Andres Oper (born 7 November 1977) is an Estonian football coach and former professional player. With 38 goals in 134 appearances, Oper is Estonia's all-time record goalscorer.
 Oper with Estonia in 2005 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | 7 November 1977 | ||
| Place of birth | Tallinn, Estonia | ||
| Height | 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in) | ||
| Position(s) | Forward | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Estonia U17 (head coach) | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1987–1993 | LMSK/Pantrid | ||
| 1994 | Lelle | ||
| 1994 | Flora | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1995–1999 | Flora | 73 | (44) |
| 1996 | → Tervis Pärnu (loan) | 9 | (3) |
| 1999–2003 | AaB | 117 | (28) |
| 2003–2005 | Torpedo Moscow | 53 | (8) |
| 2005–2009 | Roda JC | 103 | (32) |
| 2009 | Shanghai Shenhua | 6 | (0) |
| 2010 | ADO Den Haag | 12 | (1) |
| 2010–2011 | AEK Larnaca | 21 | (3) |
| 2012–2013 | Nea Salamina | 42 | (8) |
| Total | 436 | (127) | |
| International career | |||
| 1995 | Estonia U19 | 3 | (1) |
| 1995–1996 | Estonia U21 | 4 | (0) |
| 1995–2014 | Estonia | 134 | (38) |
| Managerial career | |||
| 2015–2016 | Accrington Stanley U16 | ||
| 2016–2019 | Estonia (assistant) | ||
| 2019–2021 | Levadia (assistant) | ||
| 2021–2023 | Estonia (assistant) | ||
| 2024– | Estonia U17 | ||
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Oper played as a forward for Lelle, Flora, Tervis Pärnu, AaB, Torpedo Moscow, Roda JC, Shanghai Shenhua, ADO Den Haag, AEK Larnaca, Nea Salamina and the Estonia national team. Oper was named Estonian Footballer of the Year three times, in 1999, 2002 and 2005, and won the Estonian Silverball award twice; in 2001 and 2005.[1]
Early life
editOper was born in Tallinn. He graduated from the Tallinn Secondary School No. 37. He started playing football with Tallinna Jalgpallikool (English: Tallinn Football Academy) under Aivar Tiidus, before moving to Taivo Uibo's Uibo Poisid and then LMSK/Pantrid, coached by Aavo Sarap.[1]
Club career
editFlora
editIn 1995, Oper signed for Flora. He won his first Meistriliiga title in the 1994–95 season. Oper soon became a first team regular and one of the team's leading goalscorers. He won two more league titles in the 1997–98 and the 1998 seasons, as well as the 1997–98 Estonian Cup and the 1998 Estonian Supercup.[1] In 1998, Oper had a trial at Arsenal.[2]
AaB
editOn 2 July 1999, Oper signed for Danish Superliga champions AaB, on a five-year contract for a transfer fee of $1 million (EEK 15 million).[3] In the process, he became the first one million dollar transfer in Estonian top flight's history.[4]
Torpedo Moscow
editOn 10 July 2003, Oper signed a two-year contract with Russian Premier League club Torpedo Moscow.[5] Often inconsistent in Russia, scoring 8 goals in 53 appearances, Oper was placed on the transfer list after he suffered an injury to his right foot. In 2005, he was close to a transfer to Premier League's Sunderland in England, but the contract was never signed.[6][4]
Roda JC
edit
On 31 August 2005, Oper signed a one-year contract with Dutch Eredivisie club Roda JC for an undisclosed fee.[7] He scored his first Eredivisie goal on 1 October 2005, in a 3–2 win against Vitesse Arnhem.[8] Oper finished the 2005–06 Eredivisie season as the team's joint top scorer alongside Simon Cziommer with 8 goals and signed a contract extension for two more seasons.[9] He was the team's top scorer in the 2006–07 Eredivisie season, scoring 12 goals in the league and 1 in the play-offs. On 16 May 2007, he signed another contract extension with Roda JC until summer 2009.[10]
Shanghai Shenhua
editOn 19 July 2009, Oper signed a half-year contract with Chinese Super League club Shanghai Shenhua.[11] He made his debut for the club on 2 August 2009, in an away match against Jiangsu Sainty. However, he suffered an injury and eventually terminated his contract with the club.[12]
ADO Den Haag
editAfter an unsuccessful spell in China, Oper returned to the Netherlands and on 21 January 2010, he signed a half-year contract with an option for another year with ADO Den Haag.[13][14] He made his debut for the club on 13 February 2010 in a home match against Willem II. Oper scored his first goal for ADO Den Haag on 18 April 2010, in a 4–0 win against RKC Waalwijk. His contract extension stalled due to negotiations over personal terms, eventually no agreement was settled and the extension was cancelled. The contract expired in summer.[15]
AEK Larnaca
editOn 9 September 2010, Oper signed a one-year contract with Cypriot First Division club AEK Larnaca.[16] He scored on his debut against Ethnikos Achna.
