The second of three sons, Mertesacker was raised in Pattensen, a small town on the outskirts of the city of Hanover. He began playing football alongside his brothers at the local … See more

In September 2004, Jürgen Klinsmann, then-manager of Germany, called Mertesacker up for 9 October 2004 game against Iran. He made his debut less than two weeks after his 20th birthday when he came on as a second-half substitute for Christian Wörns See more

Mertesacker met his future wife German international handballer Ulrike Stange in 2008 while both were recovering from injury at a rehab clinic in Donaustauf and began a relationship … See more

Hannover 96
Mertesacker joined the youth system of Hannover 96 where he played under his father Stefan, one of the youth coaches, until age 15. While juggling his football commitments and training, he completed his ' See more

Mertesacker was announced as the new Arsenal Academy manager prior to the 2017–18 season, officially assuming the position in July 2018. … See more

At 1.98 m (6 ft 6 in), Mertesacker is commanding in the air but he is also sound in defending on the ground. He often uses his strength to shrug opponents off the ball and his … See more

In November 2006, Mertesacker established the "Per Mertesacker Foundation", initially to support the family of his former Hannover and Germany late teammate See more