Joakim Mæhle Pedersen (born 20 May 1997) is a Danish professional footballer who plays as a full-back for Bundesliga club VfL Wolfsburg and the Denmark national team.
 Mæhle with Genk in 2019 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Joakim Mæhle Pedersen[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 20 May 1997 | ||
| Place of birth | Østervrå, Denmark | ||
| Height | 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)[2] | ||
| Position(s) | Full-back | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | VfL Wolfsburg | ||
| Number | 21 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| –2009 | Østervrå IF | ||
| 2009–2016 | AaB | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2016–2017 | AaB | 24 | (1) |
| 2017–2021 | Genk | 105 | (4) |
| 2021–2023 | Atalanta | 80 | (4) |
| 2023– | VfL Wolfsburg | 33 | (3) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2017 | Denmark U20 | 1 | (0) |
| 2017–2019 | Denmark U21 | 7 | (2) |
| 2020– | Denmark | 50 | (11) |
|
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 18:16, 26 October 2024 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 23:34, 15 October 2024 (UTC) | |||
Club career
editAaB
editBorn in Østervrå, Vendsyssel, Mæhle started playing football with local club Østervrå IF and moved to the AaB youth academy as a 12-year-old.[3] At the age of 19, Mæhle was promoted into the first team squad on 10 June 2016 and also signed a full-time senior contract with AaB.[4] He made his debut for AaB on 7 August 2016.[5] He started on the bench, but replaced Thomas Enevoldsen in the 89th minute in a 2–1 victory against FC Nordsjælland in the Danish Superliga.
On 11 November 2016, Mæhle earned a new contract until 2020.[6] In April 2017, AaB confirmed that they were in negotiations with a foreign club about Mæhle.
Genk
editOn 9 May 2017, AaB confirmed that they had sold Mæhle to Belgian club Racing Genk for an undisclosed fee, starting from 1 July 2017.[3] He was signed to succeed right-back Timothy Castagne, who had moved to Atalanta. Mæhle made his debut for Genk on 29 July 2017 in the first league match of the season against Waasland-Beveren as a substitute for Amine Khammas. In his first season with the club, he was not a fixed starter, competing with Clinton Mata for his position. In his second season, after Mata's departure to Club Brugge, he won a permanent starting position. That season, Mæhle grew into a key player in the Genk starting eleven. At the end of the season, Genk won the Belgian championship.
On 11 September 2019, Mæhle extended his contract until June 2023.[7]
Atalanta
editGenk announced on 22 December 2020 that Mæhle had signed for Atalanta on a five-year contract for a fee of €10 million. His transfer was made official on 4 January 2021.[8] He made his Serie A debut for Atalanta on 6 January in the club's 3–0 win over Parma.[9] On 28 February, Mæhle provided an assist in Atalanta's 2–0 win over Sampdoria.[10] Mæhle scored his first goal for Atalanta in a 6–2 Serie A victory over Udinese on 9 January 2022.[11]
VfL Wolfsburg
editIn August of 2023, Mæhle joined VfL Wolfsburg for a fee of reportedly around €12 million.[12] On 6 September 2023 he scored his first goal for the club in a 2-1 win against 1. FC Union Berlin.[13]
International career
editMæhle made his Denmark national team debut on 5 September 2020 in a Nations League game against Belgium; he substituted Martin Braithwaite in the 72nd minute of a 2–0 home loss.[14] He scored his first international goal in a friendly against the Faroe Islands on 7 October 2020.
In June 2021, he was included in the national team's bid for 2020 UEFA Euro, where the team reached the semi-finals.[15]
On 12 October 2021, Maehle scored the only goal as Denmark defeated Austria to secure a place at the World Cup in Qatar.[16]
Career statistics
editClub
edit- As of match played 29 October 2024[17]
| Club | Season | League | National cup[a] | Europe | Total | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| AaB | 2016–17 | Danish Superliga | 24 | 1 | 1 | 0 | – | 25 | 1 | |
| Genk | 2017–18 | Belgian Pro League | 25 | 0 | 2 | 0 | – | 27 | 0 | |
| 2018–19 | Belgian Pro League | 39 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 13[b] | 0 | 54 | 4 | |
| 2019–20 | Belgian Pro League | 25 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 6[c] | 0 | 33 | 1 | |
| 2020–21 | Belgian Pro League | 16 | 1 | 0 | 0 | – | 16 | 1 | ||
| Total | 105 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 19 | 0 | 128 | 6 | ||
| Atalanta | 2020–21 | Serie A | 20 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 2[c] | 0 | 25 | 0 |
| 2021–22 | Serie A | 26 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 8[d] | 1 | 35 | 3 | |
| 2022–23 | Serie A | 34 | 3 | 2 | 0 | – | 36 | 3 | ||
| Total | 80 | 4 | 6 | 1 | 10 | 1 | 96 | 6 | ||
| VfL Wolfsburg | 2023–24 | Bundesliga | 30 | 2 | 3 | 0 | – | 33 | 2 | |
| 2024–25 | Bundesliga | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | – | 4 | 1 | ||
| Total | 33 | 3 | 4 | 0 | – | 37 | 3 | |||
| Career total | 242 | 12 | 15 | 3 | 29 | 1 | 286 | 16 | ||
- ^ Includes Danish Cup, Belgian Cup, Coppa Italia, DFB-Pokal
- ^ Appearances in UEFA Europa League
- ^ a b Appearances in UEFA Champions League
- ^ Five appearances in UEFA Champions League, three appearances and one goal in UEFA Europa League
International
edit- As of match played 15 October 2024[18]
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Denmark | 2020 | 6 | 1 |
| 2021 | 17 | 7 | |
| 2022 | 11 | 1 | |
| 2023 | 8 | 2 | |
| 2024 | 8 | 0 | |
| Total | 50 | 11 | |
- Scores and results list Denmark's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Mæhle goal.
