Aljoša Asanović

Aljoša Asanović
Personal information
Date of birth 14 December 1965 (1965-12-14) (age 46)
Place of birth Split, SFR Yugoslavia
Height 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)
Playing position Midfielder
Youth career
Hajduk Split
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1984–1990 Hajduk Split 173 (46)
1990–1991 Metz 35 (13)
1991–1992 Cannes 28 (7)
1992–1994 Montpellier 43 (10)
1994–1996 Hajduk Split 33 (8)
1995–1996 Valladolid (loan) 8 (1)
1997 Derby County 38 (7)
1997–1998 Napoli 15 (0)
1998–2000 Panathinaikos 44 (9)
2000–2001 Austria Wien 0 (0)
2001 Sydney United 4 (1)
2002 Hajduk Split 1 (0)
Total 422 (102)
National team
1987–1988 Yugoslavia 3 (0)
1990–2000 Croatia 62 (3)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only.
† Appearances (Goals).

Aljoša Asanović (born 14 December 1965 in Split, SR Croatia, SFR Yugoslavia) is a retired Croatian soccer player best known from his performances in the mid-to-late 90's when he played for Derby County and for Croatia during Euro 96 and World Cup 98. He was nicknamed "Vatreni Lakat" (meaning "fiery elbow") for his style of running with elbow pointed out, moving opposing players.

Contents

International career

The talented left-footed midfielder was one of the most important players for the Croatian football team during their golden age from 1994-1998. He was arguably Croatia's most intelligent player in midfield, yet lacked the complete package of skills possessed by his fellow midfielder Robert Prosinečki. In his national team debut on October 17, 1990, in a 2-1 victory against the USA which also was Croatia's first international since the independence from Yugoslavia, Asanović even netted the first goal.

He participated in the Euro 1996 as well as the 1998 FIFA World Cup, where Croatia won the bronze medal. In semi-final of the world cup, Asanović made the assist to Davor Šuker from the centre of the field with a loop pass, for Croatia to take the lead against the host France.

His last international match was a May 28, 2000 friendly against France. In total he was capped 62 times, scoring 4 goals, thus ranking among the top five Croatian national players.[1] Asanović ended his active career in 2002 while with Hajduk Split, the club in which his career had started almost twenty years earlier.

International goals

Goal Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1 17 October 1990 Maksimir, Zagreb  United States
1 – 0
2 – 1
Friendly
2–3 8 June 1997 Olympic, Tokyo  Japan
1 – 3
3 – 4
Friendly
2 – 3

Management career

At the moment he is assistant manager of Croatian national football team, working alongside his former teammates Slaven Bilić, Robert Prosinečki, Nikola Jurčević and Marijan Mrmić. On 29 December 2008 Asanović was linked to the Derby County job after Paul Jewell resigned.

External links