Thomas Gaardsøe

Early career

Son of former Randers Freja player Per Gaardsøe, Thomas Gaardsøe played his youth football at Freja. His name first caught the headlines when he was a part of the winning team in the 1994 and 1995 editions of the Danish nationwide school football tournament, scoring in both finals.

AaB

He moved to Aalborg Boldspilklub (AaB) in the Danish Superliga championship, and made his senior debut in June 1997. Despite occasional good performances, he had a hard time forcing his way into the AaB starting line-up in his role as central midfielder. He made his AaB breakthrough in spring 2001, as a replacement for the injured central defender Torben Boye. He impressed in his new role at AaB, as he was once more called up for the under-21 national team.

Ipswich Town

In the summer 2001, he was sold to English club Ipswich Town in the FA Premier League championship in a transfer deal worth £1.3 million. He did not play much in his first season, but managed to score his first goal for Ipswich against Sunderland in December 2001. After his first season at the club, Ipswich suffered relegation into the English First Division. In the First Division, Gaardsøe became an important member for the squad, scoring six goals in all competitions of the 2002–2003 season.

West Bromwich Albion

Gaardsøe was sold in the summer of 2003 to First Division rivals West Bromwich Albion. His first appearance came in a 4–0 thrashing of Brentford in the Football…

Gaardsøe gained his first international experience in 1998, playing two games for the Danish under-19 national team. He also won 10 caps for the Danish under-21 national team between 1998 and 2001, scoring once. He won his first international cap in November 2003, coming on as a substitute in Denmark's 3–2 victory over England. He scored his first national team goal in his second match, a 5–1 win against Poland in August 2004.

International

Source:

International goals

Denmark score listed first, score column indicates score after each Gaardsøe goal.

AaB

Danish Superliga: 1998–99 West Bromwich Albion

Football League First Division runner-up: 2003–04 Individual

West Bromwich Albion Player of the Year: 2003–04