Sparta Prague
Which team did the player Szilárd Németh belong to in Sep 1997?
Szilárd Németh Szilárd Németh ( ; ; born 8 August 1977 ) is a Slovak former footballer who played as a striker . After playing for clubs in Slovakia and the Czech Republic , he spent four-and-a-half seasons at Middlesbrough of the Premier League from 2001 to 2006 . After a brief stint at Frances RC Strasbourg , he played for Alemannia Aachen in Germany until his retirement in 2010 . Németh was at that time the highest scorer in the history of the Slovakia national football team , with 22 goals in 58 matches from 1997 to 2006 . Club career . Early career . Németh started his career with Slovan Bratislava before moving to eastern Slovakia to join 1 . FC Košice . At both clubs he played well , he moved to giants of the region , Czech team Sparta Prague for record fee 35 million CZK ( €1.3 million ) From here he moved back to Slovakia with one of the top teams in the country , Inter Bratislava . He won consecutive Slovak Super Liga titles in 1999–2000 and 2000–01 , finishing as top-scorer in both . Middlesbrough . Amid rumoured interest from Inter Milan , he eventually signed for English side Middlesbrough on 12 April 2001 for £2.1 million on a five-year contract . Earlier that season , he had a trial at their local rivals Sunderland . Németh scored 23 goals in 117 Premier League appearances for the club . He became known as the Lizard King of Teesside and Slovakian Express for scoring regularly off the bench . Németh was part of Middlesbroughs 2004 League Cup-winning team , despite not making the squad for the final . He also featured as they contested the UEFA Cup in the next two seasons . During his time in the Premier League , he scored in wins over Chelsea , Manchester United , Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur . The 2005–06 season saw Németh turn down numerous transfer offers , including UEFA Cup winners CSKA Moscow . He faced competition up-front that season from Yakubu , Mark Viduka , Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink and Massimo Maccarone , leading to his exit in January . Later career . On 25 January 2006 , Németh was sold to French club RC Strasbourg for a nominal fee . Their season ended with relegation from Ligue 1 , and he was released . On 28 August 2006 , he agreed to join the German Bundesliga club Alemannia Aachen in a two-year deal . Németh spent most of his first season on the sidelines because of a pulmonary embolism . On 19 May 2008 , he signed a contract extension with Aachen until the end of the 2009–10 season . In the winter of 2010–11 , he opted to retire from football due to health problems . International career . Németh scored 22 times in 58 matches for Slovakia between 1997 and 2006 . His debut was a 4–0 friendly win against Belarus at the Štadión pod Zoborom in Nitra on 2 February 1997 , replacing Róbert Semeník for the final 26 minutes . He scored his first goal on his third cap on 5 February 1997 , in a 2–2 draw away against Costa Rica . Némeths last goal came in his 55th international on 1 March 2006 , in an away friendly win over France . His last game was on 6 September 2006 , in qualification for Euro 2008 , a 3–0 home defeat to the Czech Republic . He was the countrys highest-scorer until Róbert Vittek broke the record , and is their seventh most-capped player . Personal life . Németh belongs to the Hungarian minority in Slovakia . Honours . Slovan Bratislava - Slovak Super Liga : 1994-95 , 1995-96 - Slovak Cup : 1996-97 Inter Bratislava - Slovak Super Liga : 1999–2000 , 2000–01 - Slovak Cup : 1999–2000 , 2000–01 Middlesbrough - Football League Cup : 2003–04 Individual - Slovak Footballer of the Year : 2000 - Slovak Super Liga top scorer : 1999–2000 , 2000–01