.jpg) Kruse playing forAustralia at the2017 FIFA Confederations Cup | |||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Robbie Thomas Kruse[1] | ||||||||||||||||
| Date of birth | (1988-10-05)5 October 1988 (age 37)[1] | ||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Brisbane,Queensland, Australia | ||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.79 m (5 ft 10 in)[2] | ||||||||||||||||
| Position(s) | |||||||||||||||||
| Youth career | |||||||||||||||||
| 2004–2005 | QAS | ||||||||||||||||
| 2005–2006 | AIS | ||||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | |||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | ||||||||||||||
| 2007–2009 | Brisbane Roar | 26 | (4) | ||||||||||||||
| 2009–2011 | Melbourne Victory | 39 | (16) | ||||||||||||||
| 2011–2013 | Fortuna Düsseldorf | 41 | (4) | ||||||||||||||
| 2012 | →Fortuna Düsseldorf II | 2 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| 2013–2017 | Bayer Leverkusen | 21 | (2) | ||||||||||||||
| 2015–2016 | →VfB Stuttgart (loan) | 3 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| 2017 | Liaoning Whowin | 4 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| 2017–2019 | VfL Bochum | 42 | (8) | ||||||||||||||
| 2019–2022 | Melbourne Victory | 40 | (3) | ||||||||||||||
| 2023 | Brisbane Roar | 1 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| Total | 219 | (37) | |||||||||||||||
| International career‡ | |||||||||||||||||
| 2004–2005 | Australia U17 | 11 | (3) | ||||||||||||||
| 2006 | Australia U20 | 5 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
| 2011–2019 | Australia | 75 | (5) | ||||||||||||||
Medal record
| |||||||||||||||||
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 06:09, 7 May 2023 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals as of 25 January 2019 | |||||||||||||||||
Robbie Thomas Kruse (/ˈkruːs/KROOSS;[7]German:[ˈkʁuːzə];[8] born 5 October 1988) is an Australian former professionalfootballer who played as aforward. He played his junior football with Pine Rivers Soccer Club in the Pine Rivers district to the near north of Brisbane and began his professional career withA-League sideBrisbane Roar and later Melbourne Victory before moving to Germany in 2011.[9][10][11]
Recruited in 2006 byMiron Bleiberg, Kruse was injured during an otherwise successfulA-League pre-season during training.[12] He scored on his debut againstWellington Phoenix on 5 October 2007, his nineteenth birthday, with what was to be the winning goal for that game.[13][14]
On 19 October 2007, Kruse struck against the Newcastle Jets for his second goal of his A-League career.[15] On 16 November, he got his third with an excellent curling effort to the far post as Brisbane beat Melbourne 1–0.[16]
Kruse and his close friendMichael Zullo formed a good partnership with each playing either side of a striker in a three-man attack for Brisbane which coincided with a seven match unbeaten streak.[17]
Kruse's place in Roar's starting line-up was in jeopardy at the beginning of the 2008 A-League season after he was involved in an altercation outside a Queensland nightspot. The fight resulted in Kruse needing stitches and the then-19-year-old incurring the wrath of club coach Frank Farina, who offered Kruse only a short-term contract as a replacement for the injured Massimo Murdoca for the 2009–10 season.[18][19]
Kruse was linked to a move to reigning A-League premiers Melbourne Victory following the departure of Melbourne striker Danny Allsopp to Qatar club Al-Rayyan.[20] On 10 September 2009, it was confirmed that Kruse had left the Roar for Melbourne Victory.[21]
Kruse made his first appearance for the Victory on 13 September 2009 against Wellington Phoenix after replacingNey Fabiano at the 58th minute. He scored his first goal for the Victory in the 4–0 demolition of Gold Coast United on 28 November 2009.
A highlight of Kruse's professional career was when he scored a first half hat-trick on 16 January 2010 against the Perth Glory.[22] The Victory went on to win 6–2 as the Glory had no answer for Kruse's pace and well timed runs. His fifth goal came against Sydney FC in the major semi final when struck a curling shot which left Sydney FC keeperClint Bolton no chance as it tore into the top right corner. His sixth goal for Melbourne came againstGold Coast United when he roundedgoalkeeper and former teammateGlen Moss to slide the ball into the open net.
