Willi Orbán: Regular, leader, model professional
The centre back has been a key feature of the Red Bulls since 2015 | Leader of the defence | Dedicated to life as a pro
RB Leipzig personified! Willi Orbán has become a dominant figure within the club since joining in 2015. The 29-year-old has made the fifth-most appearances for RB Leipzig.
Promotion to the Bundesliga, two-time Bundesliga runner up, two-time DFB-Pokal finalist and reaching the semi final of the UEFA Champions League – currently in his seventh season with the club, Willi has had an important role in the club’s growth and success.
I want to score more goals in the Rückrunde.
A regular on the teamsheet
In the current 2021/22 season, Willi Orbán has started every game that he’s been available for, and hes displayed consistently strong performances. In the league, Willi has a duels won percentage of 62.8% and has also won 64.8% of his contested headers, while 91.2% of passes attempted have been successful. Willi is third in the league for shots taken by centre backs with 14 attempts.
Despite usually being a goal threat, the 1.86m-tall defender has only found the back of the net in the Bundesliga once – last time out against VfL Wolfsburg. He’s also been on target in the DFB-Pokal. “I want to score more goals in the Rückrunde,” said Willi after the game. All that’s left is to make his aim a reality. His opener against Wolfsburg was the 20th goal of his Leipzig career.
Related news
Veteran under 30
While his goal threat is one of his qualities, defending is one of his main tasks as the leader of the team’s defence. Mature beyond his years, Orbán is the ‘veteran’ of the defence, usually playing in the middle of a back three between Mohamed Simakan (21) and Joško Gvardiol (20).
The Kaiserslautern native, who joined FCK as a boy in 1997 and went on to captain the club before departing in 2015, is still yet to celebrate his 30th birthday. Despite that, he’s made 137 appearances in the Bundesliga, 98 appearances in the Bundesliga 2, 25 DFB-Pokal appearances, 20 games in the Champions League and 8 games in the Europa League.
The Hungarian has also represented his country 28 times, most notably at the recent European Championships, when Hungary were narrowly knocked out in what was deemed the ‘Group of Death’ alongside then-defending champions Portugal, Germany and World Champions France.
Willi Orbán's 20th goal for RB Leipzig
Model professional on the search for a title
Orbán renewed his contract with the club last April, signing an extension until 2025 which will take him to ten years as a Red Bull. His attitude towards his profession is the reason behind his ability to deliver physically at the highest level. “The decisive moment for me was when I had my first knee injury when I was 19. I started to read books on training, nutrition and things like that. That was the moment when I gave my absolute all once more to realise my full potential,” explained Willi.
Willi, who relishes facing bullish strikers like Köln’s Anthony Modeste or Wolfsburg’s Wout Weghorst looks to develop his potential year on year. After the last year’s extension, we should be able to look forward to many more years of the defender in the red and white of RB Leipzig. At the time of singing his contract, Willi, who has an offer for a role at the club after his playing career, spoke of his lofty ambitions at the club. “My mission’s not over yet. We have a lot of objectives. I want to win something; that’s what I work for and train towards every day. We’ve developed well; we were runners up in the Bundesliga and DFB-Pokal, and we’ve also reached the semifinals of the Champions League. The long-term goal is to win a trophy with Leipzig.”