Antonio Vojak
 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Anton Vojak | ||
| Date of birth | 19 November 1904 | ||
| Place of birth | Pula, Austria-Hungary | ||
| Date of death | 1977 | ||
| Playing position | Striker | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 1924-1925 | Lazio | 10 | (7) |
| 1925-1929 | Juventus | 102 | (46) |
| 1929-1935 | Napoli | 190 | (102) |
| 1935-1936 | Genoa | 17 | (4) |
| 1936-1937 | Lucchese-Libertas | 1 | (0) |
| National team | |||
| 1932 | Italy | 1 | (0) |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. † Appearances (Goals). | |||
Anton "Tonči" Vojak (19 November 1904, Pula – 1977), commonly known as Antonio Vojak, was a famous Croatian[1] naturalized Italian football player whose career was played out during the 1920s and 1930s.
Vojak is considered one of the greatest players in the whole history of Napoli. He is also considered the first true idol at the club S.S.C. Napoli.[2]
He is most noted for his time with Juventus and Napoli, the latter of which he holds the all-time club record for goals scored in the Italian Serie A.[3]
His younger brother Oliviero Vojak played professionally as well, for Juventus and Napoli. To distinguish them, Anton was known as Vojak I and Oliviero as Vojak II.
Biography
Antonio Vojak was born Anton Vojak[4][5] in Pula, Croatia, at that time Austria-Hungary, into a family of Croatian ethnicity.[6][7]
Vojak's football career started with Lazio during the 1924–25 season, his stay there was very short; playing only 10 games but scoring 7 goals. This caught the attention of Juventus, who signed up Vojak within that year.
During his three year stay with Turin giants, Vojak was part of a squad which won the Italian Football Championship amassing 46 goals in 102 games, as well as 2 European Cup appearances in 1929 against Slavia Prague.[8]
He moved on next to Napoli where he became an early legend at the club, playing in a squad that featured Attila Sallustro. He stayed with the club until 1935, scoring over 100 goals for them. Vojak also appeared for the Italian national football team once in 1932 where he played midfield. Due to fascist anti-slav laws, he was forced to use the name Vogliani.
After leaving Napoli, Vojak played only two more seasons; first with Genoa and then with Lucchese-Libertas in 1936-37 where he played only 1 game. He died in 1977.
Honours
Italian Football Championship
- 1925-26 (with Juventus)
References
- ↑ "Hrvat Vojak za Napoli zabijao više od Maradone" [The Croatian Vojak has scored more than Maradona with Napoli]. www.24sata.hr (in Croatian) (24sata).
- ↑ "The most prolific striker in the history of Napoli: Antonio Vojak, the one who played with the beret". www.amonapoli.it (in Italian) (www.amonapoli.it).
- ↑ "Napoli Player Statistics". ClubAngloNapulitano. Retrieved August 2007.
- ↑ "From Cherì to Matador, the nicest names in Napoli's history". www.napoli.com (in Italian) (napoli Sport).
- ↑ "Famous Istrians". xoomer.virgilio.it (in Italian) (La Voce del Popolo).
- ↑ "Hrvat Vojak za Napoli zabijao više od Maradone" [The Croatian Vojak has scored more than Maradona with Napoli]. www.24sata.hr (in Croatian) (24sata).
- ↑ "Antonio Vojak Značenje" [Antonio Vojak's Meaning]. www.znacenje.info (in Croatian) (Znacenje.info)).
- ↑ Forza-Juventus.com
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