FIFA World Cup™ Germany 2006 player's profile

Jan Koller is one of the Czech Republic's outstanding players. The 2.02m colossus, affectionately known as ‘Dino’, is unbeatable in the air, rides challenges with ease and creates havoc in the six-yard box, combining these attributes with excellent technical ability and a great touch for such a big man.
He began his career with Smetanova Lhota and Milevsko, before he switched to top Czech outfit Sparta Prague at the age of 20. He picked up championship and cup winners' medals during his time with Sparta, but failed to make a starting place his own, prompting a switch to Belgian top-flight outfit Lokeren in 1996.

The next couple of seasons saw his emergence as a prolific finisher, leading the Belgian scoring charts in 1998/99 with 24 goals. Koller’s form earned him a move to Anderlecht, where he collected two further Belgian league titles, appeared in the UEFA Champions League, and won player of the year accolades in both the Czech Republic and Belgium.

At the start of the 2001/02 campaign, he signed for Borussia Dortmund in Germany, winning the Bundesliga title in his very first season and spearheading Dortmund's charge to the UEFA Cup final, where the Germans lost narrowly to Feyenoord in Rotterdam. Over the next couple of seasons, Koller forged a reputation as a model of consistency, becoming one of the most feared strikers in the Bundesliga.

Koller has made headlines in national colours too. He opened his international account on his senior debut in a 1-1 draw with Belgium on 9 February 1999 in Brussels. A year later, he had carved out a regular berth in the national team, and travelled to the 2000 and 2004 UEFA European Championships, scoring twice at EURO 2004 in Portugal.

Scoring record
The aerial powerhouse passed a significant milestone on 4 June 2005 in qualifying for the 2006 FIFA World Cup Germany™ when the Czechs met Andorra in Liberec. Koller took his international total to 35 goals during the course of an 8-1 victory, thus overtaking previous leading scorer Antonin Puc. The legendary Slavia Prague left winger struck 34 times for his country between 1926 and 1938.

The Dortmund centre-forward was a potent force throughout FIFA World Cup qualifying, notching nine goals as the Czechs finished second behind the Netherlands in their group. However, Koller was absent for the last two matches and the play-off double-header against Norway, having torn his cruciate ligaments on Bundesliga duty back in September 2005 and spending a lengthy period on the sidelines.

Koller, virtually an ever-present in the Dortmund side up to that point despite two serious lung infections, has worked assiduously to overcome the injury setback. With his team safely qualified for this summer’s tournament in Germany, the striker is determined to make a big splash in his adopted country, leading from the front as the Czechs bid for FIFA World Cup glory.

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UEFA EURO 2004™ player's profile

One of the tallest players in Europe at 202cm, Jan Koller's stature belies a delicate touch, and he displays remarkable pace and agility to go with his height.

National side
Koller broke Pavel Kuka's record as his country's leading scorer with 23 goals in 2003, a tally achieved in just 40 games. Previously an Under-21 international, the forward graduated to the senior Czech Republic side against Belgium in February 1999, scoring to spark a sequence of 14 goals in 14 internationals. Fortune did not favour him at UEFA EURO 2000™, however, as he failed to score in three matches.

UEFA EURO 2004™ qualifying
Koller was a crucial figure throughout the Group 3 campaign, appearing in all eight matches and scoring six times, including a crucial equaliser in the 1-1 draw with the Netherlands in Rotterdam and a penalty in the 3-1 victory in the return fixture.

Club
Koller made his way to AC Sparta Praha via ZVZ Milevsko and Smetanova Lhota, winning the 1.liga title in 1994/95 and the Czech Cup the following year.

1996: It was only after signing for Belgian side KSC Lokeren OV in 1996 that his talents really began to blossom. He emerged as one of the leading strikers in the Belgian first division over three prolific seasons in which he registered 43 goals in 97 games. A move to RSC Anderlecht followed in 1999, Koller helping them to successive league titles and himself to the Belgian Footballer of the Year award in 2000.

2001: In the summer of 2001 Koller left Anderlecht for BV Borussia Dortmund in a €15m move and the following May - after scoring eleven goals in 33 league games - he picked up a championship medal as Dortmund won the Bundesliga. Scored a fine volley in Dortmund's 3-2 UEFA Cup final defeat by Feyenoord and was an ever-present the following term, scoring 13 goals.

2003/04: Koller stood out in a turbulent season for Dortmund, enjoying a return of 16 goals in 32 games, his best in the Bundesliga.

Did you know?
Koller got married at Dobrís castle near Prague a week before EURO 2004™.

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BBC's UEFA EURO 2004 player's profile

Jan Koller is one of the tallest players in the game and uses his height to great effect for club and country.

At 6ft 7in, he acts as a target man up front but also possesses deceptive pace and a neat touch for such a big player.

Koller came to prominence in Belgium with Lokeren and Anderlecht, where he was named Player of the Year in 2000.

He scored 14 goals in his first 14 internationals and his six in the Euro 2004 qualifying campaign took him past Pavel Kuka's national record.

He was a major factor in the Czech Republic's recent 20-match unbeaten run and will be vital again in Portugal.

Now with Borussia Dortmund, Koller won the Bundesliga title in his first season in Germany in 2002 and has been an almost ever-present in the side.

©bbc.co.uk 2004. All rights reserved.