Albert Rusnák (footballer, born 1994)

Albert Rusnák (born 7 July 1994) is a Slovak professional footballer who plays for Major League Soccer club Real Salt Lake as an attacking midfielder and for Slovakia as a right-wing.

Albert Rusnák
Personal information
Full name Albert Rusnák[1]
Date of birth (1994-07-07) 7 July 1994
Place of birth Vyškov, Czech Republic[2]
Height 1.75 m (5 ft 9 in)
Position(s) Midfielder
Club information
Current team
 Real Salt Lake
Number 11
Youth career
KAC Košice[2]
1997–2010 Košice
2010–2013 Manchester City
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2013–2015 Manchester City 0 (0)
2013 → Oldham Athletic (loan) 3 (0)
2014 → Birmingham City (loan) 4 (0)
2014 → Cambuur (loan) 17 (4)
2015–2017 Groningen 71 (10)
2017– Real Salt Lake 106 (30)
National team‡
2011 Slovakia U17 6 (2)
2011–2013 Slovakia U19 6 (2)
2013–2017 Slovakia U21 12 (3)
2016– Slovakia 28 (5)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 13 November 2020
‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 12 November 2020

Career

Manchester City

Rusnák played youth football in Slovakia for MFK Košice from a very young age, before signing for Manchester City in July 2010,[3] where he joined the club's academy side.

Loan to Oldham Athletic

After three years of youth and reserve-team football, he signed for Football League One side Oldham Athletic on loan.[4] Rusnák made his first senior appearance as a 63rd-minute substitute for Jonson Clarke-Harris in a league game against Tranmere Rovers on 31 August 2013, in a match that they lost 0–1 at Boundary Park.[5] His first start came three days later, in a 4–1 away Football League Trophy win over Shrewsbury Town.[6] On 17 September, Rusnák's loan was cut short and he returned to City.[7]

Loan to Birmingham City

On 21 January 2014, Rusnák joined Football League Championship (second-tier) club Birmingham City on a month's youth loan.[8] He went straight into the starting eleven for the FA Cup fourth round defeat to Swansea City the following Saturday.[9] On 18 February 2014, Rusnák extended his loan spell until the conclusion of the 2013–14 season.[10]

Loan to SC Cambuur

On 25 July 2014, Rusnák moved to Dutch Eredivisie club SC Cambuur on loan until January.[11] He became a key part of the team, scoring in a 3–0 win over local rivals FC Groningen and having his loan extended until the end of the season.[12] Earlier in the season, in another local derby at SC Heerenveen, he gave the ball away from kick-off, resulting in a penalty being awarded after nine seconds, but Cambuur fought back for a 2–2 draw.[12]

FC Groningen

With his Manchester City contract due to expire in the summer of 2015,[12] Rusnák moved on a three-year contract to Groningen on 18 December 2014.[13] On 3 May 2015, he scored both goals in the KNVB Cup final as they defeated reigning champions PEC Zwolle to win their first major trophy and qualify for the UEFA Europa League.[14]

Real Salt Lake

On 6 January 2017, Rusnák joined Real Salt Lake of Major League Soccer in time for the 2017 season. The terms of the move were undisclosed. He will wear the number 11 shirt last worn by Javier Morales.[15] He finished his debut MLS season with 14 assists, good for fourth-best in the league. Rusnák then hit the 10-goal mark in both his second and third seasons with RSL.

International career

Rusnák made his debut in the senior national team on 15 November 2016, in the last friendly fixture for the year, against Austria, in a goal-less tie in Vienna, coming on as a substitute in the 46th minute for Jakub Holúbek.

In 2017, he kept received invitations to all fixtures, except for matches against Uganda and Sweden in Abu Dhabi, where league players were selected. In that year he made appearances in five of six qualifying matches for the 2018 FIFA World Cup, even earning a spot in the starting 11 in the last match in the group stage against Malta, where he also assisted Ondrej Duda's goal.

Rusnák scored his first international goal in his ninth cap, with a right-foot shot, in the 42nd minute of the first international match of 2018, a semi-final fixture against UAE, at the 2018 King's Cup. He was assisted by a pass from Patrik Hrošovský.[16]

Personal life

Rusnák's father, also called Albert Rusnák, is himself a former professional footballer and manager who became a scout at Manchester City in 2010, taking his son to the club.[12]

Style of play

Rusnák struggled while playing in the Football League, due to the style of play rewarding taller and physically stronger players.[12] His manager at Cambuur, Henk de Jong, noted how his style of play being better suited for a playmaker role rather than his position on the wing in England.[12]

