Alexander Meier

Alexander Meier (born 17 January 1983) is a German former professional footballer who played as an attacking midfielder or forward. He was the 2014–15 Bundesliga top scorer with 19 goals in 26 games.

Career

Early career Meier began his professional career with FC St. Pauli in 2002. In the 2001–02 season, Meier appeared on matchdays 32 and 33. In the 2002–03 season, he became a regular fixture appearing in 23 league matches (scoring seven goals) and two cup matches. He signed his first professional contract on 10 April 2003. He moved to local rivals Hamburger SV in 2003; signing a three–year contract. Borussia Mönchengladbach also inquired about Meier.

Eintracht Frankfurt

2004–2009 Meier signed for Eintracht Frankfurt on 1 July 2004, and made his debut for the club in a 2. Bundesliga match against Alemannia Aachen, which finished in a 1–1 draw He then scored in two consecutive matchdays when Frankfurt defeated Rot-Weiß Oberhausen 6–2 and drew Rot-Weiss Essen 4–4. He would not score again until matchday 21 when he scored from the penalty spot against LR Ahlen. He scored nine goals in 34 league matches and one goal in three cup matches. on 4 August 2005. His first goal of the season came on 14 October 2005 against MSV Duisburg in a 1–0 win. He then scored the following week on 21 October 2015 in a 6–3 win against 1. FC Köln. He then scored two goals against Schalke 04 in a 6–0 cup win on 25 October 2005. The scoring streak stopped on matchday 10 against Werder Bremen. and Bayern Munich 5–2. Meier started, and played 90 minutes, in the cup final. Meier scored seven goals in 33 league matches and three goals in five cup matches. He also made his European debut on matchday one of the UEFA Cup group stage in a 2–1 loss to Palermo. Meier scored his first goal of the season. He scored six goals in 29 league matches and one goal in four cup matches. He scored three goals in the match. He scored a goal each on matchdays two and three and two on matchday five. Meier came up with a knee injury against Borussia Dortmund in a cup match. Then on 4 March 2008, it was announced that Meier would have knee surgery. He had not played since October 2007 his second match on 20 September 2008 in a 1–0 loss to Schalke, and his third match on 23 September 2008 in a 2–1 cup loss to Hansa Rostock. He didn't play again until a 2–1 loss to Hertha BSC on matchday 18. He finished the season with three goals in 19 league matches. despite his campaign being cut short by injury with seven games remaining. This made him the league's top scorer, with two more than Bayern Munich pair Arjen Robben and Robert Lewandowski.

In the 2015–16 season, Meier scored 12 goals in 19 games. In February 2016, Meier suffered a knee injury which caused him to pause until the end of the season.

On 14 July 2016, Eintracht Frankfurt confirmed that Meier has extended his contract until 30 June 2018. He finished the 2016–17 season with five goals in 25 appearances.

His only appearance during the 2017–18 season was on matchday 33 against Hamburger SV. He scored a goal in the match.

Return to FC St. Pauli In January 2019, Meier returned to former club FC St. Pauli having agreed a contract until the end of the season. On 23 May 2019, the club announced that he would leave at the end of the season.

Western Sydney Wanderers On 20 September 2019, Western Sydney Wanderers signed Meier as a marquee player. After 12 matches, on 17 January 2020, he left the club by mutual termination. Meier was having a poor season that was compounded by off-field problems including his family not being given visas to join him in Australia.

On 28 January, 11 days after leaving Western Sydney Wanderers, Meier announced his retirement as a player.

Career statistics

Honours Eintracht Frankfurt DFB-Pokal: 2017–18; runner-up: 2005–06, 2016–17 2. Bundesliga runner-up: 2011–12

Individual 2. Bundesliga top goalscorer: 2011–12 Bundesliga top goalscorer: 2014–15