Nea Salamina
editIn January 2012, Oper joined Cypriot First Division club Nea Salamina. He scored his first goal for the club on 3 March in a 2–0 win against Enosis Neon Paralimni.[17]
In February 2014, Andres Oper announced his retirement from professional football.[18] Since then, Oper has occasionally played for Viimsi JK in Estonian Cup or lower league matches. In 2021, he notably scored the winning goal in an Estonian Cup match against top flight club Pärnu Vaprus.[19]
International career
edit
Oper made his international debut for the Estonia national football team on 19 May 1995, in a 0–2 1995 Baltic Cup defeat against Latvia. He scored his first goal for Estonia on 8 June 1997, in a 2–3 1998 FIFA World Cup qualification loss against Sweden. He won the Estonian Silverball award twice, in 2001 and 2005.[1] On 2 September 2006, Oper played his 100th match for Estonia, a 0–1 UEFA Euro 2008 qualifying defeat against Israel. He ended his international career with a testimonial match on 26 May 2014, after a 1–1 friendly draw against Gibraltar at A. Le Coq Arena.[20] With 38 goals in 134 international appearances, Oper is Estonia's all-time record goalscorer.[1] He played for the Estonia national team for eighteen consecutive seasons.[21]
Career statistics
editClub
edit| Club | Season | League | Cup | Continental | Other[a] | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Flora | 1994–95 | Meistriliiga | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | ||
| 1995–96 | 9 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 2 | ||||
| 1996–97 | 18 | 13 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 20 | 13 | ||||
| 1997–98 | 22 | 15 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 24 | 15 | ||||
| 1998 | 13 | 10 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 16 | 11 | ||||
| 1999 | 10 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 4 | ||||
| Total | 73 | 44 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 81 | 45 | ||||
| Tervis Pärnu (loan) | 1995–96 | Meistriliiga | 9 | 3 | — | 0 | 0 | 9 | 3 | |||
| AaB | 1999–2000 | Superliga | 30 | 7 | 4 | 1 | 34 | 8 | ||||
| 2000–01 | 29 | 6 | 4 | 0 | 33 | 6 | ||||||
| 2001–02 | 31 | 4 | — | 31 | 4 | |||||||
| 2002–03 | 27 | 11 | — | 27 | 11 | |||||||
| Total | 117 | 28 | 8 | 1 | 125 | 29 | ||||||
| Torpedo Moscow | 2003 | Russian Premier League | 14 | 3 | 5 | 2 | 19 | 5 | ||||
| 2004 | 24 | 4 | — | 24 | 4 | |||||||
| 2005 | 15 | 1 | — | 15 | 1 | |||||||
| Total | 53 | 8 | 5 | 2 | 58 | 10 | ||||||
| Roda JC | 2005–06 | Eredivisie | 24 | 8 | 4 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 29 | 13 |
| 2006–07 | 32 | 11 | 4 | 0 | — | 2 | 1 | 38 | 12 | |||
| 2007–08 | 20 | 7 | 3 | 1 | — | 2 | 0 | 25 | 8 | |||
| 2008–09 | 27 | 6 | 1 | 1 | — | 0 | 0 | 28 | 7 | |||
| Total | 103 | 32 | 12 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 120 | 40 | ||
| Shanghai Shenhua | 2009 | Chinese Super League | 6 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | |
| ADO Den Haag | 2009–10 | Eredivisie | 12 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 12 | 1 | |
| AEK Larnaca | 2010–11 | Cypriot First Division | 21 | 3 | 2 | — | 0 | 0 | 21 | 5 | ||
| Nea Salamina | 2011–12 | Cypriot First Division | 14 | 3 | — | 0 | 0 | 14 | 3 | |||
| 2012–13 | 28 | 5 | — | 0 | 0 | 28 | 5 | |||||
| Total | 42 | 8 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 42 | 8 | |||
| Career total | 436 | 127 | 12 | 9 | 20 | 4 | 6 | 1 | 474 | 141 | ||
- ^ Includes the Estonian Supercup and Eredivisie play-offs
International
edit| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Estonia | 1995 | 3 | 0 |
| 1996 | 5 | 0 | |
| 1997 | 14 | 2 | |
| 1998 | 13 | 2 | |
| 1999 | 13 | 5 | |
| 2000 | 9 | 6 | |
| 2001 | 11 | 2 | |
| 2002 | 8 | 4 | |
| 2003 | 6 | 2 | |
| 2004 | 7 | 2 | |
| 2005 | 9 | 5 | |
| 2006 | 4 | 2 | |
| 2007 | 6 | 1 | |
| 2008 | 4 | 2 | |
| 2009 | 2 | 0 | |
| 2010 | 4 | 1 | |
| 2011 | 2 | 0 | |
| 2012 | 10 | 2 | |
| 2013 | 3 | 0 | |
| 2014 | 1 | 0 | |
| Total | 134 | 38 | |
- Scores and results list Estonia's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Oper goal.
