Morten Olsen

Club career

Born in Vordingborg, Morten Olsen started playing youth football at the local club in 1957. He started his career playing as a right winger. In 1970, at 20 years of age, he was brought to B 1901 in the top-flight Danish 1st Division championship by coach Kurt "Nikkelaj" Nielsen. At B 1901, Olsen was moved from right winger to central midfielder, in order to accommodate another right winger in the squad. Olsen played three seasons at B 1901, before he moved abroad to play professionally with Belgian club Cercle Brugge in 1972, who had been promoted to the top-flight Belgian First Division championship one year earlier. At Brugge, Olsen played alongside fellow Danish international Benny Nielsen, who had recommended Olsen to Brugge manager Urbain Braems. In Olsen's first year with the club, Cercle Brugge finished in eleventh place in the 1972–73 Belgian First Division and went on to establish itself in the mid-table. While at Brugge, Olsen was used as a multi-purpose player, playing every position except from goalkeeper. In 1976, Olsen moved to league rivals Molenbeek, who had won the 1974–75 Belgian First Division. Olsen joined Danish internationals Benny Nielsen and Kresten Bjerre at Molenbeek. His time at Molenbeek featured even better league results, and consistent finishes in the top third of the league. In 1980, Olsen moved to 16-time Belgian champions Anderlecht, to play alongside Danish internationals Benny Nielsen and Kenneth Brylle. In his first…

Olsen started his coaching career in January 1990, at the defending Danish champions Brøndby, and guided the club to two Danish championships. He put the team through tough fitness training which, even though it disgruntled some players, elevated the team into European top class, as Brøndby reached the semi-final of the 1990–91 UEFA Cup with Olsen at the helm. With the notable exception of Nigerian international defender Uche Okechukwu, his dabblings in the transfer market were not equally successful. This caused anger among the amateur department of the club, whose youth scheme they felt Olsen overlooked. As the club faced financial hardship and results began to lack in 1992, Olsen was fired from the club in May. In April 1993, Olsen moved to his former team 1. FC Köln which he saved from relegation, when coming to its aid in the last six games of the 1992–93 Bundesliga season. In his time in Germany, he would become a certified coach, earning his "Fußball-Lehrer-Lizenz" diploma in 1993. For two seasons, he had the club positioned somewhat safely from relegation, despite not having any especially good players. At the start of the 1995–96 season, Köln were eliminated in the DFB-Pokal by an amateur team from Beckum, and Olsen was fired in August 1995. He would have to wait for almost two years until Ajax in the Netherlands hired him on a contract starting from July 1997. He attracted Danish national team captain Michael Laudrup to the club, and together they won the Double of…

International

Scores and results list Denmark's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Olsen goal.

Manager

As of 17 November 2015.

Morten Olsen has been married to his Belgian wife and lived in Beersel near Brussels. In addition to Danish he speaks also Dutch, German, French and English.