Nejc Pečnik
 Pečnik with Slovenia in 2009 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Nejc Pečnik[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 3 January 1986 | ||
| Place of birth | Dravograd, Yugoslavia | ||
| Height | 1.89 m (6 ft 2 in) | ||
| Playing position | Midfielder | ||
| Club information | |||
Current team | JEF United Chiba | ||
| Number | 11 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| –2002 | Dravograd | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 2002–2009 | Celje | 119 | (21) |
| 2008–2009 | → Sparta Prague (loan) | 4 | (0) |
| 2009–2012 | Nacional | 37 | (2) |
| 2011 | → Krylia Sovetov (loan) | 21 | (1) |
| 2012–2013 | Sheffield Wednesday | 10 | (0) |
| 2013–2014 | Red Star Belgrade | 44 | (9) |
| 2015– | JEF United Chiba | 10 | (5) |
| National team‡ | |||
| 2005–2008 | Slovenia U21 | 3 | (0) |
| 2009– | Slovenia | 27 | (4) |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 7 December 2014. † Appearances (Goals). | |||
Nejc Pečnik (born 3 January 1986 in Dravograd) is a Slovenian professional footballer, who plays as an attacking midfielder for JEF United Chiba.
He represented Slovenia at the 2010 FIFA World Cup. He was directly responsible in Slovenia's successful qualification to the 2010 World Cup, as he was the scorer of a crucial goal against Russia in the 2010 World Cup qualification Playoffs.
Pečnik's older brother, Andrej, is also a professional footballer.
Club career
Celje
Born in Dravograd, Slovenia, Socialist Republic of Yugoslavia, Pečnik started his career at hometown club NK Dravograd. After showing promise in its youth teams he was signed by NK Celje, making his first division debut on 24 April 2004 against FC Ljubljana.[2]
The following year Pečnik played in only seven league matches, adding a few Cup appearances including the final against FC Koper.[3] In the 2005–06 season he managed to gain a regular place in the first team, eventually establishing himself as a key offensive player.
In 2007–08, Pečnik was Celje's top scorer with 14 league goals.[4] After five seasons he was loaned out in June 2008 to Sparta Prague,[5] but appeared rarely with the Czech first division outfit during his six-month stay, spending most of his time with the reserve squad.[6]
Nacional
After a further 15 league games with Celje, Pečnik signed with C.D. Nacional of Portugal.[7][8] On 16 July 2012, after three seasons of irregular playing time, also being loaned to Russian club FC Krylia Sovetov Samara for five months,[9] he signed a two-year deal with Sheffield Wednesday in the Football League Championship.[10]
Sheffield Wednesday
In his official debut with the Owls, on 12 August 2012, Pečnik missed a penalty and was booked before half-time, as his team trailed at Oldham Athletic 0–2. He played the full 90 minutes in an eventual 4–2 win for the season's Football League Cup.[11]
Pečnik was released by Wednesday at the end of his only campaign.
Red Star Belgrade
Pečnik agreed to a two-year contract with Red Star Belgrade from Serbia, on 1 July 2013.[12] He scored his first goal for Red Star against ÍBV in the second qualifying round of the 2013-14 UEFA Europa League.
International career
Pečnik made his debut for the Slovenian national team on 1 April 2009, in a 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifier against Northern Ireland.[13]
He scored his first goal for Slovenia on 10 October 2009, in the same competition, a 2–0 win Slovakia. On 14 November, he scored a decisive goal in the play-offs' first leg, as the national side lost 1–2 with Russia at the Luzhniki Stadium,[14] only to win 1–0 in the second leg, taking the tie on the away goals rule and qualifying for a World Cup for the second time in the nation's history; in the final stages, he appeared twice as a late substitute, having to be however stretchered off in the match against United States.[15]
Career statistics
Club
- As of 9 November 2009
| Club performance | League | Cup | Continental | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Club | League | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals |
| 2003–04 | Celje | Slovenian League | 2 | 0 | ? | ? | ? | ? | 2 | 0 |
| 2004–05 | 7 | 0 | ? | ? | ? | ? | 7 | 0 | ||
| 2005–06 | 29 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 35 | 1 | ||
| 2006–07 | 31 | 2 | 4 | 3 | – | 35 | 5 | |||
| 2007–08 | 35 | 14 | 2 | 0 | – | 37 | 14 | |||
| 2008–09 | Sparta Prague | Czech League | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 0 |
| 2008–09 | Sparta B | Second Division | 9 | 2 | – | – | 9 | 2 | ||
| 2008–09 | Celje | Slovenian League | 15 | 3 | 0 | 0 | – | 15 | 3 | |
| 2009–10 | Nacional | Portuguese League | 8 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 13 | 2 |
| Total | Celje | 119 | 20 | 10 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 131 | 23 | |
| Total | Sparta Prague | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 0 | |
| Total | Sparta B | 9 | 2 | – | – | 9 | 2 | |||
| Career total | 132 | 22 | 10 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 146 | 25 | ||
International goals
- Scores and results list Slovenia's goal tally first.
| # | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 10 October 2009 | Tehelné pole, Bratislava, Slovakia |  Slovakia | 2–0 | 2–0 | 2010 World Cup qualification |
| 2 | 14 November 2009 | Luzhniki Stadium, Moscow, Russia |  Russia | 1–2 | 1–2 | 2010 World Cup qualification – Playoffs |
| 3 | 14 November 2012 | Philip II Arena, Skopje, Macedonia |  Macedonia | 1–2 | 2–3 | Friendly |
| 4 | 14 November 2012 | Philip II Arena, Skopje, Macedonia | Macedonia | 2–3 | 2–3 | Friendly |
Honours
- Celje
- Slovenian Cup: 2004–05
- Red Star
- Serbian SuperLiga (1): 2013–14
See also
References
- ↑ "FIFA World Cup South Africa 2010: List of Players" (PDF). FIFA. 4 June 2010. p. 27. Retrieved 16 April 2014.
- ↑ "Zapisnik 26. kroga" (in Slovenian). PrvaLiga. 24 April 2004. Retrieved 8 October 2009.
- ↑ "Publikum dočakal prvo lovoriko" (in Slovenian). RTV Slovenia. 17 May 2005. Retrieved 8 October 2009.
- ↑ "Statistika sezone 2007/08 (Season statistics 2007/08)" (in Slovenian). PrvaLiga. May 2008. Retrieved 8 October 2009.
- ↑ "Nogometaš Nejc Pečnik se iz Celja seli v praško Sparto" (in Slovenian). Dnevnik. 27 June 2008. Retrieved 8 October 2009.
- ↑ "Nejc Pečnik" (in Czech). iDNES. Retrieved 3 December 2008.
- ↑ "Pečnik nasledil Cristiana Ronalda" (in Slovenian). NK Celje. 31 May 2009. Retrieved 15 July 2009.
- ↑ "Seduzido pela hipótese de jogar na Liga Europa" [Seduced with the chance of playing in Europa League] (in Portuguese). Diário de Notícias. 1 July 2009. Retrieved 15 July 2009.
- ↑ "Pecnik rescindiu" [Pecnik has rescinded] (in Portuguese). Record. 11 May 2012. Retrieved 23 July 2012.
- ↑ "Sheffield Wednesday sign Slovenian Nejc Pecnik". BBC Sport. 16 July 2012. Retrieved 23 July 2012.
- ↑ "Oldham 2 – Sheff Wed 4". BBC Sport. 12 August 2012. Retrieved 17 August 2012.
- ↑ FK Crvena Zvezda: Печник у Звезди наредне две године; Red Star's official website, 1 July 2013 (Serbian)
- ↑ "Severni Irci spodrezali slovenska krila" (in Slovenian). RTV Slovenia. 1 April 2009. Retrieved 8 October 2009.
- ↑ "World Cup play-offs round-up". BBC Sport. 15 November 2009. Retrieved 7 June 2010.
- ↑ "World Cup 2010: Slovenian Nejc Pecnik breaks ankle". BBC Sport. 19 June 2010. Retrieved 23 July 2012.
External links
 |
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Nejc Pečnik. |
- PrvaLiga player profile (Slovene)
- Stats and profile at Zerozero
- Nejc Pečnik profile at ForaDeJogo
- National team data (Slovene)
- Nejc Pečnik at National-Football-Teams.com
- Nejc Pečnik – FIFA competition record
- Nejc Pečnik career statistics at Soccerbase
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