Andrija Balić

Andrija Balić

Personal information
Full name	Andrija Balić
Date of birth	11 August 1997
Place of birth	Split, Croatia
Height	1.80 m (5 ft 11 in)
Playing position	Midfielder
Club information
Current team	Udinese
Number	99
Youth career
2004–2007	Dugopolje
2007–2014	Hajduk Split
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps^†	(Gls)^†
2014–2016	Hajduk Split	32	(6)
2016–	Udinese	0	(0)
National team^‡
2011	Croatia U14	2	(0)
2012	Croatia U15	2	(0)
2012–2013	Croatia U16	4	(0)
2013	Croatia U17	5	(0)
2014–	Croatia U18	3	(0)
2014–	Croatia U19	5	(0)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 29 September 2015. † Appearances (goals) ‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 18 November 2014

Andrija Balić (born 11 August 1997) is a Croatian footballer who plays as a midfielder for Udinese in the Serie A.

Club career

Born in Split but living in nearby Dugopolje,^[1] Balić started to train football at the local NK Dugopolje, before moving to the Hajduk Split academy in 2007.

Passing through the ranks, he became a youth international, playing for all Croatian selections between U14 and U19.^[2]

In the 2013–14 season he formed a potent midfield partnership for the Hajduk U17 team with Nikola Vlašić, which resulted in the team finishing the first half of the season in first place, without a single loss. The two then received and signed professional contracts,^[3] until 2017 and were moved to the U19 team. Balić made his first team debut in the 1–0 home win against RNK Split, coming in the 76th minute of the match for Temurkhuja Abdukholiqov.^[4]

He had to wait until December to make his first appearance of the 2014–15 season, but then became a much more prevalent member of the first team. He got his first start for Hajduk on 18 February 2015, in a 3–0 away loss to Rijeka. He scored his first goal for Hajduk on 1 March 2015 in a 2–2 draw against Zadar, helping his side claw a point after being 2–0 down.^[5] His bigger impact on the first team led Balić to be rewarded with a new contract ending in mid-2018.^[6]

On 1 February 2016 he signed for Udinese in a €4 million deal.^[7]

Career statistics

Club	Season	League		Cup		Europe		Total
		Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Hajduk Split	2013–14	2	0	–		–		2	0
	2014–15	14	4	3	2	–		17	6
	2015–16	16	2	2	0	8	2	26	4
	Total	32	6	5	2	8	2	45	10
Last Update: 18 January 2016[8]

References

1. "Hajduk predstavio trio svojih bisera: Upoznajte ih!" (in Croatian). Gol.hr. 16 January 2014. Retrieved 16 January 2014.
2. "Statistics - Caps: Andrija Balić". Croatian Football Federation. Retrieved 5 March 2015.
3. "Potpisali Vlašić, Hairlahović i Balić: Očekujemo puno od njih" (in Croatian). 24sata. 16 January 2014. Retrieved 16 January 2014.
4. "Pašalić donio pobjedu Hajduku u gradskom derbiju" (in Croatian). Slobodna Dalmacija. 13 April 2014. Retrieved 13 April 2014.
5. "Neriješeno na Poljudu, "bijeli" nadoknadili dva gola zaostatka" (in Croatian). Slobodna Dalmacija. 1 March 2015. Retrieved 1 March 2015.
6. "Andrija Balić dogovorio ostanak u Hajduku do ljeta 2018. godine" (in Croatian). Sportnet.hr. 4 March 2015. Retrieved 4 March 2015.
7. "Balic è bianconero" (in Italian). Udinese Calcio. 1 February 2016. Retrieved 29 February 2016.
8. "Andrija Balic > Club Matches". worldfootball.net. Retrieved 29 May 2015.

External links

• Andrija Balić at Croatian Football Statistics (Croatian)
• Andrija Balić at hajduk.hr
• Andrija Balić at Croatian Football Federation website