Jess Thorup

Jess Thorup

Thorup managing Gent in 2020
Personal information
Date of birth	(1970-02-21) 21 February 1970 (age 54)
Place of birth	Hjerting, Denmark[1]
Height	1.90 m (6 ft 3 in)
Position(s)	Forward
Team information
Current team	FC Augsburg (head coach)
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1989–1996	OB	134	(29)
1996–1998	Uerdingen 05	39	(3)
1998	Tirol Innsbruck	13	(3)
1998–2005	Esbjerg fB	203	(58)
2005	HamKam	12	(1)
2006	Esbjerg fB	1	(0)
Total		390	(91)
Managerial career
2011–2013	Esbjerg
2013–2015	Denmark U20
2013–2015	Denmark U21
2015–2018	Midtjylland
2018–2020	Gent
2020	Genk
2020–2022	Copenhagen
2023–	FC Augsburg
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Jess Thorup (born 21 February 1970) is a Danish professional football manager and former player. He is currently head coach of Bundesliga club FC Augsburg.

Playing career

Thorup progressed through the youth academy of Odense (OB). He made his professional debut for the club in 1989, and won the Danish league title the same year.^[2] In both 1991 and 1993, Thorup was also part of the team winning the Danish Cup.^[3] In 1996, he moved to Germany and joined Uerdingen 05, who competed in the 2. Bundesliga.^[4] After just three goals in 39 league games, he moved to Austrian football halfway through the 1997–98 season, where he joined Tirol Innsbruck. He returned to Denmark in the summer of 1998,^[5] and played for Esbjerg fB until 2005. He then signed with HamKam in Norway,^[6] before returning to Esbjerg where he retired in 2006.^[7]

Managerial career

Esbjerg

In 2006, Thorup returned to Esbjerg fB as assistant coach to Troels Bech.^[8] After the dismissal of his boss in November 2008, he took over the team as caretaker manager for three games, but then returned to the role of assistant to new head coach Ove Pedersen.^[9] After his resignation on 14 March 2011, he was promoted to head coach, but could not prevent relegation from the Danish Superliga.^[10] After achieving direct promotion the following year, the team placed themselves in middle regions of the league table and won the Danish Cup in 2012–13,^[11] beating Randers. Thorup was then voted Danish Football Manager of the Year for 2013.^[12]

Denmark U21

On 21 February 2013 it was announced that starting 1 June 2013 he would become the manager of the Denmark under-21 national football team, thereby leaving Esbjerg fB.^[13] As the coach of the under-21 team, he took part in the 2015 UEFA European Under-21 Championship, in which the Danish team reached the semi-finals. There, they lost to eventual winners Sweden.^[14]

Midtjylland

After the European Championship, Thorup returned to club football and took over Midtjylland as the successor to Glen Riddersholm, who had resigned after winning the league title – Midtjylland's first.^[15][16] After they were eliminated from qualifying for the UEFA Champions League by Cypriot club APOEL,^[17] the team survived the group stage of the 2015–16 UEFA Europa League under Thorup's leadership.^[18] In the round of 16, the club caught the eye with a 2–1 first leg win over Premier League giants Manchester United,^[19][20] but were eliminated from the competition after a 5–1 defeat in the second leg.^[21][22]

Gent and Genk

On 10 October 2018, Thorup was recruited to succeed Yves Vanderhaeghe as coach of the Belgian club Gent off the back of a 5-1 home defeat to Racing Genk leaving the Buffalos seventh in the league table, one place off the title play-offs.

Under Thorup,^[23] Gent rallied to qualify for the Champions play-offs, finishing fifth, and reached the Belgian Cup Final, losing 2-1 to second-flight KV Mechelen for only the second occasion a club outside the top division had won the Cup in Belgium.

The result also denied Gent a place in Europe, with the top three in the league plus the winners of the Cup Final and the European Play-Off Final qualifying. But an investigation into events from the previous season, where Mechelen were determined to have made an attempt to fix the result of an end-of-season game against Waasland-Beveren on 11 March 2018 to try and prevent their relegation. Mechelen were allowed keep the Cup and their newly-secured top-flight status, after winning the Division 1B title in tandem with winning the Cup, but were banned from Europe for a season as part of the 2017–2019 Belgian football fraud scandal,^[24] resulting in all Belgian clubs moving up a place in terms of European qualification, with Gent next in line.^[25]

The Buffalos qualified for the UEFA Europa League, starting in the second qualifying round against Romanian club Viitorul Constanța.^[26][27] Through the other qualifying rounds, the club finally reached the group stage, where they won Group I with three wins and three draws.^[28] Gent took part in the round of 32, where they were eliminated by Roma.^[29]

With eleven weeks still to play in the 2019–20 season, the league was suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic, with Gent lying second behind Club Brugge. Unlike most other major leagues, the Pro League decided against restarting the current season, announcing Club as champions, with Gent as runners-up taking a third qualifying round place for the 2020–21 UEFA Champions League.

