Michael Falkesgaard


Michael Aksel Bataican Falkesgaard is a Danish-Filipino footballer who currently plays as a goalkeeper for Thai League 1 club Bangkok United and the Philippines national team.
Born in Denmark to a Danish father and a Filipino mother, Falkesgaard represented Denmark at the youth levels and then decided to represent the Philippines at the senior level.

Early life

Falkesgaard was born in Denmark to a Danish father and a Filipino mother.. He was influenced by his father and elder brother to take up football. When he was five years old, he asked his father to take him to the youth academy of the local club Kastrup BK. Growing up, his football hero was Danish goalkeeper Peter Schmeichel.

Club career

Denmark

Falkesgaard started his senior club career with Brøndby IF in 2010. In 2015, he moved to Odense Boldklub where he was the first-choice goalkeeper. However, a few matches into the season, he suffered a serious ACL injury that required surgery. He returned from injury and later joined rival club FC Midtjylland, but he was not able to play a single match for them.

Bangkok United

In January 2018, Falkesgaard was sold by Midtjylland to Thai League 1 club Bangkok United, where he is counted as an ASEAN player. Falkesgaard kept eleven clean sheets in his first season with Bangkok United, helping his club finish as runners-up in 2018.

International career

Denmark youth

Falkesgaard has represented Denmark at under-18 to under-20 levels.

Philippines

Born to a Filipino mother, Falkesgaard was eligible to represent the Philippines. The Philippine Football Federation learned of his eligibility through Dennis Cagara and Jerry Lucena, both of whom are also Danish-Filipino footballers capped for the Philippines.
In March 2018, Falkesgaard received his first call up for the Philippines. He earned his first cap on 22 March in a 3–2 friendly win over Fiji. He did not concede any goal in the first half; however, Nick O'Donnell was subbed in for him at the start of the second half. On 13 October, he came on as a second half substitute for Neil Etheridge in a 1–1 friendly draw against Oman.
Falkesgaard was named in the Philippines' 23-man squad for the 2018 AFF Championship. He started in the group matches against Timor-Leste, Thailand, and Indonesia. He then played in the first leg of the semi-finals against Vietnam, but missed the second leg due to a groin injury. Philippines lost to Vietnam on 4–2 aggregate.
Since Neil Etheridge was unavailable due to club commitments, Falkesgaard was named Philippines’ first-choice goalkeeper for the 2019 AFC Asian Cup—the first time the national team has qualified for the international tournament. Philippines exited the tournament at the group stage after a winless campaign.

Career statistics

Club

International