Richard Møller Nielsen

Richard Møller
	Nielsen in 2010
Personal information
Date of birth	19 August 1937
Place of birth	Store Ubberud, Odense, Denmark
Date of death	13 February 2014 (aged 76)
Place of death	Odense, Denmark
Senior career*
Years	Team
1955–1962	Odense BK
International career
1959–1961	Denmark
Managerial career
1962–1964	Brobyværk IF
1964–1968	Odense BK
1968–1969	Esbjerg fB
1969–1974	Svendborg fB
1974–1975	B 1909
1975–1985	Odense BK
1978–1989	Denmark U21
1987–1990	Denmark (assistant)
1989	Denmark (futsal)
1990–1996	Denmark
1996–1999	Finland
2000–2002	Israel
2003	Kolding FC
Medal record
Men's football
Representing Denmark (as manager)
UEFA European Championship
FIFA Confederations Cup
CONMEBOL–UEFA Cup of Champions
	*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Richard Møller Nielsen (19 August 1937 – 13 February 2014) was a Danish football player and manager. He coached the Denmark national football team that won the UEFA Euro 1992 tournament. In 1995, he was awarded a gold version of the Medal of Merit. He was the father of Tommy Møller Nielsen.

Career

Nielsen was mostly known for his career as a football coach, but he played for Odense BK, and was capped twice for Denmark as a defender. An injury ended his career.

Nielsen coached, among others, Esbjerg fB, Odense BK and the Danish national youth team under head coach Sepp Piontek. In 1990 Piontek left his position as national coach, and replacement was required. Nielsen was mentioned early in the race for the job, but the Danish Football Association decided to look abroad for a new coach. They selected German Horst Wohlers as the new Danish coach, but he was unable to cancel his contract with German club Bayer Uerdingen,^[1] so Nielsen was appointed.^{[citation needed]}

European Champions

The first aim for Nielsen was to qualify for the Euro 1992 in Sweden. Denmark started out with a secure home victory against the Faroe Islands, followed by an away draw against Northern Ireland and a 2–0 home loss against Yugoslavia. Several players left the squad including Michael Laudrup, Brian Laudrup and Jan Heintze, and several newspapers were demanding that Richard Møller Nielsen step down. Despite the criticism, the team won the rest of their games in the group, including a 2–1 away win against Yugoslavia. It was, however, not enough to qualify. The Danish team finished second in the group just behind Yugoslavia.

However, UEFA banned Yugoslavia from participating in the championship as a result of the Yugoslav wars, and Denmark was chosen as the replacement because the team had finished second behind Yugoslavia in the qualification group. The Danish team started out with a 0–0 against England and a defeat against hosts Sweden. A 2–1 win against France ensured Denmark a place in the semifinals. The defending European champions, The Netherlands, were the next opponent. The match finished 2–2 in regular time and with a 5–4 win in the penalty shoot-out, Denmark secured a place in the final against reigning world champions Germany. Denmark won the final 2–0, becoming the highlight of Nielsen's coaching career; he went on to win the "World Manager of the Year" awarded by World Soccer.^[2]

Confederations Cup winners

Denmark started the World Cup qualification for the 1994 FIFA World Cup with three 0–0 draws, before winning 1–0 against Northern Ireland in Belfast. On the 25 August 1993, Michael Laudrup made a comeback in a 4–0 victory home against Lithuania after having reconciled with Nielsen. The comeback of Denmark's most renowned player at the time was not enough to secure a qualification. Laudrup never achieved the same success under Nielsen as he had enjoyed during the 1980s with Piontek as coach and Preben Elkjær next to him in the attack. The last game of the qualification was away against Spain in Seville, and the home team won 1–0, even though the Danes had been playing 11 against 10 for most of the game.

Nielsen could, however, again secure a trophy for Denmark when they participated in the Confederations Cup in 1995. This time the Danish team beat Argentina 2–0 in the final. Nielsen had several players from the national Danish league in his squad, with players like Peter Schmeichel missing due to obligations with Manchester United.

The Danish team qualified for the Euro 1996 tournament in England, but the team failed to retain the title. Denmark was knocked out in the group stage, where the team finished third behind Croatia and Portugal. The team drew with Portugal, lost to Croatia and won against Turkey in the last game. Nielsen left his position after the championship but is still considered the most successful coach of Denmark.^[3]

Finland and Israel

Nielsen went on to coach the Finland national football team and came close at securing a play-off game for the 1998 World Cup in France. The Finnish team also failed to qualify for the Euro 2000 in Belgium and The Netherlands.

In 2000, Nielsen took over as coach of the Israel national team, but Israel did not succeed in securing a place at the 2002 World Cup. It was Nielsen's last international job. He went on to manage the Danish second division team Kolding FC before retiring in October 2003.

Odense BK has dedicated one of the stands at Odense Stadion to Richard Møller Nielsen Tribunen. The city of Odense has dedicated a square adjacent to the stadium after the city's legendary coach.^{[citation needed]}

Death

Nielsen died on 13 February 2014,^[4] following the unsuccessful removal of a brain tumour in September 2013. He was survived by his wife, three children and six grandchildren.

Managerial statistics

Team	From	To	Record
Team	From	To	G	W	D	L	Win %
Denmark	1990	1996	62	33	17	12	053.23
Finland	1996	1999	18	4	6	8	022.22
Israel	2000	2002	19	7	4	8	036.84
Total			99	44	27	28	044.44

Managerial honours

Club

Odense BK

Danish 1st Division: 1977, 1982
Danish Cup: 1983

International

Denmark

Individual

World Soccer Manager of the Year: 1992

References

^ Da Horst Wohlers blev præsenteret som dansk landstræner^{[permanent dead link‍]}, Berlingske Tidende, June 7, 2005
^ "World Soccer Awards: Previous Winners". World Soccer. 15 December 2011. Archived from the original on 17 October 2014. Retrieved 11 January 2012.
^ "A-landsholdets historie 1889–; 1996" (in Danish). Archived from the original on 29 March 2013. Retrieved 27 August 2008.
^ Niels Abildtrup (13 February 2014). "Efter længere tids sygdom: Richard Møller Nielsen er død". fyens.dk (in Danish). Archived from the original on 16 August 2016. Retrieved 13 February 2014.

External links

Danish national coach profile
Richard Møller Nielsen national team profile at the Danish Football Association (in Danish)
Order of the Dannebrog^{[permanent dead link‍]}

[1] Da Horst Wohlers blev præsenteret som dansk landstræner^{[permanent dead link‍]}, Berlingske Tidende, June 7, 2005

[PrevWinners-2] "World Soccer Awards: Previous Winners". World Soccer. 15 December 2011. Archived from the original on 17 October 2014. Retrieved 11 January 2012.

[3] "A-landsholdets historie 1889–; 1996" (in Danish). Archived from the original on 29 March 2013. Retrieved 27 August 2008.

[4] Niels Abildtrup (13 February 2014). "Efter længere tids sygdom: Richard Møller Nielsen er død". fyens.dk (in Danish). Archived from the original on 16 August 2016. Retrieved 13 February 2014.

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Authority control databases
International	VIAF
National	Germany