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Mika Biereth

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Mika Biereth
Personal information
Full name Mika Miles Biereth[1]
Date of birth (2003-02-08) 8 February 2003 (age 21)[2]
Place of birth London, England[3]
Height 6 ft 2 in (1.87 m)[1]
Position(s) Forward
Team information
Current team
 Sturm Graz
Number 18
Youth career
Fulham
2021–2022 Arsenal
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2022–2024 Arsenal 0 (0)
2022–2023 → RKC Waalwijk (loan) 13 (2)
2023–2024 → Motherwell (loan) 14 (6)
2024 → Sturm Graz (loan) 15 (5)
2024– Sturm Graz 11 (8)
International career‡
2021–2022 Denmark U19[4] 5 (2)
2023– Denmark U21 2 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 19:12, 2 November 2024 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 22:00, 28 March 2023 (UTC)

Mika Miles Biereth (born 8 February 2003) is a professional footballer who plays as a forward for Austrian Football Bundesliga club Sturm Graz. Born in England, he represents Denmark at youth international level.

Early life

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Biereth was born in London to a Danish-German father and a Bosnian mother.[5] He developed through Fulham's youth ranks.[1][3][6] He finished the 2020–21 season as the top scorer in the Under-18 Premier League South, with 21 goals and 13 assists.[6][7]

Club career

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Arsenal

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Biereth joined Premier League side Arsenal and signed his first professional contract on 30 July 2021.[6][8] He scored three goals in a 6–1 away win over Chelsea Under-23s at Kingsmeadow in the Premier League 2 on 19 September 2021, sealing his first hat-trick for Arsenal Under-23s.[9] In May 2022, following a string of impressive performances, Biereth was one of eight players to be nominated for the Premier League 2's Player of the Month Award for April, though it was eventually awarded to West Ham United's Sonny Perkins.[10][11][12]

Biereth appeared four times as an unused substitute for Arsenal's first team during the 2021–22 season: in the FA Cup third round match away to Nottingham Forest at City Ground on 9 January,[13][14] in the two legs of the EFL Cup semi-finals against Liverpool at Anfield on 13 January and at Emirates Stadium on 20 January,[15][16][17][18] and in the game of the 23rd round of Premier League at Emirates Stadium against Burnley on 23 January.[19][20][21]

Loan to RKC Waalwijk

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Biereth joined Eredivisie club RKC Waalwijk on a season-long loan on 23 June 2022.[22][23] On 17 September 2022, he made his competitive debut for the club in a 5–1 home victory over SC Cambuur in the domestic league.[24] On 7 October, he scored his first and second competitive goals as a substitute in a 3–2 win over Groningen at Euroborg in the league, helping the team record the first away victory of the season.[25]

Loan to Motherwell

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Biereth joined Scottish Premiership side Motherwell on a season-long loan on 3 August 2023.[26][27] He scored six goals in 15 appearances for Motherwell before he was recalled by Arsenal in January 2024.[28]

Sturm Graz

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On 19 January 2024, Biereth was loaned to Austrian Bundesliga side Sturm Graz for the rest of the 2023–24 season.[29][30] On 2 February 2024, Biereth made his debut as a starter in a 2–0 Austrian Cup win against Austria Wien, scoring the second goal to take Sturm Graz to the next round, which they went on to win. He made his Austrian Bundesliga debut on 9 February 2024, also starting in a 1–1 draw to RB Salzburg. At the end of the season, he contributed six goals and two assists in all competitions for Sturm Graz, playing a crucial part in their Austrian Bundesliga and Austrian Cup double.

On 8 July 2024, Arsenal confirmed his permanent transfer to Sturm Graz for £4 million.[31]

International career

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Born in England, Biereth is of Danish descent through his father, although the Danish coach incorrectly attributed this to his mother.[32] He represented Denmark at under-19 level.[1] He was first called up by Denmark U19 in September 2021,[33][32] and made his debut for the team in a 2–0 away win over Northern Ireland U19 on 6 October 2021.[34] He was first called up by Denmark U21 in March 2023.[5]

