1. Overview
Christian Lund Gytkjær, born on May 6, 1990, is a Danish professional footballer who plays as a striker for Venezia in Italy. Throughout his career, Gytkjær has established himself as a prolific goalscorer across various European leagues, notably becoming the top scorer in both the Norwegian Eliteserien and the Polish Ekstraklasa. He has played a crucial role in his clubs' successes, contributing to league titles with Rosenborg and securing historic promotions to Serie A with both Monza and Venezia. He has also represented the Denmark national team.
2. Early life and youth career
Christian Gytkjær began his youth football career at Roskilde before joining the youth academy of Lyngby in 2005. In October 2007, he, along with his younger brother Frederik Gytkjær, was invited for a trial at Liverpool in England, though no permanent move materialized from the visit. During the 2007-08 season, Gytkjær emerged as the top scorer for Lyngby's under-18 side, showcasing his early potential as a striker.
3. Club career
Gytkjær's professional club career has seen him play for various teams across Denmark, Norway, Germany, Poland, and Italy, consistently demonstrating his goalscoring ability and contributing to his teams' achievements, including league titles and promotions.
3.1. Lyngby Boldklub
Gytkjær was promoted to the Lyngby first team in mid-2008 and signed a contract that kept him at the club until 2010. In his debut season in the Danish 1st Division, he scored three goals in eight appearances. By the 2009-10 campaign, Gytkjær was considered one of Lyngby's most promising talents to have emerged from their youth system. On February 2, 2010, it was confirmed that Gytkjær would leave Lyngby on a free transfer to join Danish Cup winners Nordsjælland after his contract expired in the summer, signing a three-year deal. This move, following in the footsteps of other players nurtured by Lyngby who had moved to their rivals in Farum, generated backlash from Lyngby supporters, which intensified when Gytkjær was photographed in an FCN shirt while still under contract with Lyngby.
3.2. FC Nordsjælland
Gytkjær made his debut for Nordsjælland on August 14, 2010, in a 2-0 away defeat against Superliga champions Copenhagen. He was brought into the team to replace Nicki Bille Nielsen, who had been sold to Villarreal. During his time at Nordsjælland, Gytkjær also had loan spells. In 2012, he was loaned to Akademisk Boldklub (AB) and then to Sandnes Ulf in Norway. It was during his time at Sandnes Ulf that his scoring abilities truly began to blossom, as he scored eight goals in 12 appearances in the Norwegian Tippeligaen.
3.3. FK Haugesund
On January 23, 2013, Gytkjær joined the Norwegian club Haugesund, signing a four-year contract. In his first year, the 2013 season, he reached double-digit goals for the first time in his career, scoring 11 goals. He continued to score double-digit goals in subsequent seasons with Haugesund, maintaining a consistent scoring record during his tenure.
3.4. Rosenborg BK
On January 6, 2016, Gytkjær moved to fellow Norwegian club Rosenborg, signing a three-year deal. In his debut season with Rosenborg, he achieved a domestic double, winning both the Tippeligaen league title and the Norwegian Football Cup. He also became the league's top scorer that season with 19 goals. His consistent goalscoring at Haugesund and Rosenborg meant he recorded double-digit goals in the Norwegian Eliteserien for four consecutive years. During his time at Rosenborg, he made 6 continental appearances, scoring 3 goals. This included four appearances and two goals in the UEFA Champions League and two appearances and one goal in the UEFA Europa League.
3.5. 1860 Munich
On January 27, 2017, Gytkjær transferred to German club 1860 Munich, where he signed a contract until 2019. His spell with the club was relatively brief.
3.6. Lech Poznań

On June 28, 2017, Gytkjær signed a two-year contract with the Ekstraklasa side Lech Poznań, with an option for an additional 12 months. He made his debut for the club in the 2017-18 UEFA Europa League second qualifying round away game against FK Haugesund, which Lech lost 3-2. He scored his first and second goals for Lech in a dominant 5-1 home win against Piast Gliwice in the third round of the 2017-18 season. On March 7, 2019, Gytkjær extended his contract until the end of the 2019-20 season.
On July 19, 2020, in his final game for Lech Poznań, he scored twice in a 4-0 home victory against Jagiellonia Białystok, helping the team secure second place in the 2019-20 season. He finished that campaign as the top scorer in the Ekstraklasa with 24 goals and also received the Forward of the Season award. Over his three years at Lech Poznań, Gytkjær played in 119 games and scored 65 goals, making him the best foreign goalscorer in the club's history.
3.7. AC Monza
On July 22, 2020, Gytkjær joined newly promoted Italian Serie B side Monza on a free transfer, signing a two-year contract with an option for a third season. He made his debut on October 3, 2020, against Empoli, and scored his first goal on October 31, converting a penalty kick against Cittadella. In February 2022, he renewed his expiring contract for an additional year.
Gytkjær played a pivotal role in Monza's historic promotion to Serie A for the first time. He scored five goals in four 2021-22 Serie B promotion play-off games, including three goals in the two final matches against Pisa. For his outstanding performance, he was awarded the play-off MVP award. He made his Serie A debut on August 13, 2022, as a substitute in a 2-1 home defeat to Torino. On September 18, Gytkjær came on as a substitute and scored in a surprising 1-0 victory against Italian giants Juventus. This goal marked Monza's first-ever win in Serie A.
3.8. Venezia FC
On July 20, 2023, Gytkjær joined Italian side Venezia as a free agent, signing a contract for two seasons. On June 2, 2024, he scored the decisive goal in a 1-0 victory over Cremonese in the promotion playoffs final, once again securing his club's promotion to Serie A.