Honours

Club
FC Groningen

International

Slovakia

Career statistics
As of match played 22 September 2020 [17]
Club Season League National Cup Europe Other Total
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Manchester City 2013–14[9] Premier League 0000000000
Manchester City 0000000000
Oldham Athletic (loan) 2013–14[9] League One 2000001[lower-alpha 1]030
Oldham Athletic 2000001030
Birmingham City (loan) 2013–14[9] Championship 3010000040
Birmingham City 3010000040
SC Cambuur (loan) 2014–15 Eredivisie 17400——174
SC Cambuur 174000000174
FC Groningen 2014–15 [18] Eredivisie 16333——196
2015–16 [19] 283206[lower-alpha 2]01[lower-alpha 3]0373
2016–17 13120——151
FC Groningen 5777360107110
Real Salt Lake 2017 Major League Soccer 30700——307
2018 311000—213311
2019 291000—203110
2020 11[lower-alpha 4]200—1[lower-alpha 5]0122
Real Salt Lake 101290000519730
Career total 1804083607119244
  1. Appearance in the Football League Trophy
  2. Appearances in the Europa League
  3. Appearance in the Johan Cruyff Shield
  4. Includes two appearances in the MLS is Back Tournament group stage.
  5. Includes one appearance in the MLS is Back Tournament knockout stage.

International goals
Scores and results list Slovakia's goal tally first.[20]
NoDateVenueCapOpponentScoreResultCompetition
1.22 March 2018Rajamangala National Stadium, Bangkok, Thailand9 United Arab Emirates1–02–12018 King's Cup
2.5 September 2018Štadión Antona Malatinského, Trnava, Slovakia13 Denmark2–03–0Friendly
3.16 October 2018Friends Arena, Solna, Sweden15 Sweden1–11–1
4.16 November 2018Štadión Antona Malatinského, Trnava, Slovakia16 Ukraine1–04–12018–19 UEFA Nations League B
5.21 March 201918 Hungary2–02–0UEFA Euro 2020 qualification

References
  1. "List of Players under Written Contract Registered Between 01/02/2014 and 28/02/2014" (PDF). The Football Association. p. 13. Retrieved 6 April 2014.
  2. Predstavujeme Alberta Rusnáka, ifotbal.eu, retrieved 22. 1. 2014 (in Slovak)
  3. "City seal Slovak deal". Sky Sports. 7 July 2010. Archived from the original on 10 July 2010. Retrieved 18 September 2013.
  4. "Manchester City: Albert Rusnak joins Oldham Athletic on loan". BBC Sport. 30 August 2013. Retrieved 2 September 2013.
  5. "Oldham 0–1 Tranmere". BBC Sport. 31 August 2013. Retrieved 18 September 2013.
  6. "Shrewsbury 1–4 Oldham". BBC Sport. 3 September 2013. Retrieved 18 September 2013.
  7. "Transfer news: Albert Rusnak returns to Manchester City after Oldham loan cut short". Sky Sports. 17 September 2013. Retrieved 18 September 2013.
  8. "Albert Rusnak wings in to Blues". Birmingham City F.C. 21 January 2014. Archived from the original on 25 January 2014. Retrieved 21 January 2014.
  9. "Games played by Albert Rusnak in 2013/2014". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 12 February 2014.
  10. "Loan extensions for Huws and Rusnak". Birmingham City FC. 18 February 2014. Archived from the original on 20 September 2016. Retrieved 18 February 2014.
  11. Bajkowski, Simon (25 July 2014). "Rusnak moves on loan to SC Cambuur". Manchester Evening News. Retrieved 18 May 2015.
  12. Yokhin, Michael (4 November 2014). "Man City loanee Albert Rusnak takes Netherlands by storm at Cambuur". ESPN. Retrieved 18 May 2015.
  13. "FC Groningen contracteert Albert Rusnak" [FC Groningen sign Albert Rusnák] (in Dutch). FC Groningen. 18 December 2014. Archived from the original on 8 July 2015. Retrieved 18 May 2015.
  14. "Groningen claim first trophy with KNVB Cup triumph". Goal.com. 4 May 2015. Retrieved 18 May 2015.
  15. Montgomery, Matt (6 January 2017). "Official: Real Salt Lake signs Albert Rusnák". www.rslsoapbox.com. Retrieved 5 August 2017.
  16. a.s., Petit Press. "Rusnák pohľadom oklamal brankára, ale Slováci v závere spanikárili". sport.sme.sk (in Slovak). Retrieved 14 November 2018.
  17. Albert Rusnák at Soccerway. Retrieved 4 September 2017.
  18. "Games played by Albert Rusnak for FC Groningen in 2014/2015". FCG Stats. FCG Stats. Retrieved 24 April 2016.
  19. "Games played by Albert Rusnak in 2015/2016". FCG Stats. FCG Stats. Retrieved 24 April 2016.
  20. "Rusnák, Albert". National Football Teams. Retrieved 22 March 2018.
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