| No. | Date | Venue | Cap | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 8 June 1997 | Kadriorg Stadium, Tallinn, Estonia | 16 | Sweden | 1–3 | 2–3 | 1998 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 2 | 22 June 1997 | Kuressaare Linnastaadion, Kuressaare, Estonia | 17 | Andorra | 3–0 | 4–1 | Friendly |
| 3 | 4 June 1998 | Kadriorg Stadium, Tallinn, Estonia | 25 | Faroe Islands | 4–0 | 5–0 | UEFA Euro 2000 qualifying |
| 4 | 22 June 1998 | Kuressaare Linnastaadion, Kuressaare, Estonia | 26 | Andorra | 2–1 | 2–1 | Friendly |
| 5 | 9 June 1999 | Kadriorg Stadium, Tallinn, Estonia | 41 | Lithuania | 1–0 | 1–2 | UEFA Euro 2000 qualifying |
| 6 | 9 October 1999 | Kadriorg Stadium, Tallinn, Estonia | 44 | Bosnia and Herzegovina | 1–0 | 1–4 | UEFA Euro 2000 qualifying |
| 7 | 1 November 1999 | Mohammad bin Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates | 46 | United Arab Emirates | 2–1 | 2–2 | Friendly |
| 8 | 18 December 1999 | Trikala Municipal Stadium, Trikala, Greece | 48 | Greece | 1–1 | 2–2 | Friendly |
| 9 | 2–1 | ||||||
| 10 | 23 February 2000 | Rajamangala National Stadium, Bangkok, Thailand | 49 | Finland | 2–4 | 2–4 | 2000 King's Cup |
| 11 | 26 April 2000 | Stade Josy Barthel, Luxembourg City, Luxembourg | 51 | Luxembourg | 1–0 | 1–1 | Friendly |
| 12 | 4 June 2000 | Kadriorg Stadium, Tallinn, Estonia | 52 | Belarus | 1–0 | 2–0 | Friendly |
| 13 | 2–0 | ||||||
| 14 | 3 September 2000 | Kadriorg Stadium, Tallinn, Estonia | 55 | Portugal | 1–3 | 1–3 | 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 15 | 7 October 2000 | Estadi Comunal, Andorra la Vella, Andorra | 56 | Andorra | 2–0 | 2–1 | 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 16 | 19 March 2001 | Cairo International Stadium, Cairo, Egypt | 58 | Egypt | 1–1 | 3–3 | Friendly |
| 17 | 2 June 2001 | A. Le Coq Arena, Tallinn, Estonia | 61 | Netherlands | 1–0 | 2–4 | 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 18 | 14 March 2002 | Stadio Enzo Mazotti, Montecatini Terme, Italy | 69 | Saudi Arabia | 2–0 | 2–0 | Friendly |
| 19 | 27 March 2002 | A. Le Coq Arena, Tallinn, Estonia | 70 | Russia | 1–0 | 2–1 | Friendly |
| 20 | 2–1 | ||||||
| 21 | 20 November 2002 | A. Le Coq Arena, Tallinn, Estonia | 76 | Iceland | 2–0 | 2–0 | Friendly |
| 22 | 29 March 2003 | A. Le Coq Arena, Tallinn, Estonia | 78 | Canada | 1–1 | 2–1 | Friendly |
| 23 | 2–1 | ||||||
| 24 | 4 September 2004 | A. Le Coq Arena, Tallinn, Estonia | 86 | Luxembourg | 3–0 | 4–0 | 2006 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 25 | 13 October 2004 | Skonto Stadium, Riga, Latvia | 88 | Latvia | 1–1 | 2–2 | 2006 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 26 | 26 March 2005 | A. Le Coq Arena, Tallinn, Estonia | 91 | Slovakia | 1–0 | 1–2 | 2006 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 27 | 4 June 2005 | A. Le Coq Arena, Tallinn, Estonia | 93 | Liechtenstein | 2–0 | 2–0 | 2006 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 28 | 3 September 2005 | A. Le Coq Arena, Tallinn, Estonia | 96 | Latvia | 1–0 | 2–1 | 2006 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 29 | 12 October 2005 | Stade Josy Barthel, Luxembourg City, Luxembourg | 98 | Luxembourg | 1–0 | 2–0 | 2006 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 30 | 2–0 | ||||||
| 31 | 15 November 2006 | A. Le Coq Arena, Tallinn, Estonia | 102 | Belarus | 1–0 | 2–1 | Friendly |
| 32 | 2–1 | ||||||
| 33 | 17 November 2007 | Estadi Comunal, Andorra la Vella, Andorra | 108 | Andorra | 1–0 | 2–0 | UEFA Euro 2008 qualifying |
| 34 | 20 August 2008 | A. Le Coq Arena, Tallinn, Estonia | 109 | Malta | 2–1 | 2–1 | Friendly |
| 35 | 6 September 2008 | Stade Maurice Dufrasne, Liège, Belgium | 110 | Belgium | 2–3 | 2–3 | 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 36 | 21 May 2010 | A. Le Coq Arena, Tallinn, Estonia | 115 | Finland | 1–0 | 2–0 | Friendly |
| 37 | 1 June 2012 | Tamme Stadium, Tartu, Estonia | 123 | Finland | 1–2 | 1–2 | 2012 Baltic Cup |
| 38 | 16 October 2012 | Estadi Comunal, Andorra la Vella, Andorra | 129 | Andorra | 1–0 | 1–0 | 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification |
Honours
editFlora
Individual
- Estonian Footballer of the Year: 1999, 2002, 2005
- Estonian Silverball: 2001, 2005
References
edit- ^ a b c d e "Oper, Andres" (in Estonian). ESBL. Retrieved 16 September 2016.
