Brian Priske

Brian Priske Pedersen (born May 14, 1977) is a Denmark professional football (soccer) player who is currently playing as a Defender (football) for Vejle Boldklub in Denmark. He has played more than 20 matches for the Denmark national football team since his debut in 2003 and he represented Denmark at the 2004 European Football Championship (Euro 2004) tournament.

Biography

Born in Horsens, Priske started his career for Danish club Stensballe. A Horsens suburb club. Still a youth he changed to Horsens Forenede Sportsklubber (HFS) which club today is called AC Horsens. He moved on to Aarhus Fremad in 1997, before settling at Aalborg Boldspilklub (AaB) in 1999. Here he won the Danish Superliga championship in 1999, and captained the club at the end of his tenure. While at AaB, Priske made his debut for the Danish national team in the Spring of 2003, before moving to Belgium to play for K.R.C. Genk in the summer that year. He played for Denmark as a substitute at the Euro 2004, only playing 14 minutes in the 0-0 group game with Italy national football team, but following retirement and injuries in the Danish defense he became a more consistent member of the national team. In the 2006 FIFA World Cup (qualification UEFA) Group 2 stage he played 10 out of 12 matches, though Denmark did not qualify for the finals.

When he played the full match in Denmark's 4-1 win over England national football team on August 17 2005, Priske opened a few eyes in the English Premiership and he joined Portsmouth F.C on August 22 for an undisclosed fee, signing a three-year deal. When he arrived in England, Priske received a good run in manager Alain Perrin's Portsmouth side, but the sacking of Perrin in November 2005 and the return of manager Harry Redknapp led to Priske being dropped from the side. Many Portsmouth supporters assumed that he had been a casualty of Redknapp's disdain of using players he himself had not purchased, and speculation was rife in the January 2006 transfer window that Priske would be leaving the club.

A move away from Fratton Park never materialized, however, and following Portsmouth poor run of form in 2006 and injuries to several defenders, Priske was returned to the side for the March 11 2006 match against Manchester City. Portsmouth then went on an excellent run of form for their final 10 matches of the season, with Priske being an absolute ever-present, helping the team earn Premiership survival for another year. Since arriving from K.R.C. Genk, Priske has been a popular player amongst Portsmouth supporters. Many were originally unhappy that Priske had been frozen-out of the team with Redknapp's return, and felt justified in their valuation of the player after the impressive role he played in earning the club survival from relegation.

During the pre-season of 2006, rumours of his departure resurfaced. Priske revealed to the Danish media that he had been told to find a new club before the start of the next season, and returned to Belgium, joining Club Brugge in August 2006. The news was met with confusion and anger among Portsmouth fans. In Bruges, Priske competed with fan favourites Olivier De Cock and Birger Maertens for a place in the starting line-up. Priske became a first team regular, and helped the team win the 2007 Belgian Cup.

Honours

- Danish Superliga: Danish Superliga 1998-99
- Belgian Cup: 2007