After losing their first two games of the 2020–21 season to Sint-Truiden and Kortrijk, Thorup was suddenly dismissed as coach on 20 August 2020.^[30] By the time Thorup was hired by league rivals Genk as their new coach a month later on 24 September, his direct replacement at Gent, László Bölöni, would himself be fired after only three games in chanrge, with Wim De Decker taking charge, until his firing in November .

Thorup received a contract at Genk until the summer of 2023,^[31][32] but was at the helm for only six games before being tempted back into Danish football.

Copenhagen

In early November 2020, Thorup received an offer from Copenhagen to become their new head coach, after their former manager Ståle Solbakken had been dismissed on 10 October.^[33] At Thorup's request, his contract was terminated by Genk.^[34] Thorup signed a contract in Copenhagen until the summer of 2024.

In his first season as manager of Copenhagen he guided the club to a third place finish in the Danish Superliga.^[35] This meant that the club participated in the inaugural season of the UEFA Conference League, and Thorup led his team to the Round of 16, in which they were defeated by PSV Eindhoven.^[36]

His second season in charge of Copenhagen ended with the club being crowned as Danish champions after winning the 2021–22 Danish Superliga.^[37]

The 2022–23 Danish Superliga started poorly for the club, but they managed to qualify for the 2022–23 UEFA Champions League after defeating Trabzonspor 2–1 on aggregate.^[38] Howerver, on 20 September 2022, Copenhagen announced that the club had parted ways with Thorup as their head coach, due to the poor start to the Superliga season.^[39][40]

FC Augsburg

He was appointed as the new head coach of FC Augsburg on 15 October 2023.^[41]

Managerial statistics

As of match played 14 December 2024^{[citation needed]}

Managerial record by team and tenure

Team	From	To	Record
			G	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Win %
Esbjerg fB (caretaker)	17 November 2008	1 January 2009	3	1	2	0	4	3	+1	033.33
Esbjerg fB	14 March 2011	1 June 2013	84	46	18	20	140	84	+56	054.76
Denmark U-21	1 June 2013	12 July 2015	23	13	6	4	51	25	+26	056.52
FC Midtjylland	12 July 2015	10 October 2018	165	93	32	40	321	195	+126	056.36
Gent	10 October 2018	20 August 2020	82	39	19	24	146	102	+44	047.56
Genk	24 September 2020	2 November 2020	5	3	2	0	11	5	+6	060.00
Copenhagen	2 November 2020	20 September 2022	88	49	19	20	165	103	+62	055.68
FC Augsburg	15 October 2023	Present	44	15	12	17	65	73	−8	034.09
Total			494	259	110	125	903	590	+313	052.43

Honours

Player

OB

• 1st Division: 1989^[42]
• Danish Cup: 1990–91, 1992–93^[43]

Manager

Esbjerg fB

• Danish 1st Division: 2011–12^[44]
• Danish Cup: 2012–13^[11]

Midtjylland

• Danish Superliga: 2017–18^[45]