Style of play

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Biereth has been described as a robust player, possessing an all-round skillset and a knack of scoring goals. His style of play, especially his aggression and defensive contribution has been likened to Jamie Vardy. Like Vardy, he is most comfortable as a classic "number 9", or secondarily on the wing. During his time at Arsenal's Hale End academy, he developed his general and tactical play.[35][36][37]

Media

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Biereth was involved in the Amazon Original sports docuseries All or Nothing: Arsenal, which documented the club by spending time with the coaching staff and players behind the scenes both on and off the field throughout their 2021–22 season.[38][39]

Career statistics

[edit]
As of match played 5 November 2024
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National cup[a] League cup[b] Europe Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Arsenal 2021–22[40] Premier League 0 0 0 0 0 0 — 0 0
2022–23[40] Premier League 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
RKC Waalwijk (loan) 2022–23[40] Eredivisie 12 2 1 0 — — 13 2
Motherwell (loan) 2023–24[40] Scottish Premiership 14 6 0 0 1 0 — 15 6
Sturm Graz (loan) 2023–24[40] Austrian Bundesliga 15 5 3 1 — 4[c] 3 22 9
Sturm Graz 2024–25[40] Austrian Bundesliga 11 7 3 1 — 4[d] 0 18 8
Career total 52 20 7 2 1 0 8 3 68 25
  1. ^ Includes KNVB Cup, Austrian Cup
  2. ^ Includes Scottish League Cup
  3. ^ Appearances in UEFA Europa Conference League
  4. ^ Appearances in UEFA Champions League

