Gianni Stensness

Gianni Ryan Stensness (born 7 February 1999) is a professional footballer who plays as a defensive midfielder for Norwegian Eliteserien club Viking FK. Born and raised in Australia, but with a New Zealand father, Stensness has played for both Australian and New Zealand representative teams in his youth.

Club Career

Wellington Phoenix

In March 2019, Stensness was promoted to the Wellington Phoenix first team from their reserves. On 9 March 2019, he played his first professional game for the club. He came on as a substitute for Mandi in an 8–2 win over his former side, Central Coast Mariners. In June 2019, he left Wellington Phoenix to explore opportunities in Europe.

Central Coast Mariners

Stensness returned from Europe and was offered a contract with Wellington Phoenix, but decided to sign a one-year contract with Central Coast Mariners in August 2019 as a midfielder. After a strong start to the 2019–20 season, Stensness signed a two-year extension on his contract, through to 2022. His performances in the 2019–20 season earned him the CCM Goal of the Year and Newcomer of the Year awards. Stensness also had the most tackles in the A-league in the 2019–20 season and gained the highest OPTA score of any player in the team. Stensness has since shown himself to be the strongest and most commanding defensive midfielder in the A-league.

Viking FK

On 9 August 2021, he signed a three-year contract with Norwegian club Viking FK. He made his debut for the club on 29 August 2021, in a 2–1 win against Rosenborg.