Marten Paalberg

Marten Paalberg
Personal information
Full name Marten-Chris Paalberg
Date of birth (2008-10-08) 8 October 2008
Place of birth Pärnu, Estonia
Height 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in)
Position Forward
Team information
Current team
Saint-Étienne
Number 49
Youth career
Vaprus
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2024–2026 Vaprus 28 (15)
2026– Saint-Étienne 0 (0)
International career
2022 Estonia U15 2 (0)
2023 Estonia U16 3 (1)
2024–2025 Estonia U17 13 (6)
2025– Estonia U19 2 (0)
2025– Estonia 2 (0)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 3 February 2026
‡ National team caps and goals as of 17 November 2025

Marten-Chris Paalberg (born 8 October 2008) is an Estonian professional footballer who plays as a forward for French Ligue 2 club Saint-Étienne and the Estonia national team.

Early life

Paalberg was born on 8 October 2008 in Pärnu, Estonia. The son of Katri, he started playing football at the age of six.[1]

Club career

As a youth player, Paalberg joined the youth academy of Estonian side Vaprus and was promoted to the club's senior team in 2024. On 19 May 2024, he debuted for them during a 0–2 home loss to Levadia in the league.[2]

On 2 February 2026, Paalberg signed with Saint-Étienne in French Ligue 2.[3]

International career

Paalberg is an Estonia youth international. During the autumn of 2025, he was first called up to the Estonia national football team for 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification.[4]

Career statistics

Club

As of match played 8 November 2025[5]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League Estonian Cup Other Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Vaprus 2024 Meistriliiga 3 0 2 2 5 2
2025 Meistriliiga 25 15 1 0 26 15
Career total 28 15 3 2 31 17

International

As of match played 18 November 2025[6]
Appearances and goals by national team and year
National team Year Apps Goals
Estonia 2025 3 0
Total 3 0

Honours

Individual

References

  1. ^ "Pärnu Vaprus lükkas välismaalase kõrvale. Tasuks uhke kompliment ja 16aastase Paalbergi koondisekutse" [Pärnu Vaprus rejected a foreigner. The reward was a proud compliment and a call-up to the national team for 16-year-old Paalberg] (in Estonian). Postimees. 2 October 2025. Retrieved 10 October 2025.
  2. ^ Marten Paalberg at WorldFootball.net
  3. ^ "Marten-Chris Paalberg joins ASSE". Saint-Étienne. 2 February 2026. Retrieved 4 February 2026.
  4. ^ "A-koondises 17. sünnipäeva tähistav Paalberg: tahan Metsa ette võtta ja Heinale väravaid lüüa" [Paalberg, who is celebrating his 17th birthday in the A-team: I want to take on Mets and score goals for Heina] (in Estonian). Soccernet.ee. 5 October 2025. Retrieved 10 October 2025.
  5. ^ Marten Paalberg at Soccerway. Retrieved 18 March 2026.
  6. ^ "Marten Paalberg". National Football Teams. Benjamin Strack-Zimmermann. Retrieved 18 March 2026.
  7. ^ "A. Le Coq Premium liiga kuu parimad kuuluvad augustikuu võidukalt läbinud Vaprusele" (in Estonian). Estonian Football Association. 5 September 2025. Retrieved 5 September 2025.
  8. ^ "A. Le Coq Premium liiga septembrikuu parimad kuuluvad Vaprusele ja Kaljule" (in Estonian). Estonian Football Association. 9 October 2025. Retrieved 9 October 2025.