Frode Birkeland (born 25 January 1972) is a retired Norwegian football striker and later manager.
Personal information | |||
---|---|---|---|
Date of birth | (1972-01-25) 25 January 1972 (age 50) | ||
Position(s) | Forward | ||
Club information | |||
Current team | Esbjerg (goalkeeper coach) | ||
Youth career | |||
Minde | |||
Senior career* | |||
Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
Minde | |||
Varegg | |||
1990–1991 | Sogndal | ||
–1993 | Vadmyra | ||
1994–1995 | Lyngbø | ||
1996 | Åsane | ||
1997–1998 | Eik-Tønsberg | 48 | (14) |
1999–2002 | Lyn | 70 | (16) |
2002 | → Lillestrøm (loan) | 12 | (5) |
2003–2004 | HamKam | ||
2004–2005 | Kongsvinger[1] | 37 | (5) |
2006 | Hamar | ||
Teams managed | |||
2006 | HamKam (B team) | ||
2007 | Gjøvik-Lyn | ||
2008–2009 | Lillestrøm (B team) | ||
2010–2012 | Drøbak-Frogn | ||
2013–2016 | Hønefoss (goalk. coach/assistant) | ||
2017 | Levanger (assistant) | ||
2018–2021 | Start (goalk. coach) | ||
2021– | Esbjerg (goalk. coach) | ||
*Club domestic league appearances and goals |
In his early career he played for Bergen-based minnows Minde, Varegg, Vadmyra and Lyngbø, also with a spell in larger club Sogndal in 1990.[2] In 1996 he got a break anew, as he moved from Lyngbø to 1. divisjon club Åsane.[3]
In 1997 he moved on to fellow second-tier club Eik-Tønsberg, then Lyn in 1999. With Lyn he managed promotion to 2001 Eliteserien.[4] In 2001 he also had a trial with Sheffield United, and was allegedly close to a contract, but then Paul Peschisolido and Carl Asaba returned from injury and the transfer fell through.[2] Birkeland instead moved on to Lillestrøm in mid-2002, Hamarkameratene in 2003 and Kongsvinger in mid-2004. He retired from professional football after the 2005 season, but featured for minnows Hamar IL.[5]
He started his coaching career in 2006 for the B team of HamKam,[2] then coached Gjøvik-Lyn in 2007. After one year he was picked up by Lillestrøm and put in charge of their B team.[6][7] From 2010 through 2012 he was the head coach of Drøbak-Frogn, achieving promotion from 3. divisjon, and from 2013 through 2016 he worked for Hønefoss, both as goalkeeping coach and assistant manager. In 2017 he signed a one-year contract as assistant coach to Magnus Powell in Levanger FK.[8] Seeing the contract through, he moved south to become goalkeeper coach of IK Start in 2018.[9]
On 21 June 2021 it was confirmed, that Birkeland had been hired as a goalkeeper coach for Danish 1st Division club Esbjerg fB.[10]
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