| No. | Date | Venue | Cap | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 7 October 2020 | MCH Arena, Herning, Denmark | 2 |  Faroe Islands |
3–0 | 4–0 | Friendly |
| 2 | 31 March 2021 | Ernst-Happel-Stadion, Vienna, Austria | 8 |  Austria |
2–0 | 4–0 | 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 3 | 21 June 2021 | Parken Stadium, Copenhagen, Denmark | 13 |  Russia |
4–1 | 4–1 | UEFA Euro 2020 |
| 4 | 26 June 2021 | Johan Cruyff Arena, Amsterdam, Netherlands | 14 |  Wales |
3–0 | 4–0 | UEFA Euro 2020 |
| 5 | 1 September 2021 | Parken Stadium, Copenhagen, Denmark | 17 |  Scotland |
2–0 | 2–0 | 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 6 | 9 October 2021 | Zimbru Stadium, Chișinău, Moldova | 20 |  Moldova |
4–0 | 4–0 | 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 7 | 12 October 2021 | Parken Stadium, Copenhagen, Denmark | 21 | Austria |
1–0 | 1–0 | 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 8 | 12 November 2021 | Parken Stadium, Copenhagen, Denmark | 22 | Faroe Islands |
3–1 | 3–1 | 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 9 | 29 March 2022 | Parken Stadium, Copenhagen, Denmark | 25 |  Serbia |
1–0 | 3–0 | Friendly |
| 10 | 7 September 2023 | Parken Stadium, Copenhagen, Denmark | 38 |  San Marino |
2–0 | 4–0 | UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying |
| 11 | 17 November 2023 | Parken Stadium, Copenhagen, Denmark | 42 |  Slovenia |
1–0 | 2–1 | UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying |
Honours
editGenk
Atalanta
- Coppa Italia runner-up: 2020–21[19]
References
edit- ^ "FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022™: List of Players: Denmark" (PDF). FIFA. 15 November 2022. p. 9. Archived (PDF) from the original on 18 December 2022. Retrieved 15 November 2022.
- ^ "Joakim Mæhle". Atalanta B.C. Archived from the original on 22 January 2021.
- ^ a b AaB sælger Mæhle til KRC Genk‚ aabsport.dk, 9 May 2017
- ^ "AaB rykker seks talenter op på førsteholdet". bold.dk. 10 June 2016.
- ^ "NORDSJÆLLAND VS. AAB 1 - 2". soccerway.com. 7 August 2016.
- ^ "AaB giver Mæhle til 2020". bold.dk. 11 November 2016.
- ^ Mæhle forlænger aftalen med belgiske mestre, bold.dk, 11 September 2019
- ^ "Official: Atalanta deal for Maelhe". Football Italia. 22 December 2020. Retrieved 23 December 2020.
- ^ "Player - Joakim Maehle". Lega Serie A. Archived from the original on 24 June 2021. Retrieved 25 March 2021.
- ^ "Sampodria 0 – 2 Atalanta". Lega Serie A. 28 February 2021. Archived from the original on 24 June 2021. Retrieved 25 March 2021.
- ^ "Udinese 2–6 Atalanta". atalanta.it. 9 January 2022.
- ^ "Official: Wolfsburg pick up Mæhle". Bulinews. 12 August 2023. Retrieved 17 March 2024.
- ^ "VfL Wolfsburg - 1. FC Union Berlin | Season 2023/2024 | Bundesliga". bundesliga.com - the official Bundesliga website. Retrieved 17 March 2024.
- ^ "Denmark v Belgium game report". UEFA. 5 September 2020.
- ^ "26 spillere klar til EM for Danmark" [26 players ready for the European Championship for Denmark]. Danish Football Association (in Danish). 25 May 2021. Retrieved 25 May 2021.
- ^ "Denmark captain Simon Kjaer says they "can go a long way" after qualifying for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar with a win over Austria in Copenhagen". BBC. 12 October 2021. Retrieved 12 October 2021.
- ^ Joakim Mæhle at Soccerway. Retrieved 21 March 2021.
- ^ "Mæhle, Joakim". National Football Teams. Benjamin Strack-Zimmermann. Retrieved 17 June 2021.
- ^ "Atalanta 1–2 Juventus". BBC Sport. 19 May 2021. Retrieved 19 May 2021.
External links
edit
- Profile at the Atalanta B.C. website
- Joakim Mæhle at Soccerway
- Joakim Mæhle national team profile at the Danish Football Association (in Danish)