Copenhagen

• Danish Superliga: 2021–22
• The Atlantic Cup: Runner-up (2): 2020, 2022

References

1. Godtfredsen, Carsten (2 November 2020). "Portræt: En næsten-ejendomsmægler tager topstilling i dansk fodbold". Politiken (in Danish).
2. Kristensen, Jørn Just (19 May 2018). "Thorup blev dansk mester som teenager: Nu er han tæt på med FCM". herningnyt.dk (in Danish).
3. Sejersbøl, Morten Crone; Lund, Benjamin Munk (14 August 2015). "'Det er kraftedme ikke en sommerkamp!': Da Thorup satte sig i respekt i FCM". www.bt.dk (in Danish).
4. "KFC Uerdingen, 2. Bundesliga 1996/97". DFB Datencenter (in German).
5. "Danskere hjem fra Østrig". jyllands-posten.dk (in Danish). 8 May 1998.
6. Olesen, Michael (13 July 2005). "Jess Thorup skifter til Ham-Kam". DR (in Danish).
7. Johansen, Nils (23 January 2006). "Thorup vil være cheftræner". bold.dk (in Danish).
8. Johansen, Nils (18 December 2005). "Thorup assistent for Troels Bech". bold.dk (in Danish).
9. "Ny Esbjerg-træner tæt på panik - TV 2". sport.tv2.dk (in Danish). 20 March 2011. Archived from the original on 19 February 2023. Retrieved 2 March 2021.
10. Lind Jørgensen, Anders (1 June 2011). "Jess Thorup bliver i Esbjergs trænersæde". www.avisen.dk (in Danish).
11. "Esbjerg er pokalvinder med sejr over Randers". sn.dk (in Danish). 9 May 2013.
12. "Dansk Fodbold Award: Jess Thorup er årets træner". sn.dk (in Danish). 11 November 2013.
13. "Thorup bliver ny U21-landstræner". Tipsbladet.dk (in Danish). 21 February 2013.
14. Andersen, Mikkel Asferg (27 June 2015). "VIDEO Dansk U21-kollaps: Tabte 4-1 til Sverige". DR (in Danish).
15. Hansen, Troels Trads (12 July 2015). "Jess Thorup bliver ny træner i FC Midtjylland". DR (in Danish).
16. "Interview med Jess Thorup: Ny træner i FC Midtjylland". Jyske Bank (in Danish). 12 July 2015.
17. "Midtjylland vs. APOEL - 28 July 2015 - Soccerway". int.soccerway.com. Soccerway.
18. "Kæmpe triumf: FC Midtjylland er videre i Europa League - TV 2". sport.tv2.dk (in Danish). 10 December 2015.
19. Dawkes, Phil (18 February 2016). "FC Midtjylland 2-1 Manchester United". BBC Sport.
20. Steinberg, Jacob (18 February 2016). "Midtjylland 2-1 Manchester United: Europa League – as it happened". The Guardian.
21. Johnston, Neil (25 February 2016). "Manchester United 5-1 FC Midtjylland (agg 6-3)". BBC Sport.
22. Burnton, Simon (25 February 2016). "Manchester United 5-1 Midtjylland: Europa League second leg – as it happened". The Guardian.
23. Brønsbæk, Kristian (10 October 2018). "Thorups nye klub er i en helt anden liga end FC Midtjylland - TV 2". sport.tv2.dk (in Danish).
24. Van Genechten, Vincent (1 June 2019). "Dossier matchfixing: KV Mechelen degradeert, Waasland-Beveren gaat vrijuit". Het Nieuwsblad (in Flemish).
25. "KV Mechelen replaced in the 2019/20 UEFA Europa League | Inside UEFA". UEFA.com. 18 July 2019.
26. Fajersztajn, Noé (18 July 2019). "Officiel: La Gantoise sur la scène européenne". sport.be (in French). Archived from the original on 24 October 2023. Retrieved 3 March 2021.
27. "Ce scrie presa din Belgia, după meciul "nebun" în care Viitorul lui Hagi a primit 6 goluri de la Gent". www.digisport.ro (in Romanian). 26 July 2019.
28. Maebe, Guillaume (12 December 2019). "Bibberend naar groepswinst: AA Gent dommelt in na rust, maar haalt het van Oleksandria met 2-1". Het Nieuwsblad (in Flemish).
29. "Gent-Roma 2020 History | UEFA Europa League". UEFA.com. Retrieved 3 March 2021.
30. Nordestgaard Lage, Jacob (20 August 2020). "Jess Thorup fyret i Gent". sport.tv2.dk (in Danish).
31. "Welkom Jess Thorup! | KRC Genk". www.krcgenk.be (in Dutch). K.R.C. Genk. 24 September 2020.
32. "Officielt: Jess Thorup er ny Genk-træner". TV3 SPORT (in Danish). 24 September 2020.
33. Kjær, Christian (10 October 2020). "Ståle Solbakken færdig i FCK". sport.tv2.dk (in Danish).
34. "Jess Thorup keert terug naar Denemarken | KRC Genk". www.krcgenk.be (in Dutch). K.R.C. Genk. 2 November 2020.
35. Dvinge, Nicolai (24 May 2021). "Selskabet bag FC København nedjusterer efter tredjeplads". tv2.dk (in Danish).
36. Sabroe, Liselotte (6 November 2020). "PSV kyler idéforladte FCK ud af Conference League". berlingske.dk (in Danish).
37. Bentsen, Bo (22 May 2022). "FC København er dansk mester". tv2.dk (in Danish).
38. Bellaiche, Emil (24 August 2022). "Ryan-magi sendte FCK i Champions League mod Trabzonspor". bold.dk (in Danish).
39. "F.C. Copenhagen appoint Jess Thorup as new head coach". F.C. København. 2 November 2020.
40. Hoffskov, Ole (6 November 2020). "Jess Thorup fordobler sin løn i FC København". Tipsbladet.dk (in Danish).
41. "FCA verpflichtet Jess Thorup als neuen Cheftrainer". fcaugsburg.de. 15 October 2023. Retrieved 15 October 2023.
42. "Guldholdet fra ´89". www.ob.dk (in Danish). Odense Boldklub (OB). 21 December 2019.
43. "Tidligere vindere" (in Danish). Sydbank Pokalen. Retrieved 2 March 2021.
44. "TV: Esbjerg rykker op i Superligaen igen". ekstrabladet.dk (in Danish). 5 May 2012.
45. Hansen, Jesper Haue (18 April 2019). "Jess Thorup måtte splitte familien for at forfølge sin drøm". FINANS (in Danish).

External links

• EfB profile Archived 2012-02-18 at the Wayback Machine