View source for Allan Nielsen

{{Short description|Danish footballer (born 1971)}}
{{For multi|the footballer born in 1976|Allan Nielsen (footballer, born 1976)|the footballer born in 1953|Allan Nielsen (footballer, born 1953)}}
{{BLP sources|date=January 2013}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2021}}
{{Infobox football biography
| name = Allan Nielsen
| image =
| height = {{height|ft=5|in=8}}
| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|df=yes|1971|3|13}}
| birth_place = [[Esbjerg]], Denmark
| position = [[Midfielder]]
| youthyears1 =
| youthclubs1 = SGI
| youthyears2 = 1989
| youthclubs2 = [[Esbjerg fB|Esbjerg]]
| years1 = 1989–1991
| clubs1 = [[FC Bayern Munich|Bayern Munich]]
| caps1 = 1
| goals1 = 0
| years2 = 1991
| clubs2 = [[FC Sion|Sion]]
| caps2 = 0
| goals2 = 0
| years3 = 1991–1993
| clubs3 = [[Odense Boldklub|Odense]]
| caps3 = 55
| goals3 = 9
| years4 = 1994–1995
| clubs4 = [[F.C. Copenhagen|Copenhagen]]
| caps4 = 26
| goals4 = 3
| years5 = 1995–1996
| clubs5 = [[Brøndby IF|Brøndby]]
| caps5 = 42
| goals5 = 11
| years6 = 1996–2000
| clubs6 = [[Tottenham Hotspur F.C.|Tottenham Hotspur]]
| caps6 = 97
| goals6 = 12
| years7 = 2000
| clubs7 = → [[Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C.|Wolverhampton Wanderers]] (loan)
| caps7 = 7
| goals7 = 2
| years8 = 2000–2003
| clubs8 = [[Watford F.C.|Watford]]
| caps8 = 100
| goals8 = 19
| years9 = 2003–2004
| clubs9 = [[Herfølge Boldklub|Herfølge]]
| caps9 = 18
| goals9 = 3
| totalcaps = 346
| totalgoals = 59
| nationalyears1 = 1995–2002
| nationalteam1 = [[Denmark national football team|Denmark]]
| nationalcaps1 = 44
| nationalgoals1 = 7
| manageryears1 = 2003–2004
| managerclubs1 = [[Herfølge Boldklub|Herfølge]] (assistant)
| manageryears2 = 2004–2005
| managerclubs2 = [[Herfølge Boldklub|Herfølge]]
}}
'''Allan Nielsen''' ({{IPA|da|ˈæ.læn ˈne̝l.sn̩}}; born 13 March 1971) is a Danish former professional [[association football|footballer]] who played as a [[midfielder]]. His most notable period of football was four years at [[Premier League|English Premier League]] club [[Tottenham Hotspur F.C.|Tottenham Hotspur]] with whom he won the [[1999 Football League Cup Final|1999 League Cup]], scoring the winning goal.

He was also an integral part of the [[Denmark national football team|Denmark national team]] from 1996 to 2001, playing a total of 44 matches and scoring seven goals. He competed for Denmark in the international [[UEFA Euro 1996|1996 European Championship]] (Euro 1996), [[1998 FIFA World Cup]] and [[UEFA Euro 2000|Euro 2000]] tournaments.

==Career==
Nielsen was born in [[Esbjerg]], Denmark. Having never played a senior match for [[Esbjerg fB|Esbjerg]], whom he joined from the academy of Sædding-Guldager Idrætsforening (SGI),<ref>{{cite news |last1=Sørensen |first1=Jesper |title=Fire på stribe: Lokal klub er mester i at lave VM-stjerner |url=https://www.tvsyd.dk/vm-i-fodbold-2018/fire-pa-stribe-lokal-klub-er-mester-i-lave-vm-stjerner |work=TV SYD |date=29 June 2018 |language=da}}</ref> he moved abroad in 1989 to play for German [[Bundesliga]] team [[FC Bayern Munich|Bayern Munich]] at the age of 18. In his three years at the club, he played only six minutes in a single game in May 1991, as he came on as a substitute in a 7–3 win against [[Hertha BSC]]. Failing to break through at Bayern Munich, he left the club in the summer 1991. Nielsen initially signed a three-year contract with [[FC Sion|Sion]] in June 1991, but he never played a game for the club. He swiftly moved back to Denmark, to play with [[Odense Boldklub|OB]] in the [[Danish Superliga]] championship, where he debuted in September 1991.

