Squad No: 1
Position: Goalkeeper
Age: 37
Birth Date: Oct 6, 1972
Birth Place: Sydney, Australia
Height: 6' 5" (1.96m)
Weight: 217 lbs (98.4 kg)
Club: Fulham (England)
International Caps: 74
Club History
Middlesbrough (ENG): 1997-2008
Bradford City (ENG): 1996-1997
1. FC Kaiserslautern (GER): 1995-1996
Dynamo Dresden (GER): 1994-1995
Marconi Stallions (AUS): 1990-1994
from Wikipedia (full wiki)
Schwarzer made his international debut for Australia against Canada in Edmonton in a 1994 World Cup qualifier. He came on as a substitute for Milan Blagojevic after first-choice Robert Zabica was sent off 17 minutes into the match. In the return leg in Sydney, he covered himself in glory when he saved two penalties to send Australia to the final phase of qualifying against Argentina. Schwarzer did not play in these matches, and Australia were defeated 2–1 on aggregate.
He was instrumental in Australia's qualification for the 2006 FIFA World Cup, in the play-off against Uruguay. After Uruguay won the first leg 1–0 in Montevideo, Australia won 1–0 in Sydney. In the penalty shootout, Schwarzer saved two penalties to see Australia victorious 4–2.
At the World Cup Finals he played the first two games in Australia's group matches, conceding a controversial goal against Japan and two goals against Brazil. In the third match he was replaced by Zeljko Kalac, but after Kalac's disappointing performance he was reinstated for the Round of 16 match against Italy.
Even though he predicted the direction of the penalty kick, he was unable to save the penalty in the second round of the World Cup against Italy, which was scored by Francesco Totti in injury time and sent Australia out of the World Cup.
After the World Cup in 2006, he vowed to return for the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa. He played in all of Australia's matches in the 2007 Asian Cup although he performed admirably against Oman in the 1–1 draw he made an error which led to a goal in the 3–1 loss to Iraq and could not match Japanese goalkeeper Yoshikatsu Kawaguchi during the penalty shootout which saw the Socceroos crash out of the competition in their debut at the tournament. Schwarzer said that the penalty-shootout in the Asian Cup quarter-finals was the first penalty-shootout in his career that he had ever lost.
Schwarzer saved an 89th minute Shao Jiayi penalty against China in Australia's 0–0 draw in the 2010 World Cup qualifier in March 2008, continuing his record of stopping penalty kicks. He received his second yellow card of the tournament against Qatar in Doha, in which Australia were 3–1 winners. He also missed Australia's second leg game against the Chinese in Sydney. He played every minute for the Socceroos in round two of qualification, conceding only one goal – in the final game against Japan.
Mark Schwarzer made several vital saves to secure Australia's Asian Cup Qualifier come back win (2–1) over Oman in Muscat after conceding from his penalty save rebound.
from ESPN SoccerNet
The towering goalkeeper has aged like a fine wine, seemingly getting better and better for club and country as he approaches his late 30s. Schwarzer's critical penalty shootout saves against Uruguay took Australia to the 2006 World Cup, and though less dramatic, his contribution over the course of the Socceroos' first Asian qualification campaign was just as crucial. Another penalty stop in China helped Australia cruise to the final stage of qualifying where they conceded just once in eight games, the goal coming after qualification was already secured.
After more than a decade of reliable service at Middlesbrough, Schwarzer signed for Fulham in 2008 and helped the Premier League side to a Europa League berth on the back of consistent rearguard displays. Some of the shot-stopper's club highlights include yet another penalty save while at Middlesbrough from Manchester City's Robbie Fowler, which came in the last minute of the 2004-05 season and earned his side a UEFA Cup spot; and during Manchester United's visit to Fulham in 2008-09, when Schwarzer's heroic saves kept out the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo and Wayne Rooney as his team won 2-0.
Despite being a landmark tournament for Australian football, Germany 2006 didn't go to plan for Schwarzer. In the first game against Japan, Schwarzer was bumped aside by a striker as he leapt to take a cross, allowing the ball to float into the net. Replays showed he had been fouled, but had it not been for Tim Cahill's heroics saving the match, the goalkeeper could have been held accountable. Manager Guus Hiddink had doubts over his No. 1, and after losing 2-0 to Brazil, he controversially dropped Schwarzer for long-time rival Zeljko Kalac for the crucial Croatia match. The move backfired, with Kalac committing a howler that nearly sent Australia crashing out, and Schwarzer was reinstated for the Italy game, but his campaign had already been somewhat soured. He has been Australia's undisputed first-choice since.
