Stefan Kießling (born 25 January 1984) is a German former footballer who played as a striker for Bayer Leverkusen and 1. FC Nürnberg. Born in Lichtenfels, West Germany, Kießling began playing football at a young age in the youth setup at 1. FC Eintracht Bamberg before moving to the 1. FC Nürnberg academy in 2001. He made his professional debut for Nürnberg as a 19-year-old in 2003 before being sold to Bayer Leverkusen in the summer of 2006. He stayed at Leverkusen for 12 seasons. A German international from 2007 to 2010, Kießling earned six caps, failing to score a goal at the senior level. He represented Germany at the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, featuring in two matches for the eventual third-place side. Personal life Kießling's grandfather founded Upper Franconian club TSV Eintracht Bamberg, which merged with 1. FC Bamberg in 2006 to form FC Eintracht Bamberg, and his father played as a goalkeeper. At 15, he had to make the choice between training as a chef or becoming a professional footballer. And although he stated that "cooking is still a lot of fun," it was football that ultimately prevailed. He also has a love for music, stating that his favorite artists are Bon Jovi and Bryan Adams. Kießling and his wife Norina were married on 29 December 2008 in a civil ceremony at the Villa Römer in Opladen. The couple has two children, Hailey-Milu and Tayler-Joel. Club career 1. FC Nürnberg Kießling started his senior club career with Nürnberg having made his way through their youth ranks – though he was previously in 1. FC Eintracht Bamberg's youth academy. In 2002, he signed a six-year contract with the club, after scoring 13 goals in 21 matches for the reserve side. He made his professional debut for Nürnberg in a 4–0 loss to Hamburger SV in April 2003. This ended up being the only appearance for the first team during the 2002–03 season. He scored his first professional goal in a 2–2 draw with Greuther Fürth on 7 March 2004. He finished the 2003–04 season with two goals in 14 matches. He went on to score four goals in 29 matches during the 2004–05 season and 11 goals in 33 appearances during the 2005–06 season. Bayer Leverkusen 2006–12 The young talent drew the attention of Arsenal and Bayern Munich, but he opted for Bayer Leverkusen in the summer