EURO 2024
Who is Michael Gregoritsch?
Michael Gregoritsch has been keeping Bundesliga defences on their toes for years - and is making a splash on the international game these days. bundesliga.com profiles the Austrian centre-foward...
Stats correct as of 10 June 2024
Age: 30 (born 18 April 1994)
Club: Freiburg
Position: Striker
Country: Austria (55 caps, 15 goals)
Having hit over 50 goals in his first 250 appearances in the Bundesliga, Freiburg's Gregoritsch is the very definition of a dependable centre-forward. His reliability has seen him become a key player for his national team too, netting his first international hat-trick in a huge 6-1 win over Turkey in March 2024.
Watch: The best of Michael Gregoritsch
It may be hard to imagine for Bundesliga followers who have seen Gregoritsch banging in the goals for so many years that he was once a prodigious wonderkid - in fact, he became the youngest-ever player to net in the Austrian top flight when scoring for Kapfenberg against Austria Vienna four days before his 16th birthday in April 2010.
That kind of impact earned him a move to Hoffenheim in summer 2011. He would have to remain persistent before making his Bundesliga breakthrough - going on loan back to Kapfenberg, St. Pauli and Bochum (second-tier clubs at the time) in between making 18 appearances in four years for Hoffenheim.
A two-year spell at Hamburg from 2015 to 2017 marked the Austrian's first sustained period of action in the German top flight, before a switch to Augsburg saw him enjoy his highest-scoring Bundesliga season yet with 13 goals in 2017/18. Having also spent a season on loan at Schalke, he moved to his current employers, Freiburg, in the summer of 2022.
Plays a bit like: Niclas Füllkrug
Like the Dortmund striker and German international, Gregoritsch represents the kind of classic number nine figure that is coming back into tactical fashion. Physically strong and a threat in the air, he is a serious threat from corners and crossed set pieces.
Did you know?
Michael's father Werner was a footballer in Austria in the 70s and 80s, and has been coach of Austria U21 ever since 2012. 17-year-old Michael had already played for the side when Werner took charge, but there would be no parental favours initially as he was left out of his father's first squad.
He did go on to score 20 goals in 29 appearances for Austria U21, however, to help his dad.
What they're saying
"Hats off to Michael! He always comes in determined to score even if he doesn't start. That is extraordinary. He is very important for the team." Freiburg captain Christian Günter after Gregoritsch scored the winner from the bench in a UEFA Europa League tie against West Ham in March 2021.
"Michael has really developed further in the past year. In addition to the qualities he always had like game intelligence and finishing, he has taken a clear step forward in terms of managing frustration and personality." Freiburg sporting director Klemens Hartenbach on signing Gregoritsch in summer 2022.