Nikica Jelavić

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Nikica Jelavić
Nikica Jelavić - SK Rapid Wien (1).jpg
Jelavić with Rapid Vienna
Personal information
Full name Nikica Jelavić
Date of birth (1985-08-27) 27 August 1985 (age 27)
Place of birth Čapljina, SFR Yugoslavia
Height 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in)[1]
Playing position Striker
Club information
Current club Everton
Number 7
Youth career
1999–2001 GOŠK Gabela
2001–2002 Neretva
2002–2005 Hajduk Split
Senior career*
Years Team Apps† (Gls)†
2002–2007 Hajduk Split 35 (8)
2007–2008 Zulte Waregem 23 (3)
2008–2010 Rapid Vienna 71 (27)
2010–2012 Rangers 45 (30)
2012– Everton 50 (16)
National team‡
2002 Croatia U-17 2 (0)
2003 Croatia U-18 2 (0)
2009– Croatia 26 (5)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of match played 19 May 2013.

† Appearances (Goals).

‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 10 February 2013

Nikica Jelavić (Croatian pronunciation: [nîkitsa jělaʋitɕ]) (born 27 August 1985) is a Croatian footballer, who plays as a striker for Premier League club Everton and the Croatia national team.

He started his career with Prva HNL side Hajduk Split in 2002, before moving to Belgian Pro League club Zulte Waregem in 2007. A year later, he moved to Austrian Bundesliga club Rapid Wien. In 2010 he was signed by Scottish club Rangers, with whom he won the Scottish Premier League and the Scottish League Cup before joining Everton in 2012.

Contents

Club career [edit]

Early career [edit]

Jelavić was born in Čapljina, SR Bosnia and Herzegovina, SFR Yugoslavia and started his youth career at his local side GOŠK Gabela, which plays in the Bosnian league system. His career took a more serious turn when he moved to the nearby cross-border club in Croatia, NK Neretva from the town of Metković, managed by Branko Gutić.

Hajduk Split [edit]

At the encouragement of Ante Prco, Ivan Gudelj, Dražen Mužinić and Vilson Džoni he was brought to Hajduk Split's junior side at the age of 15. He played his first match for Hajduk's senior side in the Prva HNL at the age of 17. During his time at Hajduk he suffered a lot of injuries which prevented him to make more apperances for the squad.After he recovered from the injuries he became a first team regular in the 2006–07 Prva HNL season.Despite him playing the whole season he didn't manage to contribute much for the squad so he was transfer listed at the end of the season. In 2007 he signed for Zulte Waregem.[2]

Rapid Vienna [edit]

In the 2008–09 season, Jelavić played for the Austrian champions Rapid Vienna. In the Austrian Bundesliga he played 24 games (as first squad in 9 and as substitute in 15) and scored 7 goals without any yellow or red cards. In 2009–10, in the Austrian Bundesliga, he played in 33 games (as first squad in 31 and as substitute in two) and scored 17 goals with 5 yellow cards and 1 red card. In the Europa League, he played six games and scored four goals with one assist.

In the summer of 2010 Jelavić was linked with a transfer to Rangers. A fee was originally agreed between the two clubs on 26 July,[3] but the transfer was delayed by a dispute between the player and Rapid Vienna over a payment Jelavić claimed the club owed him.[4] On 19 August, Rapid announced that Jelavić would be signing for Rangers, after the player announced he would not play in Rapid's Europa League qualifying match against Aston Villa.[5][6]

Rangers [edit]

On 20 August 2010, Jelavić completed a £4 million move to Rangers on a four-year-deal.[7] He made his debut in a home match against St. Johnstone on 28 August 2010.[8] Due to his former club Rapid Vienna eliminating Aston Villa from the Europa League, Jelavić was ineligible to participate in Rangers' Champions League campaign, after becoming cup tied after appearing for the Austrian side in the earlier rounds.[9]

On 11 September, Jelavić scored his first Rangers goal against Hamilton Academical at New Douglas Park after he headed in a Kyle Lafferty cross.[10] On 21 September, Jelavić played against Dunfermline Athletic in the League Cup, scoring two goals in the game including an overhead kick in a 7–2 win for Rangers.[11] In Rangers next away match to Aberdeen at Pittodrie Stadium, Jelavic scored what turned out to be the winning goal in a 3–2 Rangers win. Rangers were 2–0 down before coming back to win the match with Jelavić scoring the third Rangers goal. The next week Jelavić was injured in a match against Heart of Midlothian at Tynecastle Stadium, suffering ankle ligament damage due to a tackle by Hearts midfielder Ian Black.[12] Jelavić claimed that Black had intended to injure him, a charge denied by his opponent, who apologized for the challenge.[12] He scored two goals in a match against Dundee United in October 2011.

