] Hoefkens made his Albion debut in a 2–1 defeat away at Burnley on the opening day of the 2007–08 season.^[6] One week later, Hoefkens was named in the Championship Team of the Week, following his performance in the 2-0 home win over Preston North End.^[7] He is known by his West Brom team mates as "Wolverine", due to his resemblance to the comic book hero from the X-Men.^[8]

Hoefkens was released in the summer of 2009.^[9]

Return to Belgium

On 25 August 2009 Club Brugge signed the former West Bromwich Albion's Belgian right-back on a two-year deal. He became captain in the season 2010–11. After the season ended, he signed for an extra year with the club.^[10] After 4 years and 127 appearances for the club, Hoefkens moved to Lierse in 2013, spending a season there before a move to Oostende.

Gibraltar

In August 2015, after his release from Oostende, Hoefkens signed for Gibraltar Premier Division side Manchester 62, who beat off competition from reigning champions Lincoln Red Imps for his signature. He signed undisclosed semi-professional terms for the side and will aid in the development of David Ochello's young side, making his debut on September 26 in a 1-0 victory over Glacis United.

International career

Hoefkens has played for his country twenty two times and has scored one goal. He also represented Belgium in the 1997 FIFA World Youth Championship.^[11]

Personal life

Hoefkens is married and has two sons: Milan and Valentino. Hoefkens can speak Dutch, English, French, German and Italian.^[12]

Honours

Individual

• Stoke City F.C. Player of the Year: 2006

References

1. "Stoke City: The story".
2. "Stoke complete deal for Hoefkens". BBC Sport. 2005-07-26. Retrieved 2007-08-07.
3. "Hoefkens injury boost for Stoke". BBC Sport. 2007-03-28. Retrieved 2007-08-07.
4. "West Brom close on Hoefkens deal". BBC Sport. 2007-08-05. Retrieved 2007-08-06.
5. "Hoefkens seals Baggies switch". West Bromwich Albion F.C. 2007-08-07. Retrieved 2007-08-07.
6. "Burnley vs WBA". West Bromwich Albion F.C. 2007-08-11. Retrieved 2007-08-11.
7. "Coca-Cola Championship Team Of The Week (20/08/2007)" (pdf). The Football League. 2007-08-20. Retrieved 2007-10-09.
8. "Saturday's gossip column". BBC Sport. 2008-04-05. Retrieved 2008-04-30.
9. "Relegated West Brom release trio". BBC Sport. 2009-05-22. Retrieved 2009-05-22.
10. Koster wacht af hoe Hoefkens zich toont
11. "Malaysia 1997 - Belgium squad". FIFA. Retrieved 2007-05-25.
12. "PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE: Carl Hoefkens". West Bromwich Albion F.C. 2008-12-30. Retrieved 2008-12-31.

External links

• Carl Hoefkens career statistics at Soccerbase
• Belgium Stats at Belgian FA