Christian Grindheim (born 17 July 1983) is a Norwegian retired 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 ...

who last played as 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 ...

for

Eliteserien Eliteserien () is a professional association football league in Norway and the highest level of the Norwegian football league system. Contested by 16 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the Norwegian First Division ...

club

FK Haugesund Fotballklubben Haugesund (), usually referred to as FK Haugesund or FKH, is a professional association football, football club from the city of Haugesund that plays in the top tier of the Norwegian football league system. FK Haugesund previousl ...

. Grindheim is known as a hardworking midfielder with tough tackling and powerful shots. He has made over 50 appearances for the Norway national team.

Club career

Grindheim was born in

Haugesund Haugesund () is a municipalities of Norway, municipality and List of towns and cities in Norway, town on the North Sea in Rogaland county, Norway. As of December 2023, the municipality of Haugesund has a population of 37,855. The vast majority of ...

and started his career in the local club Haugar, before he joined

where he made his debut for the first team in

Tippeligaen Eliteserien () is a professional association football league in Norway and the highest level of the Norwegian football league system. Contested by 16 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the Norwegian First Division ...

at the age of 17. After Haugesund's relegation from the

First Division 1st Division or First Division may refer to: Military Airborne divisions *1st Parachute Division (Germany) *1st Airborne Division (United Kingdom) * 1st Airmobile Division (Ukraine) * 1st Guards Airborne Division Armoured divisions *1st Armoure ...

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and Its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 60 ...

, several Tippeligaen clubs were interested in his signature.

Viking Vikings were seafaring people originally from Scandinavia (present-day Denmark, Norway, and Sweden), who from the late 8th to the late 11th centuries raided, pirated, traded, and settled throughout parts of Europe.Roesdahl, pp. 9� ...

, with

Roy Hodgson Roy Hodgson (born 9 August 1947) is an English former football manager and player. He has managed 22 different teams in eight countries, beginning in Sweden with Halmstad in the 1976 season. He later guided the Switzerland national team to t ...

as manager, made an offer for Grindheim, but he chose

Vålerenga Vålerenga () is a neighbourhood in the city of Oslo, Norway, belonging to the borough of Gamle Oslo. Vålerenga is located between the neighbourhoods of Gamlebyen, Jordal, Ensjø, Etterstad and Lodalen. Vålerenga is in particular known for i ...

. At Vålerenga, he played regularly for the team that won the league in

2005 2005 was designated as the International Year for Sport and Physical Education and the International Year of Microcredit. The beginning of 2005 also marked the end of the International Decade of the World's Indigenous Peoples, Internationa ...

. On 7 January 2008, Grindheim joined

Heerenveen Heerenveen (, ) is a town and Municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in the Provinces of the Netherlands, province of Friesland (Fryslân), in the Northern Netherlands. In 2021, the town had a population of 29,790 (1 January) while the m ...

. Heerenveen paid Vålerenga a reported transfer fee of €3 million. He played 86 matches for the club winning the 2008–09 Dutch Cup. On 15 June 2011, Grindheim transferred to

FC Copenhagen Football Club Copenhagen (, ), commonly known as F.C. København, F.C. Copenhagen, Copenhagen, or simply FCK, is a Danish professional football club based in Copenhagen. FCK was founded in 1992 as a superstructure on top of Kjøbenhavns Boldklu ...

on a three-year contract, for a reported transfer fee of €750,000. In February 2013, Grindheim returned to

on loan with an option to buy, which Vålerenga took up in July 2013, signing Grindheim to a three-year contract.

International career

Grindheim made his debut for the Norwegian national team, on 17 August 2005 in a

friendly match An exhibition game (also known as a friendly, scrimmage, demonstration, training match, pre-season game, warmup match, or preparation match, depending at least in part on the sport) is a sport, sporting event whose prize money and impact on th ...

against

Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...

. Grindheim played 45 minutes in a match Norway lost 2–0. He scored his first goal in

Egil Olsen Egil Roger Olsen (born 22 April 1942), nicknamed Drillo, is a Norwegian former football manager and player. He is best known as a highly successful manager of the Norway national team. He also served as the manager of the Iraq national team, ...

first match in his second stint as head coach of Norway, the friendly match against

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

on 11 February 2009, He reached his 50th cap in the friendly match against

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

Career statistics

;Notes

International goals

:Source:

Honours

;Vålerenga IF *

Norwegian Premier League Eliteserien () is a professional association football league in Norway and the highest level of the Norwegian football league system. Contested by 16 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the Norwegian First Division ...

;SC Heerenveen *

KNVB Cup The KNVB Beker (; ), branded as the TOTO KNVB Beker for sponsorship reasons, is a competition in the Netherlands organised by the Royal Dutch Football Association (KNVB) since 1898. It was based on the format of the English FA Cup. Outside the N ...

: 2008–09 ;F.C. Copenhagen *

Danish Cup The Danish Cup (; often referred to as Pokalen) is the official "single-elimination tournament, knockout" cup competition in Danish football, run by the Danish Football Association. The cup has been contested annually since 1955. The winner will ...

: 2011–12

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Grindheim, Christian 1983 births Living people Footballers from Haugesund Men's association football midfielders Norwegian men's footballers 21st-century Norwegian sportsmen Norway men's international footballers Norway men's under-21 international footballers FK Haugesund players Vålerenga Fotball players SC Heerenveen players F.C. Copenhagen players Eliteserien players Norwegian First Division players Eredivisie players Danish Superliga players Norwegian expatriate men's footballers Expatriate men's footballers in the Netherlands Norwegian expatriate sportspeople in the Netherlands Expatriate men's footballers in Denmark Norwegian expatriate sportspeople in Denmark