Axel Witsel

Football fans fiercely condemned the transfer of the midfielder of St. Petersburg FC and the National Team of Belgium to the Chinese club. The footballer was accused of self-interest and put an end to the talent of the player. Despite the negative reviews, Axel continues to demonstrate a technical and stable game on the field.

Axel Witsel was born in Liege, Belgium, on January 12, 1989. The boy's parents - Catholics, raised their son in a devout environment. His father comes from the island of Martinique, which belongs to France, and his mother is Belgian. Thanks to his ethnic roots, the man has dual citizenship.

The midfielder said in an interview that the name was given to the film with Eddie Murphy, where the main character was named Axel Foley. Parents loved the comedian and comedy with his participation, so decided to give the kid a name in honor of the character of the picture.

Thanks to his father, a former football player and coach, the boy got acquainted with football. From early childhood, Witsel attended sports school. Up to the age of 15 he managed to change two educational institutions. The study was not easy because of the serious workloads.

Lessons began at eight in the morning, then the bus took the young athletes for a two-hour training session, after which again had to sit at the desk. The school day ended with another hour on the field. The schoolboy went home about seven in the evening.

Despite the workload, Axel tried to keep up with the school curriculum. Early enough, the future midfielder realized the need to speak several foreign languages. Plans for an international career as a professional football player have already been made from the school desk.

The graduation ticket to sports life for the young man was the school "Standard" in his native Liege. In 2006, the youngster made his debut on the field. In 2006 Axel appeared as part of the belgian national youth team at the European Championships.

The rapid career rise was secured by the title of the best young footballer and footballer of the year at the end of the 2007/2008 season. The midfielder has joined the club's permanent starting line-up. In addition, the stalwart (186 cm at a weight of about 80 kg) player is included in the permanent squad of the national team since 2008. He is a key player in the team of the center of the field.

It would seem that nothing could prevent the success of the athlete. Especially after the winner of the Belgian championship in 2009, and the 11-meter played by Witsel contributed to the title.

On August 30, 2009, during a meeting with Anderlecht, the midfielder inflicted a serious injury on the Polish player of the opposing team Marcin Vasilevskiy. The footballer suffered an open leg fracture, after which Axel was immediately removed from the field and disqualified indefinitely.

In the end, the suspension lasted for 8 matches. The midfielder managed to survive a tense period when he received threats from Anderlecht fans.

Returning to the pitch, the Belgian played for Standard until 2011, and in July signed a contract with Benfica. In Portugal, the midfielder played a season, establishing a goal in the line-up and scoring three goals in 32 league games.

In 2012, the player got into the top 50 most expensive football players, signing a contract with St. Petersburg's "Senit". According to some reports, the transfer amounted to €40 million. The midfielder's salary was not disclosed, but according to rumors, the amount ranged from 2 million to 4 million per year.

Witsel himself explained in an interview that he did not know his own annual earnings, because he read the contract carelessly and did not pay attention to the figures. Of course, the Belgian was deceitful, which he later admitted to journalists, but made it clear that the sums specified in the contract are not intended for the public.

Axel played the entire contracted contract as part of the Russian club at number 28. However, after that he decided not to continue his career in Russia. Initially, the player stated the need to grow and develop skills and experience on the field. Negotiations were underway for the Belgian's move to Juventus. Unfortunately for Witsel, the transfer failed.

However, Axel's move to China's Tianjin Xuanjian in January 2017 was all the more unexpected for football fans. The midfielder was accused of self-interest, pursuit of high earnings at the expense of skill and experience.

Axel himself admitted that, of course, In China play a completely different football than in Europe, and the level of the game is noticeably lower. However, the midfielder noted that there is more time for thinking on the pitch and space for the midfielder's skills to be wider. In addition, Axel noted that together with the coach is working to improve the tactical component of the club.

Axel is happily married to a longtime friend - Romanian model Raffaella Szabo. The wedding took place in 2015 in Axel's hometown. After the ceremony, photos of the momentous event appeared on the footballer's Instagram page. On Twitter, the happy husband wrote that the day was magical for him. He thanked his wife for making him happy.

By the way, the relationship has not always remained cloudless. After the transition of the athlete to "Senit" Raffael followed after her beloved, and then in the media there were publications about the separation of the couple and about the new lover of the footballer, American model Analicia Chavez. However, soon the midfielder broke up with the American, and Raffael forgave her future husband, and the couple reunited.

Shortly before the marriage, the Romanian gave her husband daughter Mai-Li, and in 2017 the family had a second baby Evie.

Despite all the negative comments of the villains, the footballer successfully plays in China, scoring goals in the national championship and honestly working out the fee. According to the midfielder, he is now getting as much physical exertion as he has ever been in his career.

The game of the midfielder in the national team of Belgium, in which the man came to the 2018 World Cup, remains unchanged. The footballer speaks positively about Russia and the fans.

In the interview, he genuinely admired the fans and love for the game, when in the stands in bad weather fans in a fit of emotions take off their T-shirts and happily wave them over their heads.

The midfielder also spoke about a possible return. However, Axel noted that he would only agree to return to Russia. The agent of the footballer, who, by the way, is the father of the Belgian, did not leave any official comments on this matter.

Standard

2007/08, 2008/09 - Belgian Champion 2010/11 - Belgian Cup winner 2008, 2009 - Belgian Super Cup winner

Benfica

2011/12 - Portuguese League Cup winner

"Senit"

2014/15 - Russian Champion 2015/16 - Russian Cup winner 2015, 2016 - Russian Super Cup winner

Personal achievements

2008 - Belgian Footballer of the Year 2007/2008 - Young Footballer of the Year in Belgium

Axel Witsel's estimated Net Worth, Salary, Income, Cars, Lifestyles & much more details has been updated below.

Let's check, How Rich is Axel Witsel in 2020?

Axel Witsel Net Worth 2021

Axel Witsel 's revenue is $1.2M in 2021. It is an approximate forecast of how rich is Axel Witsel and could vary in the range between $944.2K - $1.5M.

Axel Witsel Net Worth 2020

Axel Witsel 's revenue is $1.7M in 2020. It is an approximate forecast of how rich is Axel Witsel and could vary in the range between $929.2K - $1.7M.

Axel Witsel Net Worth 2019

Axel Witsel 's revenue is $1.4M in 2019. It is an approximate forecast of how rich is Axel Witsel and could vary in the range between $559K - $1.1M.

Axel Witsel Net Worth 2018

Axel Witsel 's revenue is $1.8M in 2018. It is an approximate forecast of how rich is Axel Witsel and could vary in the range between $853.1K - $1.2M.

Axel Witsel Net Worth 2017

Axel Witsel 's revenue is $1.7M in 2017. It is an approximate forecast of how rich is Axel Witsel and could vary in the range between $722.7K - $1.6M.

Axel Witsel Net Worth 2016

Axel Witsel 's revenue is $1.9M in 2016. It is an approximate forecast of how rich is Axel Witsel and could vary in the range between $554.9K - $1.9M.

Axel Witsel Net Worth 2015

Axel Witsel 's revenue is $1.5M in 2015. It is an approximate forecast of how rich is Axel Witsel and could vary in the range between $572.2K - $1.7M.

It is an overall forecast for the net worth of Axel Witsel. The evaluation covers the latest 5 years and a approximation for next year. See above to learn how much money does Axel Witsel make a year.

The range above shows an estimation based on evaluation generated by public information about sponsorships or other sources found on the internet. It's summarized data from Axel Witsel' projects existing in AidWiki's repository. It's an approximation of the revenue compiled by AidWiki and may not correspond with the real amount.