Photo: Sławek / CC BY-SA 2.0 (source: Wikimedia Commons)
My Take
Smolarek is the kind of footballer I instinctively respect: not a flashy headline-grabber but a tireless winger who gave twenty years to the game, anchored at Widzew Łódź and Utrecht. Forty-five Eredivisie goals across eight seasons isn't glamorous on paper, yet it speaks of consistency and grit, the unglamorous virtues that win matches. Two Polish Player of the Year honours and a state decoration tell me how dearly his homeland held him. His death in 2012 at just fifty-four feels far too early. I quietly tip my hat to a craftsman who let his running, not his ego, do the talking.
Overview
Włodzimierz Wojciech Smolarek (16 July 1957 – 7 March 2012) was a Polish footballer who played as a winger or an attacking midfielder. He played most of his 20-year professional career with Widzew Łódź and Utrecht, appearing in more than 200 official games for the former. He amassed Eredivisie totals of 212 matches and 45 goals, over the course of eight seasons.
Summary adapted from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
1. Profile
- Name (English)
- Włodzimierz Smolarek
- Name (Japanese)
- ヴォジミエシュ・スモラレク
- Reading
- ゔぉじみえしゅ・すもられく
- Born
- July 16, 1957 – March 7, 2012
- Zodiac / Chinese zodiac
- Cancer / Rooster
- Origin
- Aleksandrów Łódzki, Łódź Voivodeship, Poland
- Blood type
- Private
- Height
- 171 cm
- Agency
- Private
- Occupation
- association football player / association football coach
2. Background
- Elementary school
- Private
- Junior high
- Private
- High school
- Private
- University
- Private
Awards & achievements
- 1984 Piłka nożna magazine plebiscite
- 1986 Piłka nożna magazine plebiscite
- Knight of the Order of Polonia Restituta
3. Relationships
- Spouse
- Private
- Children
- Private
- Parents
- Private
- Siblings
- Private
4. Personality
Motto
Private
6. Links
Association football player — see all → · Association football coach — see all → · More people from Poland →
7. About this entry
Tags
- Last updated
- 2026-06-02
Facts are limited to publicly available information up to 2024; non-public items are marked "Private / Unknown". English text is machine-assisted (facts translated by Sonnet, "My Take" written by Opus 4.8). The Japanese page is the source of record.