Ivica Vrdoljak

Ivica Vrdoljak

Vrdoljak with Legia Warsaw
Personal information
Full name	Ivica Vrdoljak
Date of birth	19 September 1983
Place of birth	Novi Sad, SFR Yugoslavia
Height	1.87 m (6 ft 2 in)
Playing position	Centre-back, defensive midfielder
Club information
Current team	Legia Warsaw
Number	21
Youth career
1990–1999	Vojvodina
1999–2002	NK Zagreb
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps^†	(Gls)^†
2002–2007	NK Zagreb	81	(3)
2002–2003	→ Lučko (loan)	?	(?)
2003–2004	→ Croatia Sesvete (loan)	22	(4)
2007–2010	Dinamo Zagreb	80	(6)
2010–	Legia Warsaw	127	(20)
National team^‡
2004–2005	Croatia U21	7	(0)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 3 February 2016. † Appearances (goals) ‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 29 May 2010

Ivica Vrdoljak (pronounced [îʋit͡sa ʋr̩dǒʎaːk]; born 19 September 1983) is a Croatian professional footballer, currently playing for Legia Warsaw.

Club career

Vrdoljak started playing football at his home—club; Serbian top league club FK Vojvodina, where he played for the youth teams until 1999, when he moved to Zagreb, Croatia, and settled in the youth system of the Croatian top flight side NK Zagreb. After graduating to the senior team he was sent on loans to NK Lučko and the Second division team Croatia Sesvete.^[1] Vrdoljak had a good season at Croatia Sesvete, scoring four goals and featuring in 22 league matches, and after that he was returned to NK Zagreb. In three seasons at the club he made 81 league appearances and scored three goals. He was then, along with his teammate Mario Mandžukić, transferred to Croatian powerhouse Dinamo Zagreb for a fee of €1 million. Since his arrival, Vrdoljak has established himself as a consistent first-team player. In his debut season for Dinamo he played in twenty-four league matches and bagged three goals. The next season he was irreplaceable in the midfield and made 29 league appearances by the end of the season and scored three more goals.

During the qualifiers UEFA Champions League 2014-2015 Vrdoljak missed two penalties against Celtic FC. However, Legia won this match 4-1.

International career

He is also a former Croatia under-21 international and capped seven times at the under-21 level during the 2004–05 season.

Honours

Dinamo Zagreb

• Croatian First League (3): 2007–08, 2008–09, 2009–10
• Croatian Cup (2): 2007–08, 2008–09

Legia Warsaw

• Ekstraklasa (2): 2012–13, 2013–14
• Polish Cup (3): 2010–11, 2011–12, 2012–13

Career statistics

As of 19 April 2016^[2]

Club performance			League		Cup		Super Cup		Continental		Total
Season	Club	League	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Croatia			League		Cup		Super Cup		Europe		Total
2003–04	Croatia Sesvete	Druga HNL	22	4	3	2					25	6
2004–05	NK Zagreb	Prva HNL	25	1	1	0					26	1
2005–06			25	0							25	0
2006–07			31	2	4	0					35	2
2007–08	Dinamo Zagreb		24	3	7	0			2	0	33	3
2008–09			29	3	4	0			12	2	45	5
2009–10			27	0	5	0			12	1	44	1
2010–11	Legia Warsaw	Ekstraklasa	26	5	6	3					32	8
2011–12			24	4	6	0			10	0	40	4
2012–13			20	2	6	0	1	0	2	0	29	2
2013–14			30	5	1	0			10	0	41	5
2014–15			28	4			1	0	4	0	9	3
2015–16			0	0
Career total			287	32	43	5	2	0	52	3	384	40

References

1. "Slobodna Dalmacija". arhiv.slobodnadalmacija.hr. Retrieved 2014-01-29.
2. Career statistics at Nogometni Magazin

External links

• Ivica Vrdoljak profile at 90minut (Polish)
• Profile at Nogometni Magazin (Croatian)
• Profile at Dinamo Zagreb's official website (Croatian)
• List of national team appearances at official website of Croatian Football Federation (Croatian)