Mario Cvitanović

Mario Cvitanović
Personal information
Date of birth (1975-05-06) 6 May 1975 (age 49)
Place of birth Zagreb, SR Croatia, Yugoslavia
Height 1.82 m (6 ft 0 in)
Position(s) Defender
Youth career
Radnik Velika Gorica
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1995–2000 Dinamo Zagreb 91 (3)
2000–2001 Hellas Verona 16 (0)
2001–2002 Venezia 7 (0)
2002–2003 Genoa 33 (0)
2003–2004 Napoli 9 (0)
2004–2006 Germinal Beerschot 46 (2)
2006–2007 Dinamo Zagreb 17 (2)
2007–2009 Energie Cottbus 71 (0)
Total 290 (7)
International career
1998–1999 Croatia B 2 (0)
1998–2001 Croatia 9 (0)
Managerial career
2015–2017 Dinamo Zagreb II
2017–2018 Dinamo Zagreb
2019 Al-Wehda
2022–2023 Šibenik
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Mario Cvitanović (pronounced [tsʋitǎːnoʋitɕ, - tsʋǐta-]; born 6 May 1975) is a Croatian professional football manager and former player who played as a defender. He was most recently the manager of Croatian Football League club HNK Šibenik.

Playing career

Club

In 1995, Cvitanović started his career in the Croatian capital, where he won five consecutive national championships with Dinamo Zagreb (formerly Croatia Zagreb).[1] He then spent four seasons in the Italian league, playing for Hellas Verona, Venezia, Genoa and Napoli before moving to Belgian side Germinal Beerschot. Following two seasons in the Belgian league, Cvitanović re-joined Dinamo for their 2006–07 Champions League campaign,[2] before leaving after their early exit on a free transfer to German side Energie Cottbus.[3] Cvitanović played three seasons with Cottbus until being released in 2009.[4]

International

He made his debut for Croatia in an October 1998 European Championship qualification match away against Malta, coming on as a 88th-minute substitute for Robert Jarni, and earned a total of 9 caps, scoring no goals. His final international was a March 2001 World Cup qualification match against Latvia.[5]

Coaching career

Dinamo Zagreb (2015–2018)

From 2015 to 2017, after succeeding Ivaylo Petev as a manager, he trained Dinamo Zagreb II, second team of Dinamo Zagreb, in the Croatian Second Football League.[6] On 13 July 2017 he signed one-year contract as a head coach of Dinamo Zagreb, the first team. On 21 September 2017, Cvitanović was severely beaten by two masked assailants in front of his apartment in Zagreb, Croatia,[7][8] while on 10 March 2018 he finished his contract with Dinamo Zagreb following two successive defeats from fierce rivals HNK Rijeka and feeder-club NK Lokomotiva, both of which were by a score of 4–1.[9]

Al-Wehda (2019)

On 2 July 2019, he was appointed the new manager of the Pro League club Al-Wehda.[10][11]

In September 2022, Cvitanović was appointed manager of Šibenik, replacing Damir Čanadi,[12] but only to be replaced by the same Damir Čanadi on 31 January 2023.[13]

Honours

Club

Beerschot A.C.

References

  1. ^ "Croatia – Championship Winning Squads". Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation. Retrieved 10 March 2018.
  2. ^ "Things you need to know about Croatia Zagreb". Square Football. 9 August 2006. Retrieved 10 March 2018.
  3. ^ "Cottbus swoop for Croat". Football.co.uk. 18 January 2007. Archived from the original on 30 September 2007. Retrieved 5 April 2008 – via archive.is.
  4. ^ "Cottbus-Duo freigestellt" (in German). DFL. 30 June 2009. Retrieved 10 March 2018.
  5. ^ "Player Database". EU-football. Retrieved 4 July 2022.
  6. ^ Miroslav Herceg (13 July 2017). "Mario Cvitanović privremeno preuzima momčad Dinama" [Mario Cvitanovic temporarily takes over the team at Dinamo]. Retrieved 10 March 2018.
  7. ^ "Masked assailants attack Dinamo Zagreb coach". 21 September 2017. Retrieved 10 March 2018.
  8. ^ Tomo Ničota (21 September 2017). "TKO NAPADA HRVATSKE TRENERE?! MARIO CVITANOVIĆ NAŽALOST NIJE PRVI NITI JEDINI Na isti je način napadnut i Luka Bonačić, napadači nikad nisu pronađeni!" (in Croatian). Retrieved 10 March 2018.
  9. ^ Marko Pavić (10 March 2018). "Mario Cvitanović podnio ostavku nakon sramotnog poraza od Lokomotive!" [Mario Cvitanović resigned after a shameful defeat by Lokomotive!]. Večernji list (in Croatian). Retrieved 10 March 2018.
  10. ^ "Mario Cvitanović novi trener Al-Wehde". hns-cff.hr (in Croatian). 2 July 2019. Retrieved 19 July 2019.
  11. ^ "Mario Cvitanović novi trener saudijskog prvoligaša iz Meke". sport.hrt.hr (in Croatian). 5 July 2019. Retrieved 19 July 2019.
  12. ^ Službeno: Mario Cvitanović novi je trener Šibenika (FOTO) - Germanijak (in Croatian)
  13. ^ Mario Cvitanović više nije trener Šibenika, poznat njegov nasljednik - Novo (in Croatian)
  14. ^ "28 MEI 2005: MET DEN BEERSCHOT NAAR DEN HEIZEL". beerschot.be. Retrieved 22 December 2021.


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