At Odense, he was a part of the team that won the 1993 [[Danish Cup]] and he was then brought to league rivals [[F.C. Copenhagen|Copenhagen]] in 1994. He played a single season for the club, where he was [[Captain (association football)|team captain]], before he moved to main rivals [[Brøndby IF|Brøndby]] in 1995. In his year at Brøndby, the club won the [[1995–96 Danish Superliga]] championship, and Nielsen was named the Brøndby ''1995 Player of the Year''. He was called up for the Danish national team under national manager [[Richard Møller Nielsen]]. Nielsen made his debut against [[Armenia national football team|Armenia]] on 16 August 1995. He came on as a substitute and following 45 seconds on the pitch, he scored the second goal in Denmark's 2–0 win. He was called up to represent Denmark at the [[UEFA Euro 1996|Euro '96]] tournament hosted by England, where he scored one goal in his only match, the 3–0 win against [[Turkey national football team|Turkey]].

After Euro 1996, Brøndby received a [[transfer fee]] of [[Pound (currency)|£]]1.65 million, when Nielsen moved to England to play for [[Premier League]] club [[Tottenham Hotspur F.C.|Tottenham Hotspur]]. He played nearly 100 league matches for Tottenham, and he was a pivotal player when the club won the [[1999 Football League Cup Final|1999 League Cup]]. In the final minute, he scored a diving header to give Tottenham a 1–0 win against [[Leicester City F.C.|Leicester City]], and Nielsen was subsequently honoured as "[[Man of the Match]]".<ref>{{cite news |title= Sport: Football Nielsen nicks it for Spurs |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sport/football/300408.stm | date = 22 March 1999 | access-date = 28 January 2019 | website = BBC News}}</ref> Following controversies with Tottenham manager [[George Graham (footballer, born 1944)|George Graham]], Nielsen moved down a league in March 2000, when he was [[loan (football)|loaned out]] to [[Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C.|Wolverhampton Wanderers]] in the [[Football League First Division|English First Division]] in a three-month deal. During his time at Tottenham, he represented the Danish national team in five games at the [[1998 FIFA World Cup]], scoring a single goal against [[South Africa national football team|South Africa]], as well as in two games at the Euro 2000 tournament.

He permanently moved away from Tottenham after [[UEFA Euro 2000|Euro 2000]], in July 2000, to play for English First Division team [[Watford F.C.|Watford]]. He was signed by Watford manager [[Graham Taylor (footballer)|Graham Taylor]] for £2.5 million, which at the time was the highest fee the club had ever paid for a player. After three seasons at the club, Nielsen returned to Denmark in 2003 for Superliga [[relegation]] battlers [[Herfølge Boldklub|Herfølge]] in a role as player/assistant coach. Following a bad first half of the [[2003–04 Danish Superliga|2003–04 season]], head coach [[Johnny Petersen]] was fired and Nielsen was promoted to player/coach, in a coaching partnership with former national team player and Esbjerg native [[Michael Schjønberg]]. They managed to finish just above the relegation zone at the end of the season. For the subsequent [[2004–05 Danish Superliga|2004–05 season]], Nielsen decided to focus exclusively on coaching, but to no avail as Herfølge was relegated, and he announced his coaching days were over.

==Personal life==
On 20 August 2011, Nielsen married equestrian [[Tina Lund]].<ref>{{cite news |last1=Schiødt |first1=Peter |title=Bryllup: Så fik Tina Lund sin Allan - TV 2 |url=https://underholdning.tv2.dk/2011-08-20-bryllup-saa-fik-tina-lund-sin-allan |work=underholdning.tv2.dk |date=20 August 2011 |language=da-DK}}</ref> The couple moved to [[Dubai]] in 2013, but returned to Denmark in 2021.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Lagerstorf |first1=Nicklas Erik |title=Slut med Dubai: Tina Lund og Allan Nielsen flytter hjem til Danmark |url=https://www.seoghoer.dk/reality/slut-med-dubai-tina-lund-og-allan-nielsen-flytter-hjem-til-danmark |website=SE og HØR |date=19 August 2021 |language=da}}</ref>

During the [[COVID-19 pandemic]], Nielsen drew controversy for spreading [[COVID-19 misinformation|misinformation regarding COVID-19]] and [[COVID-19 vaccine misinformation and hesitancy|its vaccines]].<ref>{{cite news |last1=Aagaard |first1=Mads |last2=Olrik |first2=Anna |title=Shitstorm {{!}} Allan Nielsen og det vilde internet, Jens Rohdes ungdom og Nyt fra provinsen {{!}} DR LYD |url=https://www.dr.dk/lyd/p1/shitstorm/shitstorm-2020-08-29 |work=DR |date=29 August 2020 |language=da}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Antonsen |first1=Iben Bjørgulf |title=Jeg mødte toppen af den danske konspirationsbevægelse. Og fandt ud af, hvorfor den er klar til at indtage gaderne |url=https://www.zetland.dk/historie/s8aL16KM-aOPVzZzY-9ddcf |website=Zetland |language=da |date=2 September 2020}}</ref>

==Career statistics==
===International goals===
:''Scores and results list Denmark's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Nielsen goal.''

