Template:Short description Template:Use dmy dates Template:Infobox football biography

Kazimierz Deyna ({{#invoke:IPA|main}};Template:Efn 23 October 1947 – 1 September 1989)<ref name="imdb0"/> was a Polish professional footballer who played as an attacking midfielder in the playmaker role and was one of the most highly regarded players of his generation, due to his excellent vision.<ref name="storiedicalcio">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Throughout his career he played for such clubs as Legia Warsaw, Manchester City and San Diego Sockers.

At the international level, he earned 97 caps and scored 41 goals helping Poland claim 3rd place at the 1974 FIFA World Cup. At the 1972 Summer Olympics, he won gold with Poland and was the top goalscorer of the tournament. From 1973 to 1978, he served as captain of the national representation. In 1976, he won silver medal at the 1976 Summer Olympics.

In 1973 and 1974, he won the Polish Footballer of the Year Award.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> In 1974, he claimed third place in the Ballon d'Or. He was named "the greatest Polish footballer of the 20th century" by the Piłka Nożna football weekly.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Early lifeEdit

Deyna was born in Starogard to Franciszek (1911–1976), a dairy worker, and Jadwiga (1917–1981),<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> a housewife. He had six sisters and two brothers, Henryk and Franciszek, who also were footballers. Henryk played for Włókniarz Starogard Gdański, while Franciszek was a Starogardzki KS player.<ref name="Deyna">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Club careerEdit

Legia WarsawEdit

Deyna began playing youth football in 1958 at his local club Włókniarz Starogard Gdański. In 1966 he made one appearance for ŁKS Łódź (on 8 October in a 0–0 draw against Górnik Zabrze).<ref name="Kariera">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> But he was quickly snapped up by Legia Warsaw. In communist Poland each team had its own "sponsor". The Warsaw club was much more powerful as it was the military club. Moreover, it was the favourite club of the authorities. Deyna was called up into the army and in this way he had to play for Legia Warsaw. He made a name for himself during his first season, becoming one of Legia's most important players. In 1969 and 1970 his team won the Polish Championship.<ref name="polish0">Template:Cite news</ref> After his performances at the 1974 World Cup, European top teams like AS Saint-Étienne, AS Monaco, Real Madrid and Bayern Munich tried to acquire his services but he was unable to join, since the communist regime in Poland prevented him from moving to Western Europe. Real Madrid was so determined to acquire Deyna that they sent a shirt to Warsaw with his name and number "14".

Manchester CityEdit

Soon afterwards Deyna was transferred to English club Manchester City, making his debut in November 1978,<ref name="heroes0">Template:Cite news</ref> and being one of the first wave of overseas players to play in the English league.<ref name="times090225"/> His time in England was marred by a series of injuries, and he left in January 1981, shortly after Manchester City made a managerial change, having made only 43 appearances in all competitions. However, he was regarded as an exceptionally gifted playmaker and became a cult figure with City fans.<ref name="times090225">Template:Cite news</ref> Deyna scored thirteen goals in his time with the club. Furthermore, his seven goals in the last eight games of the 1978–79 season were crucial for Manchester City in their relegation battle.

San Diego SockersEdit

File:Kazimierz deyna in sockers.jpg
The jersey that Deyna wore during his run on San Diego Sockers

Deyna appeared in the 1981 film Escape to Victory as Paul Wolcheck.<ref name="imdb0">Template:Cite news</ref> In the same year, he emigrated to the United States, where he signed with the San Diego Sockers of the North American Soccer League in January 1981. During the next seven years, he played four NASL outdoor seasons, one NASL indoor season and five Major Indoor Soccer League seasons with the Sockers, winning five championships. The Sockers released him in June 1987.<ref>Sockers set free Deyna, 4 others The San Diego Union (CA) – Friday, 12 June 1987</ref> He was a 1983 NASL Second Team All Star.<ref>NASL All Star Teams Template:Webarchive</ref>

International careerEdit

On 24 April 1968, Deyna made his debut for the Poland national team in a match against Turkey in Chorzów. He won the gold medal in the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich,<ref name="dbolympics0">Template:Cite news</ref> and the bronze in Football World Cup 1974, after a match against Brazil.<ref name="fifa1">Template:Cite news</ref> In 1972, he was also the Top Goalscorer of the Olympic Games, with a total of nine goals.<ref name="fifa0">Template:Cite news</ref>

In 1976 Summer Olympics his team yet again reached the finals and won the silver medal.<ref name="dbolympics0"/> Additionally, he was ranked third in the European Footballer of the Year for 1974, behind Johan Cruyff and Franz Beckenbauer.

Deyna played for Poland on 97 (84 after the deduction of Olympic Football Tournament competition games<ref name="fifa3">Template:Cite news</ref>) occasions, scoring 41 goals, and often captained the side. He had the ability to score from unusual positions, for example directly from a corner. Because of his achievements and talents, he was chosen Football Player of the Year several times by Polish fans. In 1978, he captained Poland at the Football World Cup in Argentina, where the team reached the second phase.

DeathEdit

Deyna died in a car accident in San Diego, California on 1 September 1989, aged 41 (just two days before another fatal car accident claimed the life of another international football star, the Italian Gaetano Scirea). In 1994, he was chosen by the Polish Football Association (PZPN) and the readers of all Polish sports-related newspapers as the Greatest Polish Football Player of All Time. His number 10 is retired by Legia Warsaw and the Sockers. In June 2012 Kazimierz Deyna's remains were exhumed and reburied in Warsaw's Powązki Military Cemetery.

