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Darko Kovačević

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Darko Kovačević
Kovačević with Olympiacos in 2008
Personal information
Date of birth (1973-11-18) 18 November 1973 (age 50)
Place of birth Kovin, SR Serbia, Yugoslavia
Height 1.87 m (6 ft 2 in)[1]
Position(s) Striker
Youth career
Radnički Kovin
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1992–1994 Proleter Zrenjanin 63 (25)
1994–1995 Red Star Belgrade 47 (37)
1995–1996 Sheffield Wednesday 16 (4)
1996–1999 Real Sociedad 98 (41)
1999–2001 Juventus 47 (11)
2001 Lazio 7 (0)
2001–2007 Real Sociedad 163 (51)
2007–2009 Olympiacos 41 (21)
Total 482 (190)
International career
1994–2004 Serbia and Montenegro[a] 59 (10)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Darko Kovačević (Serbian Cyrillic: Дарко Ковачевић; born 18 November 1973) is a Serbian former professional footballer who played as a forward.

Kovačević began his career in his native country with Proleter Zrenjanin and subsequently played for Red Star Belgrade, with whom he won a Yugoslav League title and two Yugoslav Cups. His prolific performances earned him a move to Premier League side Sheffield Wednesday, although his time in England was less successful. He is mainly known for his spells at Real Sociedad where his offensive partnership with Nihat Kahveci was one of the best in Spain. Kovačević also had positive spells with Italian club Juventus and Greek side Olympiacos.

Internationally, Kovačević represented Yugoslavia at the 1998 FIFA World Cup and at the UEFA Euro 2000.[2][3]

Club career

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Proleter and Red Star Belgrade

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Beginning his career with his hometown club FK Radnički Kovin, he was soon spotted by Zrenjanin-based top league club FK Proleter Zrenjanin. Spending two seasons with the club, Kovačević managed over a goal every other game, was signed by Serbian giants Red Star Belgrade. Kovačević won a Yugoslav League title and two Yugoslav Cups, earning a call-up to the Yugoslavia national team.

Sheffield Wednesday

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Kovačević was then signed by Premier League club Sheffield Wednesday in December 1995 valued at £2.5m in a joint £4.5m transfer also involving Dejan Stefanovic. Darko's notable goals for The Owls were two against Bolton Wanderers at Hillsborough and an important finish versus Liverpool, also at home.

Darko played the remainder of the 1995/96 season but his failure to adapt and settle into the UK way of life prompted a bid of £2.5m from Real Sociedad to be accepted. A % sell-on clause in the transfer agreement ensured Sheffield Wednesday received a further £2.0m (taking the transfer to £4.5m) when Real Sociedad later sold him to Juventus.

Real Sociedad

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Kovačević moved to La Liga side Real Sociedad in 1996. Larger clubs soon came calling, with Italian giants Juventus acquiring the big Serbian in the summer of 1999 for 33 billion lire (£12 million).[4][5]

Juventus and Lazio

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Kovačević with Luciano Moggi upon signing with Juventus in 1999

At Juventus, Kovačević found goals in both the Serie A and competitions such as the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Cup becoming their leading European goal scorer, and the top-scorer of the UEFA Cup during the 1999–2000 season, with 10 goals; despite facing competition from the club's starting attacking partnership of Filippo Inzaghi and Alessandro Del Piero, Kovačević made a total of 44 appearances in all competitions in his first season with the club (27 in Serie A, 3 in the Coppa Italia, and 11 in European competitions), scoring 21 goals in all competitions (eight in Serie A, two in the Coppa Italia, and 11 in European competitions, one of which came in Juventus's victorious UEFA Intertoto Cup campaign, which enabled them to qualify for the UEFA Cup).[2][3][4][5]

The following season, due to the arrival of French striker David Trezeguet, Kovačević found less space in the squad under manager Carlo Ancelotti, making 27 appearances in all competitions (20 of which came in Serie A), mostly from the bench, and scoring only six goals (five in Serie A).[3] The Juventus management felt Kovačević was underachieving and soon both parties were looking for a move out of Italy, with clubs such as Rangers willing to offer £12m for his transfer.[6] In 2001 Kovačević spent a brief time with Lazio (as part-swap deal with Marcelo Salas), making only seven appearances, before moving back to Spain in the middle of the season.[3]

