The Prva HNL Player of the Year award (Croatian: Najbolji nogometaš HNL) is an annual association football award given by the Croatian newspaper Slobodna Dalmacija. It is awarded to the best football player who plies his trade in the Prva HNL (or "1. HNL"), Croatian top flight and winners are chosen by the newspaper's sports editors. Winners for the preceding year are usually announced around 1 January and all players who had spent the entire calendar year playing in the league are eligible for the award, regardless of their nationality.[1]
The award was established in 1992. Igor Cvitanović holds the record for most wins with three awards won between 1992 and 1997, followed by Stipe Pletikosa and Niko Kranjčar with two wins each.[1] The current award holder is Sammir of Dinamo Zagreb.[2]
Another similar award is the Yellow Shirt Award which is based on aggregate player ratings in matches throughout the season as judged by the country's only sports daily Sportske novosti.
Contents |
† denotes shared wins
| Year | Player (Wins) | Club(s) |
|---|---|---|
| 1992 † | Slaven Bilić (1) | Hajduk Split |
| 1992 † | Igor Cvitanović (1) | Varteks / HAŠK Građanski |
| 1992 † | Ardian Kozniku (1) | Hajduk Split |
| 1993 | Joško Jeličić (1) | Hajduk Split / Croatia Zagreb |
| 1994 | Mirsad Hibić (1) | Hajduk Split |
| 1995 | Nenad Pralija (1) | Hajduk Split |
| 1996 | Igor Cvitanović (2) | Croatia Zagreb |
| 1997 † | Igor Cvitanović (3) | Croatia Zagreb |
| 1997 † | Goran Jurić (1) | Croatia Zagreb |
| 1998 | Dražen Ladić (1) | Croatia Zagreb |
| 1999 | Tomislav Rukavina (1) | Croatia Zagreb |
| 2000 | Nenad Bjelica (1) | Osijek |
| 2001 | Stipe Pletikosa (1) | Hajduk Split |
| 2002 † | Ivica Olić (1) | NK Zagreb / Dinamo Zagreb |
| 2002 † | Stipe Pletikosa (2) | Hajduk Split |
| 2003 | Niko Kranjčar (1) | Dinamo Zagreb |
| 2004 | Tvrtko Kale (1) | Zadar / Hajduk Split |
| 2005 | Niko Kranjčar (2) | Hajduk Split |
| 2006 | Eduardo (1) | Dinamo Zagreb |
| 2007 | Luka Modrić (1) | Dinamo Zagreb |
| 2008 | Nikola Kalinić (1) | Hajduk Split |
| 2009 | Mario Mandžukić (1) | Dinamo Zagreb |
| 2010 | Sammir (1) | Dinamo Zagreb |
Notes on club name changes:
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