John Arne Semundseth Riise (born September 24, 1980 in Molde) is a Norwegian football player who currently plays for Liverpool F.C.. Riise is renowned for his shooting power on his favoured left foot and excellent stamina. Riise has previously played for AS Monaco and Aalesunds F.K.. He has one daughter Ariana from his previous marriage with Guri Havnevik. He is widely regarded by many, to be one of the best attacking-full backs in world football.

Biography

He made his debut for Liverpool in the European Super Cup game against Bayern Munich on August 24, 2001, played at the Stade Louis II in Monaco. He scored a tap-in in the first half from a Michael Owen cross. Liverpool went on to win the game 3-2, after leading it 3-0. Riise initially wore the number 18 shirt, but since the 2004-2005 season, wears the number 6 shirt, vacated by Markus Babbel.

He went on to score a brilliant solo effort in the Merseyside derby on September 15th at Goodison Park. Liverpool won the game 3-1.

In that season of 2001-2002, he finished with 10 goals in total for the club, an admirable return for a player who played at left fullback on many occasions during the season.

He endured what were considered below-average seasons by most in the 2002-2003 and 2003-2004 seasons, but seems to have rediscovered his form and confidence in the 2004-2005 season, following the appointment of Rafael Benitez as manager.

During the 2004-2005 season Riise played an important part in Liverpool's season, his achievements include scoring a vital first goal against Charlton at Anfield, an impressive brace against West Bromwich Albion away, and a fantastic volley in the Carling Cup Final against Chelsea after just forty-five seconds, although Liverpool eventually lost the Final 3-2 AET. Riise did, however, achieve the honour of being Liverpool's top scorer in Premiership away games in that season.

Riise played in the Champions League final against A.C. Milan on 25 May 2005 at the Atatürk Olimpiyat Stadyumu in Istanbul, Turkey. He played an important part in Liverpool's come back in the second half having been 3-0 down in the first. His great cross was headed in by Steven Gerrard, giving Liverpool some hope. The team went on to score two more goals shortly afterwards and won 3-2 on penalties, though Riise's penalty was saved by A.C. Milan's goalkeeper Dida.

Riise has also captured the media's attention outside the pitch. In August 2005 Norwegian tabloid newspapers revealed that Riise had sent numerous SMS to different Norwegian celebrity women with the exact same text (translated from Norwegian): "Good evening... After a lot of calling to all kinds of contacts, I finally got your number. I have always thought you are very charming, cute, sexy, fantastic aura, and last but not least, you seem exciting and challenging;) hope we can get in touch, and I will of course invite you on a romantic dinner for two;) kiss from John Arne Riise xxx". This turned into a big case in the media and gave most Norwegians a good laugh. Riise has later stated that he doesn't want to discuss any issues but football with the press and that he's going to boycott the Norwegian tabloids VG and Dagbladet. The text was later parodized in the comic strip M in a way that could be seen as a friendly stab at Frode Øverli and Pondus (both of which are avid Liverpool-supporters). This caused the two comics to make strips about each other for some time.

Riise has signed a new contract at Anfield which will keep him at the club until 2009.

Memorable Moments

Some of his other more memorable goals have been:

* vs Manchester United: he scored a 20-yard free-kick on 4 November 2001. The goal was so exceptional that Liverpool fans still sing a song about it in his honour.

* vs Arsenal: Liverpool were enduring a poor run of results and were 1-0 down to Arsenal. A superb through-ball from Steven Gerrard allowed Riise the chance to score from a one-on-one with Richard Wright. He produced a very cool finish under pressure.

* vs Ipswich: Riise scored two early goals in this game which came on the last day of the 2001-2002 season. Whilst the goals were of doubtless quality, they are probably considered most important because Liverpool needed to win the match to ensure a second-place finish in the Premiership. They went on to do just that with a 5-0 win.

* vs Chelsea F.C.: he scored the fastest goal ever in a League Cup Final (27th February 2005) with a spectacular volley timed at just 45 seconds.

* vs Birmingham City F.C.: Riise's 20-yard 'thunderbolt' goal from a tight position was the clear highlight of a rampant 7-0 victory to the Reds in their FA Cup sixth round tie at St. Andrew's (21st March 2006).

Honours

* 1999/00 French Ligue 1 with AS Monaco
* 2000/01 French Super Cup with AS Monaco
* 2001/02 Charity Shield with Liverpool FC
* 2001/02 European Super Cup with Liverpool FC
* 2002/03 League Cup with Liverpool FC
* 2004/05 UEFA Champions League with Liverpool FC
* 2005/06 European Super Cup with Liverpool FC

Articles

John Arne Riise interview (9 Apr 2006)

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John has a statue of himself outside the Color Line Stadion, Alesund, Norway.