Return to Real Sociedad

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In 2001 Kovačević returned to Real Sociedad, where he spent 6 more seasons at the club, netting 51 goals in his second spell with Sociedad. The 2006–07 season would be Kovačević's last season with the Spanish side, ending in the club's relegation. Alongside Jesús María Satrústegui, Kovačević is Real Sociedad's all-time top goalscorer in European club competitions, with 10 goals.[7]

Kovačević scored 107 goals in his stages with Real Sociedad in 9 seasons, with a total average of between 11 and 12 goals per season. They are only surpassed by Jesús María Satrústegui and López Ufarte in the txuri-urdin team. He is until today, the most efficient foreigner that Real Sociedad has had in all its years of existence.[8]

Olympiacos

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In 2007 Kovačević signed with Greek champions Olympiacos. In early 2009, he was diagnosed with a blocked artery; he successfully underwent heart surgery to improve the flow of blood to his heart.[9] His doctors advised to retire from football, and Kovačević officially retired in May 2009, playing a final friendly match for Olympiakos to celebrate the winning of the Greek domestic double.[10] With Olympiacos, Kovačević won two Greek SuperLeague titles, two Greek Cups and a Greek Super Cup.[2][3]

International career

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On the national level, Kovačević made his debut for Serbia and Montenegro in a December 1994 friendly match away against Argentina, coming on as a 74th-minute substitute for Predrag Mijatović, and earned a total of 59 caps, scoring 10 goals.[11] He would go on to compete in both UEFA Euro 2000 and the 1998 FIFA World Cup.[12] His final international was a March 2004 friendly against Norway.[13]

Style of play

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A quick and powerful striker, with good movement, technique, and an eye for goal, Kovačević's key attributes were his strength and aerial ability.[2][3]

After retirement

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After his retirement Kovačević stated that he may take another role for his former team Olympiacos. Kovačević and family subsequently returned to Spain. However, Kovačević returned to Greece as he loved the country and worked for several months as a columnist. In June 2010 the new president of Olympiacos, Evangelos Marinakis, hired Kovačević as a chief scout for the club; he eventually become the sports director for the club.[14] He remained in that position until 2018. He is the current sports director of the Serbian Football Association.[15]

Personal life

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Kovačević has three children, Mia, Darko (Jr.) and Stella.[16]

Career statistics

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Club

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Appearances and goals by club, season and competition[17]
Club Season League Cup Continental Other Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Proleter Zrenjanin First League of FR Yugoslavia 1992–93 32 6 — — 32 6
1993–94 31 19 — — 31 19
Total 63 25 — — 63 25
Red Star Belgrade First League of FR Yugoslavia 1994–95 31 24 — — 31 24
1995–96 16 13 2 0 — 18 13
Total 47 37 2 0 — 49 37
Sheffield Wednesday Premier League 1995–96 16 4 1 0 0 0 — 17 4
Real Sociedad La Liga 1996–97 35 8 1 1 — — 36 9
1997–98 33 17 4 3 — — 37 20
1998–99 30 16 1 0 6 8 — 37 24
Total 98 41 6 4 6 8 — 110 53
Juventus Serie A 1999–2000 26 6 4 3 14 11 — 44 20
2000–01 21 5 2 0 4 1 — 27 6
Total 47 11 6 3 18 12 — 71 26
Lazio Serie A 2001–02 7 0 1 0 3 0 — 11 0
Real Sociedad La Liga 2001–02 19 8 0 0 — — 19 8
2002–03 36 20 1 0 — — 37 20
2003–04 36 8 0 0 7 2 — 43 10
2004–05 30 8 2 1 — — 32 9
2005–06 9 4 0 0 — — 9 4
2006–07 33 3 1 0 — — 34 3
Total 163 51 4 1 7 2 — 174 54
Olympiacos Supeleague Greece 2007–08 27 17 4 4 8 3 — 39 24
2008–09 14 4 1 1 6 2 — 21 7
Total 41 21 5 5 14 5 — 60 31
Career total 482 190 23 13 50 27 — 555 230

