var playerInfo={"5BB437CAF240E475":"84 kg","7A976CFA8EAD315B":"Philipp Degen","B6B40535701B4CD0C0B8D7C99C269CE6":"","D39E7C23A464F86D":"1","FD159EB5937AD12FA1FFAC9CD65B6CDA":"Th\u1ee5y S\u0129","572BB26E7A76C211":"512","EDBF020A791C65EC6DC356F5C22437AB":"4","12F030D6FCEE9D12":"10187","7379EA3CEBE73A3F":"185 cm","41F6CDCCD6C1C3AD8ECAF53768B000E3":"<FONT size=2>The legend of all Swiss boys dreaming of a skiing career is definitely wrong, especially in the plain Basel area, so nobody was wondering about 5-year old Philipp&#8217;s wish for football shoes and the membership in his local football club, not even his twin brother David.<BR><BR>His talent was recognized and proceeded very early. Aged 11 only, Degen changed to Basel FC where he passed all teams and squads. <BR><BR>Seven years later, Degen started to play to the professional team. Many talent scouts paid attention to him during his 71 matches in Nationalliga A, and also Borussia Dortmund eyed the right wing defender with offence qualities. Intermittent contacts were deepened in September 2004, followed by a three-year contract later on. Degen joined BVB end of June 2005 without any transfer fees. <BR><BR>&#8222;Borussia Dortmund has a big name in Europe. This is a huge chance for me&#8220;, Degen said, naming &#8222;the fans and the whole region being mad about football&#8221; as further reasons for his decision. Also former public idol St&#233;phane Chapuisat had a good influence on him: &#8222;He talked very positively about BVB and his time in Dortmund. This tightened my decision&#8221; <BR><BR>In between, Degen had promoted as national player. His debut in the Swiss kit took place in February 2005 playing against the United Arab Emirates. Since then, he&#8217;s a permanent within the first squad. &#8220;A dream became true to me on this evening&#8220;, he said, but his main goal remains to qualify for World Cup 2006 in Germany. <BR><BR>Degen pays respect to Bundesliga (&#8222;One of the top-leagues in Europe&#8220;), but he&#8217;s not afraid or nervous. &#8220;The velocity and the rhythm are higher than in Switzerland. The whole periphery is much more professional. Stadiums, marketing, the madness about football &#8211; all of this is hard to compare with the Swiss league&#8221;. Coach Bert van Marwijk: &#8220;Philipp has the talent to fight it out in Bundesliga&#8220;.<BR><BR><B>STRENGHTS<\/B><BR>Asked for his strenghts, Philipp names the offence. The 22-year old is a quick runner, and his fitness makes him switch from goal line to goal line without any problems. The right wing defender plays precise crosses and is always available. Very professional he handles his weaknesses: &#8220;I will have to improve my tactical play and my headers in defence, same as keeping up my position on the pitch&#8221;. <BR><BR><B>SEASON REVIEW<\/B><BR>Degen played to Basel in UEFA-Cup, added by 20 Nationalliga A-matches without a goal. The year before he scored four times during 32 assignments.<\/FONT><BR>","C3DE130B7D4AB7DB":"Philipp Degen","2278C81F60D7F1EC75F92E0677FAB34E":"Liverpool","4FB95329DB27F065AB688F47FF3E7436":"2011-6","1A49EE26E6AAD5C6E965A1D5B61D9EEF":"VfB Stuttgart,Liverpool,Borussia Dortmund,Basel,Aarau","185D9308B7C9E0BBE486C613A62D93FE":"2","E6AF7DF584DAD5AA":"Basel","5BAE2FF41BC6AD03489546EF11EAFCB7":"1983-2-15","EBC62A89E472008E656D0DA73634C539":"","e_index":5};