Michael Władysław Klukowski (; born 27 May 1981) is a Canadian soccer player who played as a

left-back In the sport of association football, a defender is an Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield player whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring. Defenders fall into four main categ ...

. He made 36 appearances for the Canada national team.

Club career

Klukowski was born in Amstetten, Austria. He began his career in Canada playing for the Oshawa Kicks and Scarborough Azzurri-Blues, before travelling across the

Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the Age of Discovery, it was known for se ...

to link up with Dijon FCO in 1999. A move to Tourcoing FC followed the next year before his performances caught the attentions of Ligue 1 outfit Lille OSC whom he joined in 2001. He only played for their reserves team however so his time at the Stade Grimonprez-Jooris was equally fleeting though but he finally found his feet at R.A.A. Louviéroise, La Louvière, making 72 league appearances over the next two-and-a-half seasons and growing in stature. While at La Louvière he helped them win the 2003 Belgian Cup Final, 2002–03 Belgian Cup.

Club Brugge

At La Louvière, Klukowski attracted interest from Club Brugge K.V., Club Brugge who signed him in a deal thought to be worth €900,000 during the winter break in January 2005. He initially had to bide his time at the Jan Breydel Stadium but did make six appearances towards the end of the campaign as Club Brugge sealed the title. Klukowski was the number one left back for five seasons with Brugge. He replaced Peter Van Der Heyden, who suffered a knee injury, during the last season with Trond Sollied. Klukowski left Brugge with 178 official games including 26 European appearances and two Belgian Supercup Final appearances.

Ankaragücü

In mid-August 2010 Klukowski moved to Süper Lig club MKE Ankaragücü, Ankaragücü for an estimated value of €750,000 while signing a three-year deal. He made his debut for the club in a 1–1 home draw against Kayserispor on 27 August 2010. Klukowski scored his first goal in Turkey on 4 December 2010 in a 1–1 home draw against Sivasspor, scoring the opening goal in the 11th minute at the Ankara 19 Mayıs Stadium until Erman Kılıç tied it up with a goal in the 56th. In early April 2011 it was announced that Klukowski was leaving Ankaragücü over unpaid wages. The club was in the news earlier that year when former England international Darius Vassell was kicked out of his hotel room because the club failed to pay for his accommodation.

Manisaspor

In early June prior to the 2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup it was announced that Klukowski had signed for Manisaspor for the upcoming season. Canadian international Josh Simpson (Canadian soccer player), Josh Simpson Manisaspor's leading goal scorer from the 2010–11 Süper Lig, 2010–11 season played a major factor in Klukowski's decision to sign with the Western Turkish club. Klukowski made his debut for Manisaspor on 10 September in a 1–1 draw against Trabzonspor.

APOEL

On 20 July 2012, Klukowski signed a two-year contract with Cypriot side APOEL F.C., APOEL. At the end of the season he was crowned champion after winning the 2012–13 Cypriot First Division with APOEL.

International career

After representing Canada at the 2001 FIFA World Youth Championship in Argentina, Klukowski made the step up to the senior side in March 2003. He made his debut for Canada men's national soccer team, Canada in a February 2003 friendly match against Libya national football team, Libya. He has represented Canada in ten FIFA World Cup qualification matches. As of 13 June 2012, he has earned a total of 36 caps, scoring no goals. He managed to make the All-Tournament team of the 2009 CONCACAF Gold Cup along with fellow Canadian Julian de Guzman.

Personal life

Born to Polish parents who had stopped in Austria while on their way to Canada, Klukowski is of Polish descent and holds Polish citizenship. Klukowski's son, Antoni Klukowski, Antoni, is also a soccer player who plays in Poland for Pogoń Szczecin, Pogoń Szczecin II.

Honours

La Louvière *Belgian Cup: 2003 Belgian Cup Final, 2002–03 Club Brugge *Belgian Super Cup: 2005 Belgian Super Cup, 2005 *Belgian Cup: 2006–07 Belgian Cup, 2006–07 Canada *CONCACAF Gold Cup All-Tournament Team: 2009 CONCACAF Gold Cup, 2009

References

External links

APOEL official profile
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archive
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Guardian Football
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Klukowski, Michael 1981 births Living people Men's association football defenders Canadian men's soccer players Canada men's international soccer players 2009 CONCACAF Gold Cup players 2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup players Canadian expatriate men's soccer players Expatriate men's footballers in France Canadian expatriate sportspeople in France Expatriate men's footballers in Belgium Canadian expatriate sportspeople in Belgium Dijon FCO players Lille OSC players R.A.A. Louviéroise players Club Brugge KV players Manisaspor footballers APOEL FC players Belgian Pro League players Expatriate men's footballers in Turkey Expatriate men's footballers in Cyprus Süper Lig players Cypriot First Division players Canadian people of Polish descent Austrian people of Polish descent People from Amstetten, Lower Austria Canada men's youth international soccer players US Tourquennoise players 21st-century Canadian sportsmen