Adem Ljajic
Encyclopedia
Adem Ljajić is a Serbia
n footballer who plays as an attacking or right-sided midfielder for Serie A
club Fiorentina
. He was set to join England's Manchester United
from Partizan
in January 2010, but they withdrew their option to sign him in December 2009. Instead, he joined Fiorentina for a reported fee of around €8 million in January 2010.
, Serbia
, then SFR Yugoslavia
, Ljajić joined Partizan
as a 14-year-old in 2005, signing from a Serbian lower tier club Jošanica
. He made an appearance for Partizan in the first leg of the second qualifying round of the 2008–09 UEFA Champions League on 29 July 2008, entering the match as a second-half substitute. He made a second substitute appearance in the second leg and another substitute appearance in the second leg of the third qualifying round. He scored his first competitive goal for Partizan on 23 November 2008 in a league match against OFK Beograd
.
had given Ljajić a trial, although no information was given about the length of the trial initially. The following day, Partizan general secretary Darko Grubor confirmed that "It is not true that Ljajić went to England without permission. We have been in contact with Manchester United for some time now and Ljajić was with the international team in Britain, participating in the UEFA European Under-19 Championship qualifying round, at this moment so it was handy for him to go on trial now."
On 2 January 2009, Manchester United announced the signings of both Ljajić and his Partizan team-mate, Zoran Tošić
. Tošić would join the club immediately, while Ljajić would remain at Partizan for the remainder of 2009, joining United in January 2010. Despite being unable to officially join the club until January 2010, Ljajić made regular trips to Manchester throughout 2009 to train with the United first team, and so that the club's coaches could monitor his progress. However, despite the agreement the two clubs had in place, United decided not to take up their option to sign Ljajić due to issues surrounding the club's application for a work permit for Ljajić. Following the collapse of the transfer, Partizan manager Goran Stevanović
claimed that the situation had put Ljajić into "psychological shock", but that the player was "handling the situation well". Partizan's Director of Football Ivan Tomić
stated "I think that they will regret this decision in future."
announced the signing of Ljajić. After passing a medical, Ljajić signed a five-year contract, with Partizan receiving a reported fee of €8 million for the player. Ljajić made his debut in Fiorentina's 2–2 draw away to Cagliari
on 31 January 2010, coming on as an 82nd-minute substitute for Manuel Pasqual
. However, his first half-season at the club under head coach Cesare Prandelli
was spent settling into the new surroundings.
Summer 2010 arrival of compatriot Siniša Mihajlović
in the head coaching spot saw increased first team opportunites for Ljajić. He scored his first Viola goal from the penalty spot
against Lazio
on 18 September 2010, which Fiorentina lost 1–2.
squad in a European Championship qualification
match against Hungary U21
on 7 September 2008. On 26 October 2010, it was announced by Serbia coach Vladimir Petrović that Ljajić would receive his first senior call-up against Bulgaria
in a friendly match on 17 November 2010.
Ljajić had been already part of the Serbian Under-17 and Under-19
teams since 2007.
Serbia
Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...
n footballer who plays as an attacking or right-sided midfielder for Serie A
Serie A
Serie A , now called Serie A TIM due to sponsorship by Telecom Italia, is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of the Italian football league system and has been operating for over eighty years since 1929. It had been organized by Lega Calcio until 2010, but a new...
club Fiorentina
ACF Fiorentina
ACF Fiorentina, commonly referred to as simply Fiorentina, is a professional Italian football club from Florence, Tuscany. Founded by a merger in 1926, Fiorentina have played at the top level of Italian football for the majority of their existence; only four clubs have played in more Serie A...
. He was set to join England's Manchester United
Manchester United F.C.
Manchester United Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, that plays in the Premier League. Founded as Newton Heath LYR Football Club in 1878, the club changed its name to Manchester United in 1902 and moved to Old Trafford in 1910.The 1958...
from Partizan
FK Partizan
Fudbalski klub Partizan is a professional football club based in Belgrade, Serbia. In its long history, FK Partizan won as many as 37 trophies. The club is the holder of 23 national championships, 12 national cups and 1 national supercup, and has also won the Mitropa Cup in 1978...
in January 2010, but they withdrew their option to sign him in December 2009. Instead, he joined Fiorentina for a reported fee of around €8 million in January 2010.
Partizan
Born in Novi PazarNovi Pazar
Novi Pazar is a city and municipality located in southwest Serbia, in the Raška District. According to the official census in 2011, number of inhabitants of municipality is 92,776, while the city itself has a population of 60,638...
, Serbia
Serbia
Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...
, then SFR Yugoslavia
Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia
The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia was the Yugoslav state that existed from the abolition of the Yugoslav monarchy until it was dissolved in 1992 amid the Yugoslav Wars. It was a socialist state and a federation made up of six socialist republics: Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia,...
, Ljajić joined Partizan
FK Partizan
Fudbalski klub Partizan is a professional football club based in Belgrade, Serbia. In its long history, FK Partizan won as many as 37 trophies. The club is the holder of 23 national championships, 12 national cups and 1 national supercup, and has also won the Mitropa Cup in 1978...
as a 14-year-old in 2005, signing from a Serbian lower tier club Jošanica
FK Jošanica
FK Jošanica is a football club based in the city of Novi Pazar, the largest city in the Raška region of Serbia. The team currently plays in the Morava Zone League, which is the fourth Levels on pyramid in the Serbian football league system...