He was the first player to score a brace in aMelbourne derby, helping Victory to a 3–1 win over their rivalsMelbourne Heart in December 2010.
At Victory, Kruse was known for turning his career around through his development and change of attitude, no longer getting caught up in off-field incidents like he did whilst in Brisbane, and taking his footballing potential much more seriously.
Following his form for the Victory, Kruse signed with German sideFortuna Düsseldorf on a three-year contract beginning with the 2011–12 season.[23] He made his competitive debut for the club on 24 July 2011 in a league match againstSC Paderborn 07, making a substitute appearance in the second half.[24]Kruse started in Fortuna's return to the Bundesliga in the 2012–13 season. He provided a flick on for Schahin leading to the first goal and a neat cross for Schahin's second. Fortuna went on to win the match 2–0 over Augsburg.[25]He scored his first goal in the Bundesliga against Hoffenheim.[26] In the 2–0 win over Hamburger SV, he scored his second goal of the Bundesliga campaign and then provided the assist for Fortuna's second.[27]
Kruse signed a three-year contract with German sideBayer Leverkusen for €1.5 million on 28 April 2013.[28] He made his run-on debut against Mainz 05 in the Bundesliga on 21 September 2013, scoring two goals in a 4–1 victory.
On 31 August 2015, Kruse signed withVfB Stuttgart on loan until the end of the season with an option to buy.[29] He made his first appearance for VfB Stuttgart in the away match against Hertha BSC on 11 September 2015, as a replacement forMartin Harnik early in the second half. The loan deal was prematurely terminated on 1 February 2016.[30]
In May 2017, Kruse terminated his contract withLiaoning Whowin due to unpaid wages.[31]
On 21 July 2017, Kruse joined German clubVfL Bochum.[32] He scored his debut goal for the club on 10 September 2017, netting the winning goal in a 2–1 victory overDarmstadt 98.[33]
In July 2019, Kruse returned to theA-League, signing a two-year contract withMelbourne Victory.[34]
Kruse was named as the Victory Medalist for the 2020–21 season; he made 19 appearances but no goals and one assist in that season.[35]
Kruse left the Victory in June 2022 upon the expiration of his contract.[36][37][38]
In February 2023, Brisbane Roar announced that Robbie Kruse would be returning to the club for the 2023 A-League season.[39] Kruse only played 8 minutes for the Roar (againstSydney FC) before being released at the end of the season.[40]
In November 2023, Kruse became theBrisbane Roar Academy Development and Talent ID coach.[41]
On 28 December 2010, following his impressive level of play in theA-League Kruse was selected in the Australian national team's 23-man squad for the 2011 Asian Cup. On 5 January 2011, he made hisSocceroos debut, coming off the bench againstUAE in a pre-Asian Cup friendly match. On 25 January 2011, Kruse scored his first international goal, in a 6–0 victory overUzbekistan in the semi-final of the2011 AFC Asian Cup. In the final of the competition, he made a substitute appearance and almost scored a header with his first touch of the ball. Australia lost the final 1–0 in extra time.
Kruse scored his second international goal in a friendly match againstWales on 10 August 2011, which Australia won 2–1.[42] He scored his third goal againstJordan on 11 June 2013, in a 2014 World Cup qualifier in which Australia won 4–0, and in which he was also Man of the Match, with two more assists on top of his goal.[43] He missed out on a spot in the team for the2014 FIFA World Cup with an injury.[44]
Kruse was named as part of Australia's2015 AFC Asian Cup squad. He made his first appearance of the tournament as a starter in Australia's first group game againstKuwait. He started Australia's second group game againstOman, scoring Australia's second goal of the game off aMassimo Luongo assist, in an eventual 4–0 win, with him being namedman of the match in the same match.
Kruse started in the2015 AFC Asian Cup Final. However, in the middle of the second half, he suffered an Achilles injury and was substituted off forJames Troisi. Australia went on to win the match 2–1 with the match-winning goal coming through Troisi. Scans revealed that although Kruse's injury was not as serious as initially feared, he would still spend four months on the sidelines.
