Hans-Jörg Criens

Hans -Jörg Criens ( born December 18, 1960 in Neuss ) is a former German football player.

Active time as players

Until 1981 Criens played for VfR Neuss. Between 1981 and 1993 he worked as a striker for Borussia Mönchengladbach, including many years as team captain, under contract. In the course of the season 1993/94 season Criens transferred to 1 FC Nuremberg, with whom he descended from the 1994 Bundesliga.

Overall, he 303 games in the Bundesliga, scoring 94 goals, 92 of them for Borussia Mönchengladbach. He is behind Jupp Heynckes and Herbert Laumen the third top scorer for Mönchengladbach in the Bundesliga.

Third place with Borussia in the 1983/84 season was the greatest success of the header specialists. He also starred in 1984 ( losing on penalties to FC Bayern Munich) and 1992 ( Team Captain; defeat on penalties against Hannover 96) with Borussia in the DFB Cup final. Internationally, he reached with Borussia in the season 1986/87 the semi-finals of the UEFA Cup (0-0, 0-2 against Dundee United) and completed a game for the Olympic team of the DFB ( against Israel).

After his contract at the end of 1st FC Nuremberg 1995 Criens was an active soccer players in lower leagues still active, before he finally ended his career in the summer of 2002.

After the professional era

After his playing days Criens played until 2009 in the tradition of team Weisweiler Eleven of Borussia Mönchengladbach. After an Achilles tendon injury he had to give up playing football at this level. In April 2005, Criens coach of SW Elmpt in the District 6 Class Lower Rhine, but was dismissed again in the winter of the same year.

Criens earned his living temporarily as a sales representative in the prefabricated building industry; currently (as of March 2011), he works on a daily basis as a sales representative. Since September 2011, he trained with success the District League team of the SC Waldniel.