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Gerald Asamoah (German pronunciation: [ˈgeːʁalt ʔazaˈmoː.aː]; born 3 October 1978 in Mampong, Ghana) is a retired Ghanaian-born German former footballerHe is known for his "pace and strength."
Early life
Born in Ghana, Asamoah and his family emigrated to Germany in 1990.
Career
Club career
He started his career with Hannover 96 where he played 79 games before moving to Schalke in 1999. He played over 275 league games for the club over 11 years with the team. On 1 June 2010, Asamoah signed a two-year contract with the then Bundesliga-promoted club St. Pauli. In June 2011 he terminated this contract. From 12 July 2011 on, Asamoah was at VfB Hüls, keeping himself fit. After six months without a club, Asamoah signed for SpVgg Greuther Fürth on 10 January 2012. Asamoah won the second division title with SpVgg Greuther Fürth and played in the Bundesliga in the 2012–13 season. On 15 July 2013, it was announced that Asamoah will return to Schalke 04 as a player for Schalke's second team.
International career
Asamoah made his debut for Germany in 2001 against Slovakia, making him the first African-born black player to ever play for the side, as Erwin Kostedde and Jimmy Hartwig, two previous internationals with black ancestry, were both born in Germany to African-American fathers. He scored on his debut, and went on to play in the 2002 and 2006 World Cups.
International goals
| # | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | 29 May 2001 | Weserstadion, Bremen, Germany |  Slovakia | Friendly | ||
| 2. | 13 February 2002 | Fritz-Walter-Stadion, Kaiserslautern, Germany |  Israel | Friendly | ||
| 3. | 21 December 2004 | Rajamangala Stadium, Bangkok, Thailand |  Thailand | Friendly | ||
| 4. | 4 June 2005 | Windsor Park, Belfast, Northern Ireland |  Northern Ireland | Friendly | ||
| 5. | 21 June 2005 | Frankenstadion, Nuremberg, Germany |  Argentina | 2005 Confederations Cup | ||
| 6. | 17 August 2005 | Windsor Park, Belfast, Northern Ireland | Northern Ireland | Friendly |
Career statistics
Club performance
- As of 1 July 2013
| Club performance | League | Cup | Continental | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Club | League | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals |
| Germany | League | DFB-Pokal | Europe | Total | ||||||
| 1998–99 | Hannover 96 | 2. Bundesliga | 21 | 4 | 1 | 0 | - | - | 22 | 4 |
| 1999–00 | Schalke 04 | Bundesliga | 33 | 4 | 2 | 1 | - | - | 35 | 5 |
| 2000–01 | 29 | 4 | 6 | 4 | - | - | 35 | 8 | ||
| 2001–02 | 32 | 6 | 6 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 43 | 7 | ||
| 2002–03 | 27 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 36 | 4 | ||
| 2003–04 | 24 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 28 | 4 | ||
| 2004–05 | 31 | 8 | 5 | 1 | 7 | 1 | 43 | 10 | ||
| 2005–06 | 24 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 10 | 1 | 35 | 4 | ||
| 2006–07 | 13 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 16 | 4 | ||
| 2007–08 | 31 | 7 | 3 | 3 | 10 | 1 | 44 | 11 | ||
| 2008–09 | 27 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 5 | 1 | 34 | 4 | ||
| 2009–10 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 0 | - | - | 8 | 1 | ||
| 2010–11 | St. Pauli | 27 | 6 | 0 | 0 | - | - | 27 | 6 | |
| 2011–12 | Greuther Fürth | 2. Bundesliga | 10 | 5 | 2 | 0 | - | - | 12 | 5 |
| 2012–13 | Bundesliga | 17 | 0 | 1 | 0 | - | - | 18 | 0 | |
| Career total | 354 | 59 | 33 | 13 | 49 | 5 | 436 | 77 | ||
Personal life
Asamoah is married and has two children, twins Jada and Jaden (born 26 February 2007). He suffers from a heart condition, hypertrophic non-obstructive cardiomyopathy. In his case, the flesh lobe that separates the right and left heart chambers is extremely thick, which can cause an arrhythmic heartbeat. Asamoah's brother Lewis last played for 1. FC Wülfrath and his cousin Emmanuel plays for the U-17 of FC St. Pauli. On 13 January 2016, Asamoah accepted the 2015 FIFA Fair Play Award on behalf of football organizations and clubs around the world, working to support refugees in the face of conflict.
Honours
- Schalke 04
- DFB-Pokal: 2000–01, 2001–02
- DFB-Ligapokal: 2005
- UEFA Intertoto Cup 2003, 2004
- Greuther Fürth
- 2. Bundesliga: 2011–12
- Germany
- FIFA World Cup Runner-up: 2002; Third Place: 2006
- FIFA Confederations Cup Third Place: 2005