Vedran Ćorluka

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Vedran Ćorluka
Vedran Corluka throw-in.jpg
Playing for Tottenham
Personal information
Full name Vedran Ćorluka[1]
Date of birth 5 February 1986 (1986-02-05) (age 26)
Place of birth Derventa, SFR Yugoslavia
Height 1.93 m (6 ft 4 in)
Playing position Defender
Club information
Current club Bayer Leverkusen
(on loan from Tottenham Hotspur)
Number 14
Senior career*
Years Team Apps† (Gls)†
2003–2007 Dinamo Zagreb 61 (7)
2004–2005 → Inter Zaprešić (loan) 27 (4)
2007–2008 Manchester City 38 (1)
2008– Tottenham Hotspur 81 (1)
2012– → Bayer Leverkusen (loan) 4 (0)
National team‡
2002 Croatia U16 7 (2)
2002–2003 Croatia U17 11 (1)
2003 Croatia U18 3 (0)
2004–2005 Croatia U19 12 (4)
2005–2006 Croatia U21 9 (0)
2006– Croatia 52 (2)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 19:30, 4 February 2012 (UTC).

† Appearances (Goals).

‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 12 November 2011

Vedran Ćorluka (pronounced [ʋedran tɕorluka]; born 5 February 1986) is a Croatian footballer who plays for Bayer Leverkusen on loan from Tottenham Hotspur as a defender. He is also a part of the Croatia national team.

Contents

[edit] Club career

[edit] Early days

Ćorluka was born in Modran, a village near Derventa, Yugoslavia, in present-day Bosnia and Herzegovina, but it was officially said he was born in Doboj because his village Modran was closer to Doboj Hospital.[2] He started to play football in Dinamo Zagreb's youth teams when he was only eight years old, impressing many scouts from the youth academy.[3] Ćorluka's professional career started in 2003 but during that season he didn't make an appearance for the first team. He was sent on loan to Inter Zaprešić and played one season for them, helping the team to second place in the league, before returning to Dinamo Zagreb in 2005. After establishing himself as a key player in Dinamo, he went on to help them win the Prva HNL title 3 seasons in a row, first in 2006 and thereafter. He also played a dominant part in his side capturing the Croatian cup in the 2006 season.

[edit] Manchester City

After consistently strong performances, Ćorluka was signed by Manchester City on 2 August 2007.[4][5] City did not reveal the fee, but Croatian media reports suggested the deal was worth around £8 million, with the 21-year-old penning a five-year deal.[6]

As usual, he consistently found a starting spot for his side in the Premier League. Despite a nightmare blunder during his side's shocking 6–0 defeat to Chelsea at Stamford Bridge, he remained strong during his first season in England as his side finished 9th in the league and gained entry to a UEFA Cup qualifying round via the UEFA fair play ranking. On few rare occasions, he was also used as a defensive midfielder during the season, proving to be a factor for opposing attackers.

He scored his first goal in the 4–2 loss at Aston Villa on the opening weekend of the 2008–09 season.[7] In the UEFA Cup second qualifying round match second leg, Ćorluka scored the decisive spot kick in the dramatic 4–2 penalty shoot-out victory over Danish minnows Midtjylland after the tie had ended 1–1 on aggregate. He played his last match for City against Sunderland on 31 August 2008, throwing his shirt into the crowd at the end of the match.[8]

[edit] Tottenham Hotspur

On 1 September 2008, it was announced that Ćorluka had signed for Tottenham Hotspur for a fee of £5.5 million on a six-year contract, joining his fellow Croatian international and best friend, Luka Modrić at the club.[9] During the game against Stoke City on 19 October, Corluka was severely injured. Kneed under his chin by teammate Gomes, he was immediately knocked unconscious. After ten minutes of on field treatment he was rushed to hospital where it was announced no serious damage was evident.[10] In the Carling Cup final on 1 March 2009, Ćorluka scored his first and Tottenham's only penalty in the shootout loss to Manchester United. He is known to most Spurs fans as 'Charlie' [11]

Ćorluka scored his first Premier League goal for Tottenham during a 2–2 draw against Bolton Wanderers on 3 October 2009. On 2 February 2011, Corluka started and played the full 90 minutes at right-back ahead of the injured Alan Hutton, in the 1–0 victory over Blackburn Rovers at Ewood Park.[12]

[edit] Bayer Leverkusen loan

In the January 2012 transfer window, Ćorluka signed on loan for Bundesliga club Bayer Leverkusen for the remainder of the 2011–12 season on 31 January with the option to buyout his contract in the summer transfer window.[13]

[edit] International career

He started to play for the Croatian under-21 team and eventually progressed to his country's senior national team, for which he soon made his debut in the friendly match against world champions Italy on 16 August 2006 in Livorno, Italy. Croatia won the match 2–0 and Ćorluka, aged 20 during his debut, entered the game in the second half and satisfied critics with his very good, solid performance against experienced Serie A forwards.

During Croatia's Euro 2008 qualifying campaign, he became one of the key players under current head coach Slaven Bilić. Croatia finished first in Group E, notably ahead of Russia and favorites England, who eventually failed to qualify from the group as Croatia conceded only 8 goals.