Strengths: Reliable and consistent, good stopping shots, in the air and in one-on-one situations. Considered a solid all-rounder who has come up with penalty saves at the most opportune times.
Weaknesses: Not capable of consistently producing the kind of spectacular saves that would take him into the world-class bracket.
Career high: Not one but two instinctive saves to his left in the World Cup play-off second leg in Sydney on November 16, 2005 sent Australia onto football's biggest stage for the first time in 32 years.
Career low: Just months later, at the tournament itself, Guus Hiddink dropped Schwarzer for the erratic Zeljko Kalac. Hiddink had wanted to substitute Schwarzer for the play-off shootout, but ran out of changes.
Style: Mature, experienced, safe, commanding.
Quotes: "His credentials in both the domestic and international arenas are impeccable, which is reinforced by the calibre of clubs that wanted to sign him." Fulham manager Roy Hodgson, May 2008.
Trivia: Schwarzer writes children's books about a fictional footballer called Megs.
Soccernet says: After forming the 'Great Wall of Asia' with his back four in qualifying, Schwarzer's presence is key for Australia in South Africa. The team's strength lies at the back, starting with their experienced 'keeper.
from FIFA.com
Australia’s long-serving goalkeeper has become an icon of Australian football thanks to many years of confident displays and his involvement with the team’s historic results. He has been the undisputed No1 for a number of years and was pivotal in Australia reaching the 2006 FIFA World Cup™ and also South Africa 2010.
Although now 37 Schwarzer’s form is as good as ever and he is showing no sign of wanting to draw the curtain on a remarkable career. Now within sight of being Australia’s most capped player of all time, with the record currently held by former skipper Alex Tobin who made 87 appearances. Indeed Schwarzer's tally could have been significantly higher only for his career to overlap with the likes of Mark Bosnich and Zeljko Kalac. Missing out on playing during qualifiers for France 1998 meant Schwarzer has appeared in a total of four FIFA World Cup campaigns, but ultimately missed the opportunity to become the first Australian to appear in five.
After 11 years at Middlesbrough, Schwarzer has enjoyed a new lease of life since arriving at Fulham two years ago helping the club to seventh in his first season, while this term the Cottagers enjoyed a famous UEFA Europa League run. The 37-year-old’s fine form saw him collect the Premier League's Player of the Month for February.
An efficient shotstopper whose 196cm frame allows for domination of the penalty area. His untiring training ground ethic and commitment to the cause make Schwarzer an inspiration within the Socceroo camp. One of the group leaders Schwarzer has proudly captained his country on several occasions.
Schwarzer’s personal achievements are numerous and include 400 Premier League appearances and nearly 700 career matches. His well-documented penalty shoot-out heroics against Uruguay were key to Australia reaching Germany 2006 and the custodian helped Australia achieve a proud record of conceding just four goals in their 14 matches in qualification for South Africa 2010.
Renowned also for his ability to deny an opponent from the penalty spot, Schwarzer’s career has been intertwined with heroics from 12 yards. Indeed in his first full start for Australia at just 20 years old way back in 1993, he saved two penalties in a shoot-out to help the Socceroos overcome Canada in a FIFA World Cup qualifier. Few could imagine he would repeat that feat in far-more dramatic and historic circumstances with a double block at the end of Australia’s penalty shoot-out victory over Uruguay some 12 years later.
In the current campaign Schwarzer provided similar heroics stopping a late penalty to help Australia to a share of the points in China in just the second match of the campaign. It proved to be a sign of things to come as the Socceroos maintained their remarkable defensive record throughout the qualification series.
Sydney-born but with German parents, Schwarzer played his first two seasons overseas with Dynamo Dresden and Kaiserslautern meaning Australia’s South Africa 2010 opener against Germany will take on extra significance.
Mark Schwarzer's World Cup Destiny: From Sydney to Stuttgart
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