Daniel Jensen


Daniel Monberg Jensen is a Danish former professional footballer. He was a central midfielder known for making good passes in the final third of the field. He played more than 50 matches and scored three goals for the Danish national team, and represented his country at the 2004 European Championship. He is the younger brother of a retired former Denmark international player Niclas Jensen.

Club career

Early career

Born in Copenhagen, Daniel Jensen started playing football at B93 in the secondary Danish 1st Division. He was called up for Danish under-19 national team in September 1995, and made his senior debut for Boldklubben in the fall 1996. He played a total 16 matches and scored three goals for the under-19 national team, before he was sold to Dutch club Heerenveen in July 1998.

Heerenveen

While at Heerenveen, he played 19 games and scored two goals for the Danish under-21 national team. In February 2002, he made his Danish national team debut under national coach Morten Olsen.
After more than 100 league matches for Heerenveen, his contract ran out in the summer 2003, and he left the club on a free transfer.

Murcia

Jensen sought a move to a club in the Spanish La Liga championship, and signed a one-year contract with newly promoted team Real Murcia in August 2003. Murcia ended last in the 2003–04 La Liga season, and Jensen was reported on his way to a number of German clubs. He was called up to the Danish team for the 2004 European Championship in June 2004. He began the Euro 2004 tournament as a part of the Danish starting line-up, and played full-time in the first two matches against Italy and Bulgaria. He was replaced by Christian Poulsen during Denmark's third match, and saw the quarter-final defeat to the Czech Republic from the bench. Back from Euro 2004, Murcia used a clause in Jensen's contract to prolong it for another two years. The extension hindered Jensen from leaving the club on a free transfer, and he was sold to German club Werder Bremen for €1 million in July 2004.

Werder Bremen

In August 2006, he was a part of the German League Cup winning Werder Bremen team. In January 2008, Jensen signed an extension to his contract with Werder Bremen, that would keep him at the club until 2011.
On 11 May 2011, Jensen was released from his contract a month early due to comments made about the coaching staff after being left out of the squad against Borussia Dortmund. "There was a discussion between him and coach Thomas Schaaf this morning and he has been released with immediate effect," sports director Klaus Allofs said in a statement, "He does not play any role in our planning any more."

Later career

In December 2011, he joined Italian Serie A club Novara on trial, in an attempt to get a new contract. In January 2012, Jensen signed a contract with Novara that kept him at the club until 2013.

Personal life

Jensen's older brother Niclas was also a professional footballer. Like Daniel, Niclas also represented Denmark at international level and played in the Bundesliga.

International goals

#DateVenueOpponentScoreResultCompetition
1.11 October 2006Rheinpark Stadion, Vaduz1–04–0Euro 2008 qualification
2.6 February 2007Loftus Road, London2–03–1Friendly match
3.10 September 2008Estádio José Alvalade, Lisbon3–23–2FIFA World Cup 2010 qualifying

Honours