- ^ "Oper reflects on record-breaking Estonia career". UEFA.com. 1 June 2014.
- ^ "Andres Oper lahkub Aalsborgi" (in Estonian). Õhtuleht. 2 July 1999. Retrieved 20 September 2016.
- ^ a b Kalvet, Madis (6 June 2023). "Andres Oper. Eesti jalgpalli esimene miljonitehing ja viimasel sekundil katki jäänud Premier League'i lepingu tagamaad". Delfi Sport (in Estonian).
- ^ "Oper kirjutas alla lepingule Torpedoga" (in Estonian). Soccernet.ee. 10 July 2003. Retrieved 20 September 2016.
- ^ «Лобановский орал: вы нас убить хотите?» Из Эстонии — в Лондон к Венгеру, «Торпедо» и Китай sport24.ru
- ^ "Andres Oper jätkab karjääri Hollandi liigas" (in Estonian). Soccernet.ee. 31 August 2005. Retrieved 20 September 2016.
- ^ "Oper lõi Rodas esimese värava" (in Estonian). Eesti Päevaleht. 1 October 2005. Archived from the original on 7 September 2012. Retrieved 20 September 2016.
- ^ "Andres Oper usub Roda potentsiaali" (in Estonian). Soccernet.ee. 28 March 2006. Retrieved 20 September 2016.
- ^ "Andres Oper pikendas Rodaga lepingut" (in Estonian). Soccernet.ee. 28 March 2006. Retrieved 20 September 2016.
- ^ "Oper heads to Shanghai". Fifa.com. Archived from the original on 27 December 2010.
- ^ Андрес Опер: Играл в Шанхае, но столько, как Халку, мне не платили sportsdaily.ru
- ^ "ADO Den Haag bevestigt komst transfervrije Oper" (in Dutch). Voetbalzone. 22 January 2010. Retrieved 22 January 2010.
- ^ "Oper komt selectie versterken". ADO Den Haag. 22 January 2010. Archived from the original on 20 July 2011. Retrieved 22 January 2010.
- ^ "Oper ei jätka siiski ADO-s" (in Estonian). Soccernet.ee. 9 July 2010. Retrieved 20 September 2016.
- ^ "Ametlik teadaanne – Operil uus klubi" (in Estonian). Oper.ee. 9 September 2010. Archived from the original on 20 July 2011.
- ^ "Oper avas uues klubis väravaarve" (in Estonian). Soccernet.ee. 3 March 2012. Retrieved 3 March 2012.
- ^ "Star Striker Andres Oper Retires". ERR. 5 February 2014.
- ^ "Pudeli vett krae vahele saanud Oper: väga tähtis võit! Esiliiga B satsina tegime ikkagi meistriliiga omadele ära!". Soccernet.ee. 9 July 2021.
- ^ "Eesti viigistas Operi lahkumismängus Gibraltariga" (in Estonian). ERR. 26 May 2014. Retrieved 24 October 2018.
- ^ Эстонский экс-футболист Андрес Опер: в Москве мне моментально объяснили, что означает по-русски моя фамилия! Archived 11 March 2018 at the Wayback Machine baltnews.ee
- ^ "Andres Oper - Century of International Appearances". Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation.
External links
edit- Andres Oper at the Estonian Football Association (in Estonian)
- Andres Oper – FIFA competition record (archived)