In May 2018, he was named in Australia's 23-man squad for the2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia.[45]
| Club | Season | League | National cup[a] | League cup[b] | Continental | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Queensland Roar | 2007–08 | A-League | 17 | 4 | – | 0 | 0 | – | 17 | 4 | ||
| 2008–09 | A-League | 4 | 0 | – | 1 | 0 | – | 5 | 0 | |||
| 2009–10 | A-League | 5 | 0 | – | – | – | 5 | 0 | ||||
| Total | 26 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 27 | 4 | ||
| Melbourne Victory | 2009–10 | A-League | 20 | 5 | – | – | 4 | 0 | 24 | 5 | ||
| 2010–11 | A-League | 19 | 11 | – | – | 4 | 0 | 23 | 11 | |||
| Total | 39 | 16 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 47 | 16 | ||
| Fortuna Düsseldorf II | 2011–12 | Regionalliga West | 2 | 0 | – | – | – | 2 | 0 | |||
| Fortuna Düsseldorf | 2011–12 | 2. Bundesliga | 11 | 0 | 1 | 0 | – | – | 12 | 0 | ||
| 2012–13 | Bundesliga | 30 | 4 | 3 | 0 | – | – | 33 | 4 | |||
| Total | 41 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 45 | 4 | ||
| Bayer 04 Leverkusen | 2013–14 | Bundesliga | 15 | 2 | 2 | 1 | – | 4 | 0 | 21 | 3 | |
| 2014–15 | Bundesliga | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | – | 2 | 0 | 7 | 0 | ||
| 2015–16 | Bundesliga | 9 | 0 | 1 | 0 | – | 5 | 0 | 15 | 0 | ||
| 2016–17 | Bundesliga | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | – | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | ||
| Total | 28 | 2 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 12 | 0 | 46 | 3 | ||
| VfB Stuttgart (loan) | 2015–16 | Bundesliga | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | – | – | 4 | 0 | ||
| Liaoning | 2017 | Chinese Super League | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | – | 4 | 0 | ||
| VfL Bochum | 2017–18 | 2. Bundesliga | 30 | 7 | 1 | 0 | – | – | 31 | 7 | ||
| 2018–19 | 2. Bundesliga | 14 | 1 | 0 | 0 | – | – | 14 | 1 | |||
| Total | 44 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 45 | 8 | ||
| Melbourne Victory | 2019–20 | A-League | 11 | 2 | 0 | 0 | – | 2 | 1 | 13 | 3 | |
| 2020–21 | A-League | 19 | 0 | – | – | – | 19 | 0 | ||||
| 2021–22 | A-League Men | 10 | 1 | 5 | 0 | – | 1 | 0 | 16 | 1 | ||
| Total | 40 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 48 | 4 | ||
| Brisbane Roar | 2022–23 | A-League Men | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | – | 1 | 0 | ||
| Total | 228 | 37 | 17 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 23 | 1 | 269 | 39 | ||
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Australia | 2011 | 14 | 2 |
| 2012 | 7 | 0 | |
| 2013 | 8 | 1 | |
| 2014 | 3 | 0 | |
| 2015 | 6 | 1 | |
| 2016 | 10 | 0 | |
| 2017 | 12 | 1 | |
| 2018 | 10 | 0 | |
| 2019 | 5 | 0 | |
| Total | 75 | 5 | |
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 25 January 2011 | Khalifa International Stadium,Doha, Qatar |  Uzbekistan | 6–0 | 6–0 | 2011 AFC Asian Cup |
| 2 | 10 August 2011 | Cardiff City Stadium,Cardiff, Wales |  Wales | 2–0 | 2–1 | Friendly |
| 3 | 11 June 2013 | Docklands Stadium,Melbourne, Australia |  Jordan | 3–0 | 4–0 | 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 4 | 13 January 2015 | Stadium Australia,Sydney, Australia |  Oman | 2–0 | 4–0 | 2015 AFC Asian Cup |
| 5 | 5 October 2017 | Hang Jebat Stadium,Malacca, Malaysia |  Syria | 1–0 | 1–1 | 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification |
Australia
Individual
Australia squads | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
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