Jelavić playing for Rapid Vienna

After making his comeback off of the bench, Jelavić started his first match since his injury on 26 January 2011, scoring away from home against Hibernian in the first half.[13] Jelavić's first hat trick for Rangers came in a 6–0 win over Motherwell on 12 February 2011 at Ibrox Stadium. In Rangers' 4–0 victory against St. Johnstone on 27 February 2011, Jelavić scored two goals and assisted a third with a backheel pass.[14] On 20 March 2011, Jelavić scored the winning goal in extra time in Rangers' 2–1 win over Celtic in the 2011 Scottish League Cup Final.[15] He then scored in consecutive away 1–0 victories over Hamilton Academical and Aberdeen. Jelavić rounded off the season by scoring five goals in the last six matches of the season including a goal and two assists in Rangers' 5–1 title winning victory against Kilmarnock on the last matchday of the season.[16] Jelavić received the SFA goal of the season award for his goal against Aberdeen.[17] Jelavic ended the 2010–11 season with the best goals to game ratio in Scotland after scoring 19 goals in just 27 starts, better than any other striker in Scotland.

On 22 July 2011, a day before Rangers opening match of the season against Heart of Midlothian, it was announced that Jelavić would wear the number nine shirt for the 2011–12 season he had previously worn the number 18. On 30 August 2011, it was reported that Rangers had rejected a £6.5m bid from Championship club Leicester City for Jelavić.[18] Jelavić scored his first European goal for Rangers on 3 August 2011 in a 1–1 draw against Malmö in a UEFA Champions League qualifying game.[19] On 5 November 2011 Jelavić scored his first brace of the season helping Rangers to a 3–1 victory over Dundee United. Jelavić scored another two goals in a 2–0 win over Hibernian on 10 December 2011.[20] His third brace of the season came on 14 January 2012 in a 2–1 win over St Johnstone.[21] Jelavić left Rangers having scored a total of 36 goals in a total of 55 appearances in all competitions.

Everton [edit]

On 31 January 2012, Jelavić signed a four-and-a-half-year deal with Everton for a fee of £5 million.[22][23] He made his debut a few days later, as a second half substitute for Denis Stracqualursi, in a 1–1 draw against Wigan Athletic at the DW Stadium.[24] On 10 March 2012, Jelavić scored his first goal for Everton in his first start for the club, scoring the only goal of the game in a 1–0 victory against Tottenham Hotspur at Goodison Park.[25] His first FA Cup goal was the opener in a 2–0 win against Sunderland in a quarter-final replay at the Stadium of Light.[26] Jelavić scored his first brace for Everton against Norwich City in a 2–2 draw at Carrow Road in the Premier League. The following week he scored the opening goal in a 2–1 defeat by neighbours Liverpool, in the FA Cup semi-final at Wembley Stadium.

Jelavić scored twice in a 4–4 draw against Manchester United at Old Trafford, becoming the first Everton player to score in five successive away games since Duncan McKenzie in 1977–78.[citation needed] In scoring twice against Fulham he became the quickest player to reach 10 goals at Everton since Tom Browell in 1912.[27] Jelavić was named the Premier League Player of the Month for April 2012, the first Croatian to achieve this.[28] Jelavić scored his 11th goal for Everton against Newcastle United on the final day of the season and finished the season as Everton's top scorer both in the league and overall.[29] He scored his first goal of the following season on 25 August 2012 in a 3–1 win against Aston Villa at Villa Park.[30] Jelavić netted his first two home goals for the campaign against Southampton in a 3–1 win, these goals were also his first at the famous Gwladys St End at Goodison Park.[31] Jelavić continued his scoring form in the next game against Wigan Athletic with a headed goal to make the score 1-1. Jelavić scored his next goal, the winner in a 2-1 win against Sunderland. His next goal came in stoppage time of a game against Tottenham Hotspur in a 2-1 victory at Goodison Park. Although Jelavic scored against Cheltenham Town in the third round of the FA Cup, he had to wait until March to find the net again in the league when he came off the bench to score a last minute goal in a 2–0 win over Manchester City.[32]