{| class="wikitable sortable"
|+ List of international goals scored by Allan Nielsen
|-
!scope="col"|No.
!scope="col"|Date
!scope="col"|Venue
!scope="col"|Opponent
!scope="col"|Score
!scope="col"|Result
!scope="col"|Competition
|-
| align="center"|1 || 16 August 1995 || [[Yerevan]], Armenia || {{fb|ARM}} || align="center"|2–0 || align="center"|2–0 || [[1996 UEFA European Football Championship qualifying#Group 2|Euro 1996 qualification]]
|-
| align="center"|2 || 19 June 1996 || [[Sheffield]], England || {{fb|TUR}} || align="center"|2–0 || align="center"|3–0 || [[1996 UEFA European Football Championship|Euro 1996]]
|-
| align="center"|3 || 1 September 1996 || [[Ljubljana]], Slovenia || {{fb|SVN}} || align="center"|1–0 || align="center"|2–0 || [[1998 FIFA World Cup qualification (UEFA)#UEFA Group 1|1998 World Cup qualification]]
|-
| align="center"|4 || rowspan="2"|30 April 1997 || rowspan="2"|[[Copenhagen]], Denmark || rowspan="2"|{{fb|SVN}} || align="center"|1–0 || rowspan="2" style="text-align:center"|4–0 || rowspan="2"| 1998 World Cup qualification
|-
| align="center"|5 || align="center"|4–0
|-
| align="center"|6 || 18 June 1998 || [[Toulouse]], France || {{fb|RSA}} || align="center"|1–0 || align="center"|1–1 || [[1998 FIFA World Cup|1998 World Cup]]
|-
| align="center"|7 || 4 September 1999 || Copenhagen, Denmark || {{fb|SUI}} || align="center"|1–0 || align="center"|2–1 || [[2000 UEFA European Football Championship qualifying#Group 1|Euro 2000 qualification]]
|}

==Honours==
'''Odense'''
*[[Danish Cup]]: 1992–93

'''Brøndby'''
*[[Danish Superliga]]: 1995–96

'''Tottenham Hotspur'''
*[[Football League Cup]]: [[1998–99 Football League Cup|1998–99]]<ref>{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sport/football/300408.stm |title=Nielsen nicks it for Spurs |website=BBC Sport |date=22 March 1999 |access-date=30 March 2024}}</ref>

'''Individual'''
*[[Alan Hardaker Trophy]]: 1999
*[[Danish Player of the Year|Danish ''Player of the Year'']]: 1996

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
* {{DBU player|1560}}
* {{NFT player|13783}}
* {{Soccerbase}}

{{Navboxes
| title = Denmark squads
| bg        = #E11B22
| fg        = white
| bordercolor = #AC181E
| list =
{{Denmark squad UEFA Euro 1996}}
{{Denmark squad 1998 FIFA World Cup}}
{{Denmark squad UEFA Euro 2000}}
}}
{{Navboxes
| title = Awards
| bg = gold
| fg = navy
| list =
{{Danish Football Player of the Year}}
{{Alan Hardaker Trophy}}
}}
{{Herfølge BK managers}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nielsen, Allan}}
[[Category:1971 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Footballers from Esbjerg]]
[[Category:Danish men's footballers]]
[[Category:Men's association football midfielders]]
[[Category:FC Bayern Munich II players]]
[[Category:FC Bayern Munich footballers]]
[[Category:FC Sion players]]
[[Category:Odense Boldklub players]]
[[Category:F.C. Copenhagen players]]
[[Category:Brøndby IF players]]
[[Category:Tottenham Hotspur F.C. players]]
[[Category:Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C. players]]
[[Category:Watford F.C. players]]
[[Category:Herfølge Boldklub players]]
[[Category:Bundesliga players]]
[[Category:Danish Superliga players]]
[[Category:Premier League players]]
[[Category:English Football League players]]
[[Category:Denmark men's international footballers]]
[[Category:UEFA Euro 1996 players]]
[[Category:1998 FIFA World Cup players]]
[[Category:UEFA Euro 2000 players]]
[[Category:Danish expatriate men's footballers]]
[[Category:Danish expatriate sportspeople in West Germany]]
[[Category:Danish expatriate sportspeople in Switzerland]]
[[Category:Danish expatriate sportspeople in England]]
[[Category:Expatriate men's footballers in West Germany]]
[[Category:Expatriate men's footballers in Switzerland]]
[[Category:Expatriate men's footballers in England]]
[[Category:Danish football managers]]
[[Category:Herfølge Boldklub managers]]
[[Category:Danish Superliga managers]]
[[Category:COVID-19 conspiracy theorists]]