Artur Wichniarek
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Artur Wichniarek (born February 28, 1977 in Poznań, Poland) is a Polish football (soccer) player who plays for Arminia Bielefeld in the Bundesliga (football). Wichniarek started his professional career at Lech Poznań in 1992/1993 season. The following season he made his Ekstraklasa debut, however, he was not able to secure a place in the starting eleven. In the spring of 1996 was loaned to Polish II Liga club Górnik Konin. Upon his return to his home club he managed to win the manager's confidence and in the following 1996/1997 season he played 30 times, albeit scoring only 4 goals. The same year Wichniarek joined Widzew Łódź, where he played until 1999, appearing 57 times and scoring 28 goals altogether, most of them in the 1998/1999 season. His talent drew the attention of Arminia directors, who brought him to Bielefeld, where he impressed the fans, becoming the club's leading player and best striker. In 2001/2002 season he won the title of 2. Bundesliga top scorer, which earned him the nickname King Artur. Hertha Berlin took notice and in 2003 he moved to Olympiastadion, however, he usually appeared only as a sub. After two seasons in Berlin, in the beginning of 2006, with 44 appearances and 4 goals on his sheet, he moved back to Arminia Bielefeld.
Wichniarek made his first appearance for the Polish national football team on 3rd March, 1999. The fixture was against Armenia and the Poles won 1-0. Wichniarek was not among the manager's favorites and his occasional appearances were usually limited to starring in friendlies. His first international goal was at the expense of the Czech Republic national team on 28th April 1999. Altogether, he appeared in 16 international matches and 4 of his shots found their way into the opponents' net. His last significant cap was against Estonia in Tallinn, where he scored one of the two goals for the winners.
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