International career [edit]

In 2007, Jelavić was called up for the Euro 2008 qualifiers, although he did not feature in any of the qualifying matches for the competition.[33] Jelavić eventually made his full international debut in a friendly match against Qatar on 8 October 2009 in Rijeka, coming on as a substitute for Ivan Klasnić in the 64th minute in which he also scored his first international goal to secure his team a 3–2 win in the final moments of the match.[34] On 14 October 2009, he made his first competitive international appearance for Croatia, in the team's final 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifier against Kazakhstan in Astana, again coming on as a substitute for Klasnić, in the 77th minute.[35]

In 2010, he made five international appearances, scoring the equaliser in a 1–1 friendly match against Slovakia in Bratislava.[36]

Jelavić was selected for Croatia's UEFA Euro 2012 squad. He scored his first competitive international goal and his country's second in their first group stage match against Republic of Ireland resulting in a 3–1 win.[37] He also featured in Croatia's group stage matches against Italy and Spain but did not score and Croatia was eliminated after the group stage.[38][39]

Jelavić featured in Croatia's first qualifying match for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil against Macedonia, scoring the only goal in a 1–0 win.He scored later in a friendly match against South Korea on Craven Cottage in early February 2013..[40]

International goals [edit]

Scores and results list Croatia's goal tally first.
# Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1. 8 October 2009 Stadion Kantrida, Rijeka  Qatar 3–2 3–2 Friendly
2. 11 August 2010 Štadión Pasienky, Bratislava  Slovakia 1–1 1–1 Friendly
3. 10 June 2012 Municipal Stadium, Poznań  Republic of Ireland 2–1 3–1 Euro 2012
4. 7 September 2012 Stadion Maksimir, Zagreb  Macedonia 1–0 1–0 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification
5. 6 February 2013 Craven Cottage, London  South Korea 3–0 4–0 Friendly

Personal life [edit]

Jelavic is married to Dajana Jelavic, whom he had started dating when he was 17 years old. Together they have two daughters, Nika and Lana.[41] Jelavic also makes significant financial contributions to his boyhood club, GOŠK Gabela.

Career statistics [edit]

As of match played 19 May 2013.
Club Season League Cup League Cup Europe Total
Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Hajduk Split 2002–03 2 0 1 0 – – 0 0 3 0
2003–04 2 0 0 0 – – 0 0 2 0
2004–05 0 0 0 0 – – 0 0 0 0
2005–06 9 3 2 0 – – 0 0 11 3
2006–07 22 5 4 2 – – – – 26 7
Total 35 8 7 2 – – 0 0 42 10
Zulte Waregem 2007–08 23 3 2 0 – – – – 25 3
Total 23 3 2 0 – – – – 25 3
Rapid Vienna 2008–09 34 7 3 1 – – 2 0 39 8
2009–10 33 18 3 2 – – 12 9 48 29
2010–11 4 2 0 0 – – 4 4 8 6
Total 71 27 6 3 – – 18 13 95 43
Rangers 2010–11 23 16 1 0 3 3 0 0 27 19
2011–12 22 14 1 1 1 1 4 1 28 17
Total 45 30 2 1 4 4 4 1 55 36
Everton 2011–12 13 9 3 2 0 0 – – 16 11
2012–13 37 7 5 1 1 0 – – 43 8
Total 50 16 8 3 1 0 – – 59 19
Career total 224 84 25 9 5 4 22 14 276 111

Honours [edit]

Club [edit]

Hajduk Split [edit]

Rangers [edit]

Individual [edit]

Everton [edit]

References [edit]