4. International career
Gytkjær has represented Denmark at various youth levels, including the Denmark under-16 team (1 appearance), Denmark under-17 team (6 appearances, 4 goals), Denmark under-18 team (3 appearances), Denmark under-19 team (10 appearances, 2 goals), and Denmark under-20 team (7 appearances, 3 goals). He was part of the Denmark under-17 team that won the 2006 Nordic Championship held in the Faroe Islands. In the final, he scored three goals in a 4-0 win against England.
He received his first call-up to the senior Denmark national team in November 2016, making his debut on November 16 in a match against the Czech Republic. In March 2019, he was selected for the UEFA Euro 2020 qualifiers. On March 26, 2019, against Switzerland, Gytkjær scored the second goal in a comeback from a 0-3 deficit, helping Denmark secure a 3-3 draw. Despite his contributions in the qualifiers, he was not selected for the final tournament squad.
5. Personal life
Christian Gytkjær is the older brother of Frederik Gytkjær, who is also a professional footballer. Christian Gytkjær stands at 73 in (185 cm) tall and weighs 172 lb (78 kg). He is right-footed.
6. Career statistics
6.1. Club
Club | Season | League | National cup | Continental | Other | Total | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
Lyngby | 2008-09 | Danish 1st Division | 8 | 3 | 0 | 0 | - | - | 8 | 3 | ||
2009-10 | Danish 1st Division | 26 | 7 | 2 | 0 | - | - | 28 | 7 | |||
Total | 34 | 10 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 36 | 10 | ||
Nordsjælland | 2010-11 | Danish Superliga | 19 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - | 21 | 3 | |
2011-12 | Danish Superliga | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 | - | - | 6 | 1 | |||
2012-13 | Danish Superliga | 2 | 1 | - | - | - | 2 | 1 | ||||
Total | 26 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 29 | 5 | ||
Akademisk Boldklub (loan) | 2011-12 | Danish 1st Division | 12 | 6 | 0 | 0 | - | - | 12 | 6 | ||
Sandnes Ulf (loan) | 2012 | Tippeligaen | 12 | 8 | 0 | 0 | - | 2 (relegation play-offs) | 3 | 14 | 11 | |
Haugesund | 2013 | Tippeligaen | 25 | 11 | 3 | 4 | - | - | 28 | 15 | ||
2014 | Tippeligaen | 26 | 15 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | - | 31 | 16 | ||
2015 | Tippeligaen | 30 | 10 | 2 | 3 | - | - | 32 | 13 | |||
Total | 81 | 36 | 8 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 91 | 44 | ||
Rosenborg | 2016 | Tippeligaen | 28 | 19 | 5 | 1 | 6 | 3 | - | 39 | 23 | |
1860 Munich | 2016-17 | 2. Bundesliga | 15 | 2 | 1 | 0 | - | 2 (promotion play-offs) | 0 | 18 | 2 | |
Lech Poznań | 2017-18 | Ekstraklasa | 37 | 19 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 2 | - | 42 | 21 | |
2018-19 | Ekstraklasa | 31 | 12 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 5 | - | 39 | 17 | ||
2019-20 | Ekstraklasa | 34 | 24 | 4 | 3 | - | - | 38 | 27 | |||
Total | 102 | 55 | 7 | 3 | 10 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 119 | 65 | ||
Monza | 2020-21 | Serie B | 22 | 6 | 1 | 0 | - | 1 (promotion play-offs) | 0 | 24 | 6 | |
2021-22 | Serie B | 33 | 9 | 1 | 0 | - | 4 (promotion play-offs) | 5 | 38 | 14 | ||
2022-23 | Serie A | 22 | 1 | 1 | 1 | - | - | 23 | 2 | |||
Total | 77 | 16 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 85 | 22 | ||
Venezia | 2023-24 | Serie B | 38 | 11 | 1 | 1 | - | 4 (promotion play-offs) | 1 | 43 | 13 | |
2024-25 | Serie A | 17 | 1 | 1 | 0 | - | - | 18 | 1 | |||
Total | 55 | 12 | 2 | 1 | - | 4 | 1 | 61 | 14 | |||
Career total | 442 | 168 | 31 | 15 | 18 | 10 | 13 | 9 | 504 | 200 |
6.2. International
National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
---|---|---|---|
Denmark | 2016 | 1 | 0 |
2018 | 2 | 0 | |
2019 | 6 | 5 | |
Total | 9 | 5 |
:Scores and results list Denmark's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Gytkjær goal.
No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 26 March 2019 | St. Jakob-Park, Basel, Switzerland | Switzerland | 2-3 | 3-3 | UEFA Euro 2020 qualification |
2 | 5 September 2019 | Victoria Stadium, Gibraltar | Gibraltar | 5-0 | 6-0 | |
3 | 6-0 | |||||
4 | 15 October 2019 | Aalborg Stadium, Aalborg, Denmark | Luxembourg | 4-0 | 4-0 | Friendly |
5 | 15 November 2019 | Parken Stadium, Copenhagen, Denmark | Gibraltar | 2-0 | 6-0 | UEFA Euro 2020 qualification |
7. Honours
Nordsjælland
- Danish Cup: 2010-11
Rosenborg
- Tippeligaen: 2016
- Norwegian Cup: 2016
Venezia
- Serie B Promotion play-offs: 2023-24
Denmark U17
- Nordic Championship: 2006
Individual
- Tippeligaen top scorer: 2016
- Ekstraklasa top scorer: 2019-20
- Tippeligaen Striker of the Year: 2016
- Ekstraklasa Forward of the Season: 2019-20
- Ekstraklasa Player of the Month: March 2018, July 2020
- Serie B play-offs MVP: 2021-22