Honours

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Sturm Graz

References

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  1. ^ a b c d Mika Biereth at WorldFootball.net
  2. ^ "Mika Biereth: Overview". Premier League. Retrieved 29 July 2022.
  3. ^ a b "Mika Biereth – Player Info". Fulham F.C. Retrieved 31 July 2022.
  4. ^ "Mika Biereth » Internationals". WorldFootball.net. Retrieved 29 July 2022.
  5. ^ a b Nelausen, Raymund (22 March 2023). "Arsenal-angriber har valgt Danmark: Jeg havde andre muligheder" [Arsenal striker has chosen Denmark: I had other options]. bold.dk (in Danish). Retrieved 22 March 2023.
  6. ^ a b c "Mika Biereth joins the club". Arsenal F.C. 30 July 2021. Retrieved 29 July 2022.
  7. ^ "U18 Premier League 2020/2021 South » Top Scorer". worldfootball.net. Retrieved 29 July 2022.
  8. ^ "Biereth joins from Fulham & signs pro deal". BBC. 30 July 2021. Retrieved 29 July 2022.
  9. ^ Taylor, Alex (22 September 2021). "'My Dad has a spreadsheet of all my stats!'". Arsenal F.C. Retrieved 31 July 2022.
  10. ^ Gilbert, Samuel (9 May 2022). "Biereth nominated for PL2 Player of the Month". Arsenal F.C. Retrieved 31 July 2022.
  11. ^ "Nominees for April 2022 PL2 Player of the Month revealed". Premier League. 9 May 2022. Retrieved 31 July 2022.
  12. ^ "Perkins named PL2 Player of the Month". Premier League. 16 May 2022. Retrieved 31 July 2022.
  13. ^ De Cosemo, Harry (9 January 2022). "Nottingham Forest 1-0 Arsenal: Lewis Grabban knocks Gunners out of FA Cup". BBC. Retrieved 31 July 2022.
  14. ^ "Nottingham Forest vs. Arsenal – Football Match Line-Ups – January 9, 2022". ESPN. 9 January 2022. Retrieved 31 July 2022.
  15. ^ Poole, Harry (13 January 2022). "Liverpool 0-0 Arsenal: Hosts frustrated by 10-man Gunners in their Carabao Cup semi-final first leg". BBC. Retrieved 31 July 2022.
  16. ^ "Liverpool vs. Arsenal – Football Match Line-Ups – January 13, 2022". ESPN. 13 January 2022. Retrieved 31 July 2022.
  17. ^ McNulty, Phil (20 January 2022). "Arsenal 0-2 Liverpool (0-2 agg): Diogo Jota double sets up Chelsea final for Reds". BBC. Retrieved 31 July 2022.
  18. ^ "Arsenal vs. Liverpool – Football Match Line-Ups – January 20, 2022". ESPN. 20 January 2022. Retrieved 31 July 2022.
  19. ^ "Arsenal v Burnley, 2021/22". Premier League. 23 January 2022. Retrieved 31 July 2022.
  20. ^ Rindl, Joe (23 January 2022). "Arsenal 0-0 Burnley: Gunners held in Premier League stalemate". BBC. Retrieved 31 July 2022.
  21. ^ "Arsenal vs. Burnley – Football Match Line-Ups – January 23, 2022". ESPN. 23 January 2022. Retrieved 31 July 2022.
  22. ^ "Mika Biereth joins RKC Waalwijk on loan". Arsenal F.C. 23 June 2022. Retrieved 29 July 2022.
  23. ^ "RKC Waalwijk huurt spits Mika Biereth van Arsenal" [RKC Waalwijk rents striker Mika Biereth from Arsenal]. rkcwaalwijk.nl (in Dutch). RKC Waalwijk. 23 June 2022. Retrieved 29 July 2022.
  24. ^ "RKC Waalwijk breekt de ban in de tweede helft tegen SC Cambuur" [RKC Waalwijk breaks the spell in the second half against SC Cambuur]. rkcwaalwijk.nl (in Dutch). RKC Waalwijk. 17 September 2022. Retrieved 18 September 2022.
  25. ^ "Mika Biereth matchwinner voor RKC Waalwijk in Groningen" [Mika Biereth match winner for RKC Waalwijk in Groningen]. rkcwaalwijk.nl (in Dutch). RKC Waalwijk. 7 October 2022. Retrieved 8 October 2022.
  26. ^ "Mika Biereth joins Motherwell on loan". Arsenal F.C. 3 August 2023. Retrieved 3 August 2023.
  27. ^ "Mika Biereth joins on loan from Arsenal". Motherwell F.C. 3 August 2023. Retrieved 3 August 2023.
  28. ^ "Mika Biereth: Arsenal recall striker from Motherwell loan amid Sheffield Wednesday link". BBC Sport. 18 January 2024. Retrieved 18 January 2024.
  29. ^ "Mika Biereth joins SK Sturm Graz on loan". Arsenal FC. 19 January 2024. Retrieved 20 January 2024.
  30. ^ "Neue Offensiv-Power für den SK Sturm" [New offensive power for SK Sturm] (in German). SK Sturm Graz. 19 January 2024. Retrieved 20 January 2024.
  31. ^ "Mika Biereth makes permanent move to Sturm Graz". Arsenal FC. 8 July 2024. Retrieved 8 July 2024.
  32. ^ a b Vegas, Paul (24 September 2021). "Denmark U19 coach Knudsen explains calling up Arsenal striker Biereth". tribalfootball.com. Retrieved 29 July 2022.
  33. ^ Vegas, Paul (23 September 2021). "Arsenal striker Mika Biereth wins Denmark U19 call". tribalfootball.com. Retrieved 29 July 2022.
  34. ^ Vegas, Paul (7 October 2021). "Arsenal striker Mika Biereth makes winning Denmark U19 debut". tribalfootball.com. Retrieved 29 July 2022.
  35. ^ Roché, Art de. "Mika Biereth interview: Arsenal's young striker on learning the Arteta way and 'pinning' Gabriel". The Athletic. Retrieved 16 October 2022.
  36. ^ "Exciting Arsenal striker set for first-team chance". Pain in the Arsenal. 24 November 2021. Retrieved 16 October 2022.
  37. ^ "Agreement reached: Arsenal 'have signed' striker with Gunners set to announce third signing of summer". CaughtOffside. 24 July 2021. Retrieved 16 October 2022.
  38. ^ "Full 'All Or Nothing' trailer released". Arsenal F.C. 19 July 2022. Retrieved 29 July 2022.
  39. ^ All or Nothing: Arsenal | Official Full Trailer 🎬. Amazon Prime Video Sport. 19 July 2022. Retrieved 29 July 2022 – via YouTube.
  40. ^ a b c d e f "M. Biereth: Summary". Soccerway. Perform Group. Retrieved 29 July 2022.
  41. ^ a b "Arsenal loanee completes impressive double-winning season". One Football. 20 May 2024. Retrieved 8 July 2024.
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