  1. ^ "Player Profile: Nikica Jelavić". Sky Sports. Retrieved 31 July 2012. 
  2. ^ "Zulte-Waregem attire un international Croate!". FOOTGOAL. 4 June 2007. 
  3. ^ "Follow the Jelavic road" STV Sport, 21 August 2010
  4. ^ "Rangers fury over Rapid Vienna u-turn after agreeing £4m Nikica Jelavic deal" Daily Record. 17 August 2010.
  5. ^ "Rapid kick out Jelavic after ´shock´ statement" Croatian Times, 19 August 2010
  6. ^ "Jelavic set for Gers move" Sky Sports, 19 August 2010
  7. ^ "Rangers sign Rapid Vienna's Nikica Jelavic for £4m". BBC Sport. 20 August 2010. 
  8. ^ "Rangers 2–1 St Johnstone". BBC Sport. 28 August 2010. 
  9. ^ "Rangers striker Nikica Jelavic to miss Champions League". BBC Sport. 26 August 2010. Retrieved 27 August 2010. 
  10. ^ Campbell, Andy (11 September 2010). "Hamilton 1–2 Rangers". BBC Sport. Retrieved 11 September 2010. 
  11. ^ "Rangers 7–2 Dunfermline". BBC Sport. 21 September 2010. Retrieved 21 September 2010. 
  12. ^ a b "Ian Black to atone for Nikica Jelavic injury". BBC Sport. 6 October 2010. Retrieved 6 October 2010. 
  13. ^ "Rangers 2–1 Motherwell". Goal. 30 January 2011. 
  14. ^ "Rangers 4–0 St Johnstone". Goal. 27 February 2011. 
  15. ^ "Jelavic the hero in extra-time". ESPN Soccernet. 20 March 2011. Retrieved 21 March 2011. 
  16. ^ "Rangers 5–1 Kilmarnock". ESPN Soccernet. 15 May 2011. Retrieved 15 May 2011. 
  17. ^ "Nikica Jelavic strike is Scotland's goal of season". BBC Sport. 1 May 2011. Retrieved 3 May 2011. 
  18. ^ "Rangers reject £6.5m Leicester bid for Nikica Jelavic". BBC Sport. 30 August 2011. Retrieved 30 August 2011. 
  19. ^ "Rangers FC 1–1 Malmo FF". ESPN Soccernet. 1 August 2011. 
  20. ^ "Rangers FC 2–0 Hibernian FC". ESPN Soccernet. 10 December 2011. 
  21. ^ "Rangers FC 2–1 St Johnstone". ESPN Soccernet. 14 January 2012. 
  22. ^ "Jelavić Signs For Everton". Everton F.C. official website. 31 January 2012. Retrieved 31 January 2012. 
  23. ^ "Rangers Administrators Report". Rangers FC. 5 April 2012. Retrieved 5 April 2012. 
  24. ^ "Wigan 1–1 Everton". BBC Sport. 4 February 2012. Retrieved 4 February 2012. 
  25. ^ "Everton 1–0 Tottenham". BBC Sport. 10 March 2012. Retrieved 17 March 2012. 
  26. ^ http://soccernet.espn.go.com/quotes?id=340284&cc=5901
  27. ^ "Jelavic Beats Greats To 10". Everton F.C. 
  28. ^ "Roberto Martinez and Nikica Jelavic win monthly awards.". bbc.co.uk/sport. 4 May 2012. Retrieved 4 May 2012. 
  29. ^ "First Team Stats 2011–2012". Everton F.C. Retrieved 14 May 2012. 
  30. ^ "Aston Villa 1–3 Everton" BBC Sport. 25 August 2012. Retrieved 25 August 2012.
  31. ^ http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2012/sep/29/everton-southampton-premier-league?newsfeed=true
  32. ^ "Everton 2–0 Manchester City". BBC Sport. Retrieved 16 March 2013. 
  33. ^ Nikica Jelavić at National-Football-Teams.com
  34. ^ "Croatia 3–2 Qatar". Croatian Football Federation. 8 October 2009. 
  35. ^ "Croatia 2–1 Kazakhstan". Croatian Football Federation. 14 October 2009. 
  36. ^ "Croatia 1–1 Slovakia". Croatian Football Federation. 11 August 2010. 
  37. ^ "Croatia 3–1 Ireland". ESPN. 10 June 2012. 
  38. ^ "Croatia 1–1 Italy". ESPN. 14 June 2012. 
  39. ^ "Spain 1–0 Croatia". ESPN. 18 June 2012. 
  40. ^ "Croatia 1–0 Macedonia". ESPN. 7 September 2012. 
  41. ^ "Exclusive Interview: Nikica Jelavic". Chester Chronicle. 13 July 2012. 

External links [edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Nikica Jelavić
Everton F.C. – current squad
Croatia squad – UEFA Euro 2012
Croatia
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