He
was born on 15th June, 1964 at Copenhagen He started his career in
Danish clubs Københavns Boldklub (KB) and Brøndby IF before being sold to
Juventus in Italy. He might be best known for his time in the Spanish club FC Barcelona.
Laudrup also played in the Dutch team Ajax Amsterdam before leaving the field
to become a coach. First he was assistant coach for the Danish national team
and then was appointed head coach with Brøndby IF in the Danish national
league. Laudrup then managed Getafe in the
Spanish League, Spartak Moscow in the Russian League and Mallorca once again in
Spain.

On
15th June 2012 it was announced that Laudrup had been appointed Swansea City's
manager in the Premier League. He replaced Brendan Rodgers, who had taken-over
at Liverpool and in the process became the first Danish manager of a Premier
League club. He has a younger brother, Brian Laudrup, who is also a
professional football player, who was on the winning Danish national team in
the European Football Championship in 1992. Michael did not participate in that
championship due to differences with the national coach Richard Møller Nielsen. In 2004, both Laudrup brothers were
named to the FIFA 100, a list of the 125 greatest living footballers chosen by
Pelé as part of the celebration of FIFA's 100th anniversary.

Style of
play

A quick,
intelligent and talented play-making midfielder, Laudrup was known as one of the
most effective attacking midfielders, as well as one of the most skilful and
elegant players of the game. Laudrup is considered by many as one of the best
passers and as one of the most technically accomplished players ever. He was ranked among the best players
in Europe, with the French three time European
footballer of the year award
winner Michel Platini describing him as one of the most
talented players ever, only lamenting his lack of selfishness causing him to
score too few goals. Despite
being primarily a creative team player, he also possessed an accurate shot.

In a
2006 interview, Laudrup's Real Madrid team-mate Raúl called him the best player he had ever
played with. HisBarcelona team-mate Romário has
stated the same, opining that he was able to create and score goals almost at
will, and ranked him the fifth best player in the history of the game (behind
Pelé, Diego Maradona, himself and Zinedine Zidane). Laudrup
was known for his good conduct on the pitch and he never received a red
card in his career.

Throughout
his career, Laudrup was acclaimed for his technique, balance, elegance, vision,
ball control, deep passes anddribbling ability. In regard to his vision, Jorge Valdano, the Argentinian coach of
Laudrup in Real Madrid, said "he has eyes
everywhere". His trademark move – looking one way and passing the other –
fooled countless opponents during his career. The Laudrup dribble was perhaps
the best-known part of his game, as he quickly moved the ball from one foot to
the other away from the defender. His skills were combined with creativity.
This led to the expression "Made in Laudrup", widely used in Spain
about his creative style of play. Numerous teammates of Laudrup have said:
"Just run, he will always find a way of passing you the ball".

In
Barcelona he played alongside Hristo Stoichkov, who scored many goals
from Laudrup's passes, like Iván Zamorano (who called Laudrup el genio, the genius) during
Laudrup's time at Real Madrid. Zamorano was going through a hard spell in
Madrid, but when Laudrup arrived to assist his goals, Zamorano immediately
became pichichi—top scorer
of the Spanish league, La Liga. Throughout his career his number
of assists was almost always the highest of his team. Despite his reputation as
a technical and creative player, certain players, pundits and managers have
questioned his work rate and consistency at times.

Quotes
on Laudrup

Romário: "The best player I have ever played with
and the 4th best in the history of the game"[22]

Raúl:
"The best I have ever played with."

Zamorano: "Un genio!", "The reason why I
make so many goals, is Laudrup."

Iniesta: "Who is the best player in history?
Laudrup."

Messi: "I fully understand why he is considered
one of the best players in Barcelona's history and even the world."[66]

Cruyff: "One of the most difficult players I have
worked with. When he gives 80–90% he is still by far the best, but I want 100%,
and he rarely does that."

Cruyff (After
Real Madrid with Laudrup had won 5–0 over Cruyff's Barcelona): "When Michael plays like a dream, a
magic illusion, determined to show his new team his extreme abilities, no one
in the world comes anywhere near his level."

Cruyff (Cruyff
on Laudrup's lack of killer instinct during matches): "Had Michael been born in a poor ghetto in
Brazil or Argentina with the ball being his only way out of poverty he would
today be recognised as the biggest genius of the game ever. He had all the
abilities to reach it but lacked this ghetto-instinct, which could have driven
him there."

Platini: "One of the biggest talents ever. The
best in the world on the training pitch, but never used his talent to its full
during matches.[68]

Platini: "Michael had everything except for one
thing: he wasn't selfish enough."

Guardiola: "The best player in the world, I can't
believe he hasn't won the title as best player."

Beckenbauer: "Pelé was
the best in the 60s, Cruyff in the 70s, Maradona in
the 80s and Laudrup in the 90s."

Roberto Galia: "I have played against Maradona, Platini and Baggio.
But the player I saw do the most indescribable things was Michael
Laudrup."

Clemente: "To me, Michael Laudrup is the most
genius player the world has ever seen. He will always be my numero uno.
Always."

Bakero:
"No one has given the club [Barcelona] as much inspiration as Michael. We
all look up to him. It is a privilege to have your day enriched by a
genius."

Koeman: "Michael was possibly the most skilful
and elegant player I ever played with. Few could dribble like he could. He
could sense when a game was ready to be seized and transformed by a moment of
individual brilliance."

Stoichkov: "One of the best European players I’ve
ever seen. An elegant, old-fashioned playmaker, he did things few other
footballers could do."

