John Lauridsen

John Mikkelsen Lauridsen (born 2 April 1959) is a Danish retired professional footballer who played as an attacking midfielder, gifted with field vision and able to shoot with both feet. He played 16 matches the following season, as the club won the league.

Lauridsen made his Danish national team debut on 12 August 1981, in a 2–1 friendly win in Finland in which he scored the equalizer at the 27th minute (the first of his three international goals). Also that summer, he was supposed to travel to England to sign for Ipswich Town, but the ferry did not make the journey due to bad weather conditions, and the deal fell through. Shortly after, football agent Fernand Goyvaerts phoned the player with an offer from Spain's RCD Español, which he accepted,

While at Espanyol, Lauridsen was included in the Danish squad for the UEFA Euro 1984, where he took part in two games, scoring a goal in the 5–0 group stage win against Yugoslavia. His international career brought him only 27 caps in seven years, as he was often overlooked behind the likes of Frank Arnesen, Søren Lerby, Jan Mølby and Jesper Olsen. He played his last international on 27 April 1988, in a friendly with Austria.

Lauridsen stayed in Spain after his 1988 exit from Espanyol, playing two years with CD Málaga also in the top flight. He ended his career as an amateur player with Esbjerg, helping it promote into the second tier. His last match took place on 19 November 1992 at the age of 33, a 4–1 win against Vejle Boldklub where he had played as a youth.

After his footballing career ended, Lauridsen settled in Bramming. In the following years, he occasionally appeared in games for Espanyol's veterans.

Honours Danish 1st Division: 1979 UEFA Cup: Runner-up 1987–88