Ćorluka was in the final match of the tournament where Croatia's exit came against Turkey in the extra time and penalty shootout.[14] Turkey winger Arda Turan revealed in an interview with UEFA that Ćorluka is the most difficult right-back he has ever played against, whom he came up against during this match.[15]

[edit] Career statistics

Club League Season League Cup League Cup Europe Total
Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Inter Zaprešić Prva HNL 2004–05 27 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 27 4
Club Total 27 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 27 4
Dinamo Zagreb Prva HNL 2005-06 31 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 31 3
2006-07 30 4 0 0 0 0 6 0 36 4
Club Total 61 7 0 0 0 0 6 0 67 7
Manchester City Premier League 2007-08 35 0 3 0 0 0 0 0 38 0
2008-09 3 1 0 0 0 0 3 0 6 1
Club Total 38 1 3 0 0 0 3 0 44 1
Tottenham Hotspur Premier League 2008-09 34 0 2 0 5 0 0 0 41 0
2009-10 29 1 5 0 2 0 0 0 36 1
2010-11 15 0 1 0 0 0 8 0 24 0
2011-12 3 0 0 0 1 0 4 0 8 0
Club Total 81 1 8 0 8 0 12 0 109 1
Bayer Leverkusen (loan) Bundesliga 2011-12 4 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 5 0
Club Total 4 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 5 0
Career Total 211 13 11 0 8 0 22 0 252 13

[edit] International goals

# Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1. 8 October 2009 Kantrida, Rijeka  Qatar
1 – 0
3 – 2
Friendly
2. 11 November 2011 Türk Telekom Arena, Istanbul, Turkey  Turkey
0 – 3
0 – 3
 Euro 2012 Qualifying

[edit] Honours

Dinamo Zagreb
2005–06, 2006–07
200607
2006
Tottenham Hotspur
2011

[edit] References

  1. ^ "Statistics". Premier League. http://www.premierleague.com/staticFiles/c2/3b/0,,12306~146370,00.pdf. Retrieved 2010-03-22. 
  2. ^ "ĆORLUKA (Vedran Ćorluka) – Manchester City and Croatia". footballdatabase.com. http://www.footballdatabase.com/index.php?page=player&Id=6572&b=true&pn=Vedran_%C4%86orluka. Retrieved 20 September 2009. 
  3. ^ "Vedran Corluka – Manchester City's New Croatian International". Soccerphile (Soccerphile.com). http://www.soccerphile.com/soccerphile/news/balkans-soccer/vedran-corluka.html. Retrieved 20 September 2009. 
  4. ^ "Elano heads Man City triple swoop". British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC Sport). 2 August 2007. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/m/man_city/6927556.stm. Retrieved 2 August 2007. 
  5. ^ Tim Oscroft (2 August 2007). "Sven welcomes Corluka". Manchester City F.C. (mcfc.co.uk). http://www.mcfc.co.uk/News/Team-news/2007/August/Sven-welcomes-Corluka. Retrieved 6 October 2009. 
  6. ^ Graeme Bailey (2 August 2007). "City land Croatian stopper". Sky Sports. http://www.skysports.com/story/0,19528,11095_2636990,00.html. Retrieved 21 September 2009. 
  7. ^ Chris Bevan (17 August 2008). "Aston Villa 4–2 Man City". British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC Sport). http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/eng_prem/7551172.stm. Retrieved 06 October 2009. 
  8. ^ Stevenson, Jonathan (1 September 2008). "Transfer deadline day". British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC Sport). http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/7590492.stm. Retrieved 1 September 2008. 
  9. ^ "Spurs sign Corluka from Man City". British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC Sport). 1 September 2008. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/t/tottenham_hotspur/7591506.stm. Retrieved 21 September 2009. 
  10. ^ Ian Hughes (19 October 2008). "Stoke 2–1 Tottenham". British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC Sport). http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/eng_prem/7665101.stm. Retrieved 21 September 2009. 
  11. ^ "FT: Man United 0 Tottenham 0 (MU win 4–1 on penalties)". Sky Sports (skysports.com). 1 March 2009. http://www.skysports.com/football/match_commentary/0,19764,11065_3102548,00.html. Retrieved 06 October 2009. 
  12. ^ Sam Lyon (3 October 2009). "Bolton 2–2 Tottenham". British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC Sport). http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/eng_prem/8281037.stm. Retrieved 6 October 2009. 
  13. ^ "Vedran Corluka leaves Tottenham to join Bayer Leverkusen on loan". British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC Sport). 31 January 2012. 
  14. ^ Oliver Kay (20 June 2008). "Slaven Bilic left dazed by reversal of fortune". Vienna: The Times Online. http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/sport/football/international/euro_2008/article4184249.ece?openComment=true. Retrieved 21 September 2009. 
  15. ^ "Arda stronger and wiser". UEFA. http://www.uefa.com/news/newsid=1457472.html. Retrieved 2010-03-04. 

[edit] External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Vedran Ćorluka
Bayer 04 Leverkusen – current squad
Croatia squad – UEFA Euro 2008
Croatia
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