International

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  • Includes caps for FR Yugoslavia (1994–2002) and Serbia and Montenegro (2003–2004)
Appearances and goals by national team and year
National team Year Apps Goals
FR Yugoslavia 1994 1 0
1995 6 3
1996 4 0
1997 4 0
1998 11 1
1999 6 1
2000 8 1
2001 4 0
2002 7 3
Serbia and Montenegro
2003 7 1
2004 1 0
Total 59 10
Scores and results list FR Yugoslavia/Serbia and Montenegro's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Kovačević goal.[18]
List of international goals scored by Darko Kovačević
No. Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1 4 February 1995 Hong Kong Stadium, So Kon Po, Hong Kong  South Korea 1–0 1–0 1995 Lunar New Year Cup
2 8 April 1995 Estadio Tecnológico, Monterrey, Mexico  Mexico 1–0 4–1 Friendly
3 2–0
4 29 May 1998 Red Star Stadium, Belgrade, FR Yugoslavia  Nigeria 3–0 3–0
5 8 June 1999 Toumba Stadium, Thessaloniki, Greece  Malta 3–1 4–1 UEFA Euro 2000 qualifying
6 25 May 2000 Workers' Stadium, Beijing, China  China 2–0 2–0 Friendly
7 19 May 2002 Central Dynamo Stadium, Moscow, Russia  Russia 1–1 1–1 2002 LG Cup
8 21 August 2002 Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina  Bosnia and Herzegovina 2–0 2–0 Friendly
9 16 October 2002 Red Star Stadium, Belgrade, FR Yugoslavia  Finland 1–0 2–0 UEFA Euro 2004 qualifying
10 27 March 2003 Mladost Stadium, Kruševac, Serbia and Montenegro  Bulgaria 1–1 1–2 Friendly

Honours

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Red Star Belgrade[2][19]

Juventus

Olympiakos[1][2]

Individual

Notes

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  1. ^
    Known as FR Yugoslavia until 4 February 2003.

References

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  1. ^ a b "D. Kovačević". Soccerway. Retrieved 19 December 2015.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h "Happy Birthday to you!". FIFA.com. 16 November 2014. Archived from the original on 22 December 2015. Retrieved 19 December 2015.
  3. ^ a b c d e f Stefano Bedeschi (18 November 2016). "Gli eroi in bianconero: Darko KOVAČEVIĆ" (in Italian). Tutto Juve. Retrieved 11 July 2017.
  4. ^ a b "Da Baggio a Zidane, passando per Del Piero e Inzaghi: i top acquisti della Juve negli anni 90" (in Italian). www.juvenews.eu. 11 July 2017. Archived from the original on 14 July 2017. Retrieved 11 July 2017.
  5. ^ a b "Darko Kovacevic". ESPN FC. 13 July 2000. Retrieved 11 July 2017.
  6. ^ Philip, Calum (5 August 2000). "Rangers set to renew pursuit of Kovacevic". The Independent. London. Retrieved 1 May 2010.
  7. ^ "Real Sociedad de Fútbol". UEFA. Retrieved 11 July 2017.
  8. ^ "Kovacevic goal contributions at the Anoeta Stadium". Real Sociedad.Eus. 3 November 2019. Retrieved 22 November 2022.
  9. ^ Kovacevic Hospitalized for Artery Problem[dead link] SI.com, 13 January 2009
  10. ^ Crvena Zveda Zveda With Darko Kovacevic Archived 22 February 2009 at the Wayback Machine Mirosport.net, 17 January 2009
  11. ^ Alpuin, Luis Fernando Passo; Mamrud, Roberto; Miladinovich, Misha (20 February 2009). "Serbia (Serbia (and Montenegro)) – Record International Players". Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation. Retrieved 12 March 2009.
  12. ^ "Kovačević Darko". reprezentacija.rs (in Serbian). Retrieved 3 October 2017.
  13. ^ "Darko Kovačević, international football player". EU-football.info. Retrieved 12 October 2024.
  14. ^ "Π.Α.Ε. Ολυμπιακός - Ανακοίνωση". www.olympiacos.org. 16 May 2013.
  15. ^ "Фудбалски савез Србије".
  16. ^ "Kovacevic, un Vieri serbo per la Juve Moggi deciso: "La campagna acquisti è conclusa, ora aspetto di incontrare Del Piero per la firma"". Il Tirreno (in Italian). 17 June 1999. Retrieved 24 January 2020.[permanent dead link]
  17. ^ Darko Kovačević at WorldFootball.net
  18. ^ "Darko Kovacevic - International Appearances". RSSSF. Retrieved 10 August 2018.
  19. ^ "Darko Kovacevic". Eurosport. Retrieved 19 December 2015.
  20. ^ Roberto Mamrud; Jarek Owsianski; Davide Rota (11 June 2015). "Fairs/UEFA Cup Topscorers". RSSSF. Retrieved 19 December 2015.
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