Career statisticsEdit

ClubEdit

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Club Season League Cup League Cup Continental Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
ŁKS Łódź 1966–67 Ekstraklasa 1 0
Legia Warsaw 1966–67 Ekstraklasa 12 6 1 1 0 0 13 7
1967–68 23 6 2 0 4 4 29 10
1968–69 26 12 6 5 6 2 38 19
1969–70 23 5 4 3 8 3 35 11
1970–71 23 3 4 4 6 1 33 8
1971–72 26 10 6 8 4 0 36 18
1972–73 25 8 7 4 3 3 35 15
1973–74 27 8 3 2 5 2 35 12
1974–75 26 5 0 0 2 0 28 5
1975–76 26 11 2 1 28 12
1976–77 28 9 4 0 2 2 34 11
1977–78 28 9 4 1 33 10
1978–79 11 2 2 1 13 3
Total 304 93
Manchester City 1978–79 First Division 13 6 2 0 1 0 1 1 17 7
1979–80 22 6 0 0 1 0 23 6
1980–81 3 0 0 0 0 0 3 0
Total 38 12
San Diego Sockers 1981 North American Soccer League 39 15
1982 26 11
1983 18 15
1984 23 8
Total 106 49
Career total 449 159 539 203

InternationalEdit

Appearances and goals by national team and year
National team Year Apps Goals
Poland 1968 5 0
1969 8 7
1970 5 2
1971 5 1
1972 10 9
1973 14 1
1974 12 4
1975 8 6
1976 8 3
1977 12 4
1978 10 4
Total 97 41
Scores and results list Poland's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Deyna goal.
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No. Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1 20 April 1969 Kraków, Poland Template:Fb 4–0 8–0 1970 FIFA World Cup qualification
2 5–0
3 15 June 1969 Sofia, Bulgaria Template:Flagicon image Bulgaria 1–2 1–4 1970 FIFA World Cup qualification
4 27 August 1969 Łódź, Poland Template:Fb 3–0 6–1 Friendly
5 12 October 1969 Luxembourg, Luxembourg Template:Fb 1–1 5–1 1970 FIFA World Cup qualification
6 5–1
7 9 November 1969 Warsaw, Poland Template:Flagicon image Bulgaria 3–0 3–0 1970 FIFA World Cup qualification
8 16 May 1970 Kraków, Poland Template:Fb 1–0 1–1 Friendly
9 2 September 1970 Warsaw, Poland Template:Fb 2–0 5–0 Friendly
10 5 May 1971 Lausanne, Switzerland Template:Fb 3–1 4–2 Friendly
11 30 August 1972 Regensburg, West Germany Template:Fb 3–0 4–0 1972 Summer Olympics
12 3 September 1972 Regensburg, West Germany Template:Fb 1–1 1–1 1972 Summer Olympics
13 5 September 1972 Augsburg, West Germany Template:Fb 1–1 2–1 1972 Summer Olympics
14 8 September 1972 Nürnberg, West Germany Template:Fb 3–0 5–0 1972 Summer Olympics
15 5–0
16 10 September 1972 Munich, West Germany Template:Fb 1–1 2–1 1972 Summer Olympics
17 2–1
18 15 October 1972 Bydgoszcz, Poland Template:Fb 1–0 3–0 Friendly
19 2–0
20 10 October 1973 Rotterdam, Netherlands Template:Fb 1–1 1–1 Friendly
21 17 April 1974 Liège, Belgium Template:Fb 1–1 1–1 Friendly
22 19 June 1974 Munich, West Germany Template:Flagicon image Haiti 2–0 7–0 1974 FIFA World Cup
23 23 June 1974 Stuttgart, West Germany Template:Fb 2–0 2–1 1974 FIFA World Cup
24 30 June 1974 Frankfurt, West Germany Template:Fb 1–0 2–1 1974 FIFA World Cup
25 26 March 1975 Poznań, Poland Template:Fb 3–0 7–0 Friendly
26 6–0
27 7–0
28 6 July 1975 Montreal, Canada Template:Fb 3–0 8–1 Friendly
29 6–1
30 9 July 1975 Toronto, Canada Template:Fb 4–1 4–1 Friendly
31 22 July 1976 Montreal, Canada Template:Fb 2–1 3–2 1976 Summer Olympics
32 31 October 1976 Warsaw, Poland Template:Fb 1–0 5–0 1978 FIFA World Cup qualification
33 3–0
34 10 July 1977 Lima, Peru Template:Fb 2–0 3–1 Friendly
35 21 September 1977 Chorzów, Poland Template:Fb 3–0 4–1 1978 FIFA World Cup qualification
36 29 October 1977 Chorzów, Poland Template:Fb 1–0 1–1 1978 FIFA World Cup qualification
37 12 November 1977 Wrocław, Poland Template:Fb 2–1 2–1 Friendly
38 5 April 1978 Poznań, Poland Template:Fb 2–0 5–2 Friendly
39 4–0
40 12 April 1978 Łódź, Poland Template:Fb 2–0 3–0 Friendly
41 10 June 1978 Rosario, Argentina Template:Fb 2–1 3–1 1978 FIFA World Cup

HonoursEdit

File:Muzeum Legii Warszawa 05.JPG
Exhibition dedicated to Kazimierz Deyna at Legia Warsaw Museum
File:Pomnik Kazimierza Deyny w Warszawie 2021.jpg
Deyna's statue on Łazienkowska Street in Warsaw

Legia Warsaw<ref name="UEFA">Template:Cite news</ref>

Poland<ref name="UEFA"/>

Individual

  • Olympic top scorer: 1972
  • FUWO European Team of the Season: 1972<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

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  • Sport Ideal European XI: 1972,<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

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National

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NotesEdit

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ReferencesEdit

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External linksEdit

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