Stoichkov:
"From more
than hundred goals that I scored I'm sure that over 50 were assisted by
Michael. To play with him was extremely easy. We found each other by intuition
on the field and found common football language. Look at Ivan Zamorano. Laudrup
went there (Real) and Zamorano is a goalscorer. Sometimes I envy Ivan for the
passes he receives. Passes on foot after you accelerated. Few people understand
football like the Danish player. He can only be comprised with Maradona,
Schuster or Roberto Baggio. They make things easy and find the right solutions.
For them is simple, for the opponent – unthinkable. Phenomenal! His only
problem is his character. He is emotional and terribly reserved. This affects
him a lot, because he takes everything personally – no matter if someone tells
him something or decision that he does not agree. His relations with Cruyff
were delicate because he couldn't take the critics. I listen to him but I don't
care that much. For Michael this was fatal. He couldn't take it anymore so he
left without a word."

Brian Laudrup: "My brother started as an attacker but became
an elegant attacking midfielder, perhaps the most complete there has ever been.
His vision, speed of thought and passing were on a different level; he always
knew what was going to happen before anybody else did. If anyone had a
'football brain', it was him."

Ferrer: "Few people made me enjoy the game as
much as Michael. Maybe he didn’t get the media recognition he deserved, but he
was so classy and a real thinker. A master of the blind pass and impossible
through-balls and I will never forget his 'spoon' pass in a game against
Osasuna. He lifted the ball right over the defence and Romario touched it in
first time."

Capello (After
the 4–0 win of Milan against Barcelona in the 1994 CL final): "Laudrup was the guy I feared but Cruyff
left him out, and that was his mistake."

Figo:
"I think
maybe Laudrup was the best player I ever played against."

Mourinho: "He was phenomenal in Barcelona. He was a
fantastic player whom I would love to have on my team today."

Stoichkov: "Laudrup was the greatest"

Alan Tate: "He is still the best player in training
at 48 years."

Ian Rush:
"He probably had the most individual skill I've seen. He was an incredible
player."

John Toshack: "To me he was the best player of his
generation and he is a lot like Cruyff both as a player and a manager"

Player

Juventus: Intercontinental Cup (1): 1985, Serie A (1): 1985–86

Barcelona: Copa del Rey (1): 1989–90, La Liga (4): 1990–91, 1991–92, 1992–93, 1993-94, Supercopa de España (2): 1991, 1992, UEFA European
Cup (1): 1991–92, UEFA Super
Cup (1): 1992

Real Madrid La Liga (1): 1994–95****

Ajax Eredivisie (1): 1997–98, KNVB Cup (1): 1997–98****

Denmark FIFA Confederations Cup (1): 1995

Individual

Player Danish Player of the Year (2):
1982, 1985, Don Balón Award (1): 1991–92, European, Sports Media Team of the Year (1):
1994–95, FIFA World Cup All-Star Team (1):
1998, Best Foreign Player in Spanish Football in the last 25 years (1):
1974–1999, UEFA Jubilee, Awards – Greatest Danish Footballer of the last 50 Years:
2003, FIFA 100,
Denmarks Best Player Ever (1): 2006

Manager Danish Manager of the Year (2): 2002–03,
2004–05, Qatar Stars League Manager of the Month (2): August 2014, December
2014

Films (Danish) Jørgen Leth,
"Michael Laudrup – en fodboldspiller", Denmark, 1993

Anyone that watched Laudrup play will instantly recognize his greatness. He is probably one of the most underrated footballers in history and dominated the 90's. Laudrup was basically a much better version of Iniesta (who idolized Laudrup and styled his game off him) who didn't have to be put in a specific system to shine (e.g. Xavi-Iniesta-Messi trident/tiki-taka). He could carry teams all by himself. Proof are the reverse 5-0 Clasico scorelines when he switched between Real and Barca. The game has been honored by his grace and skill.

Cool thread. :)

I'm not sure I agree that Laudrup was much better than Iniesta, though, Dynast. I think that they just played in different eras. Let's also not forget that while Laudrup won 5 league titles (4 with Barca and 1 with Madrid), these teams were not the world-beaters that Iniesta's Barcelona have been.

Iniesta has 4 European Cup victories, and a World Cup, to Laudrup's single European Cup medal. Of course, trophies are not everything, but, I think that Iniesta's pivotal role in one of the greatest club sides ever places him on a pedastal above the Great Dane.

This is purely opinion, and I certainly agree that Laudrup is one of the greats, but I think that it's an unfair comparison with Iniesta.

It's always difficult to compare two eras. Messi and Maradona are frequently compared due to their similarities, but the simple truth is that they played in different teams, different squads, different tactics, against different opponents, in different leagues/football cultures, etc. I agree that it's difficult to compare players like that, but a comparison is inevitable when the similarities are so striking. Iniesta did play on one of the greatest teams ever (Spain + Barcelona 08-11), but just because one has played for a great team does not make them a great player.

Iniesta is superbly talented, one of the great midfielders and players of his generation, but he was not the dominant force that Laudrup was. Iniesta had great help controlling the center of the pitch. Ronaldinho, Deco, Xavi, and heck, even Messi helps him out. Laudrup's contribution was imminent and evident as Zamorano went from scoring 11 goals to the Pichichi title with 28 goals as soon as Laudrup arrived. I believe that a fine line should be drawn between team accomplishments and individual accomplishments. Pele's three World Cups are not just a symbol of his talent, but rather a sign that his team was excessively loaded with talent. One must be able to look beyond just the titles to find the true measure of talent.