. He made an appearance for Partizan in the first leg of the second qualifying round of the 2008–09 UEFA Champions League on 29 July 2008, entering the match as a second-half substitute. He made a second substitute appearance in the second leg and another substitute appearance in the second leg of the third qualifying round. He scored his first competitive goal for Partizan on 23 November 2008 in a league match against OFK Beograd
OFK Beograd
Omladinski fudbalski klub Beograd, commonly referred to as OFK Beograd , is a football club from Belgrade, Serbia, more precisely from the Karaburma urban neighborhood. It currently is the oldest team playing in the Serbian SuperLiga. The name means "Youth Football Club Belgrade" in Serbian...
.
Proposed move to Manchester United
In October 2008, Manchester UnitedManchester United F.C.
Manchester United Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, that plays in the Premier League. Founded as Newton Heath LYR Football Club in 1878, the club changed its name to Manchester United in 1902 and moved to Old Trafford in 1910.The 1958...
had given Ljajić a trial, although no information was given about the length of the trial initially. The following day, Partizan general secretary Darko Grubor confirmed that "It is not true that Ljajić went to England without permission. We have been in contact with Manchester United for some time now and Ljajić was with the international team in Britain, participating in the UEFA European Under-19 Championship qualifying round, at this moment so it was handy for him to go on trial now."
On 2 January 2009, Manchester United announced the signings of both Ljajić and his Partizan team-mate, Zoran Tošić
Zoran Tošic
Zoran Tošić is a Serbian footballer who plays as a left winger for CSKA Moscow. Born in Zrenjanin, Tošić began his career with his local side Proleter Zrenjanin. He then joined Budućnost Banatski Dvor, who then merged with Proleter to form Banat Zrenjanin...
. Tošić would join the club immediately, while Ljajić would remain at Partizan for the remainder of 2009, joining United in January 2010. Despite being unable to officially join the club until January 2010, Ljajić made regular trips to Manchester throughout 2009 to train with the United first team, and so that the club's coaches could monitor his progress. However, despite the agreement the two clubs had in place, United decided not to take up their option to sign Ljajić due to issues surrounding the club's application for a work permit for Ljajić. Following the collapse of the transfer, Partizan manager Goran Stevanović
Goran Stevanovic
Goran "Plavi" Stevanović is a Serbian football manager and former player. In January 2011, Stevanovic was appointed as the new Ghana coach.-External links:...
claimed that the situation had put Ljajić into "psychological shock", but that the player was "handling the situation well". Partizan's Director of Football Ivan Tomić
Ivan Tomic
Ivan Tomić is a former Serbian footballer.-Club career:He grew up with one of the teams of his city, FK Partizan....
stated "I think that they will regret this decision in future."
Fiorentina
On 13 January 2010, Italian club FiorentinaACF Fiorentina
ACF Fiorentina, commonly referred to as simply Fiorentina, is a professional Italian football club from Florence, Tuscany. Founded by a merger in 1926, Fiorentina have played at the top level of Italian football for the majority of their existence; only four clubs have played in more Serie A...
announced the signing of Ljajić. After passing a medical, Ljajić signed a five-year contract, with Partizan receiving a reported fee of €8 million for the player. Ljajić made his debut in Fiorentina's 2–2 draw away to Cagliari
Cagliari Calcio
Cagliari Calcio is an Italian football club based in Cagliari, Sardinia. The club was formed in 1920 and currently plays in Italian Serie A, having spent a large part of recent years mainly in Serie A and Serie B....
on 31 January 2010, coming on as an 82nd-minute substitute for Manuel Pasqual
Manuel Pasqual
Manuel Pasqual is a footballer for ACF Fiorentina of Serie A and the Italy national football team. He is a left-back, who is well known for assisting his teammates from his accurate crosses...
. However, his first half-season at the club under head coach Cesare Prandelli
Cesare Prandelli
Cesare Claudio Prandelli is an Italian football coach and former player. He is currently the manager of the Italy national football team.-Playing career:...
was spent settling into the new surroundings.
Summer 2010 arrival of compatriot Siniša Mihajlović
Siniša Mihajlovic
Siniša Mihajlović is a Serbian football manager and former player. He was in charge of Serie A club Fiorentina since June 2010 to November 2011....
in the head coaching spot saw increased first team opportunites for Ljajić. He scored his first Viola goal from the penalty spot
Penalty kick
A penalty kick is a type of direct free kick in association football, taken from twelve yards out from goal and with only the goalkeeper of the defending team between the penalty taker and the goal.Penalty kicks are performed during normal play...
against Lazio
S.S. Lazio
Società Sportiva Lazio, commonly referred to as Lazio, is a professional Italian football club based in Rome. The team, founded in 1900, play in the Serie A and have spent most of their history in the top tier of Italian football...
on 18 September 2010, which Fiorentina lost 1–2.
International career
Ljajić made his international debut for the Serbia U21Serbia national under-21 football team
The Serbia national under-21 football team is the national under-21 football team of Serbia and is controlled by the Football Association of Serbia....
squad in a European Championship qualification
2009 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship qualification
The 2009 UEFA European Under-21 Championship started on 31 May 2007 with a qualifying competition and finishes on 15 October 2008, before the final tournament on 15–23 June 2009....
match against Hungary U21
Hungary national under-21 football team
The Hungary national under-21 football team is the national under-21 football team for Hungary and is controlled by the Hungarian Football Federation.Following the realignment of UEFA's youth competitions in 1976, the Hungarian Under-21 team was formed...
on 7 September 2008. On 26 October 2010, it was announced by Serbia coach Vladimir Petrović that Ljajić would receive his first senior call-up against Bulgaria
Bulgaria national football team
The FIFA Bulgaria national football team is an association football team fielded by the Bulgarian Football Union, a member association of UEFA. The team's home ground is Vasil Levski in Sofia and Luboslav Penev is in charge manager after replacement of Lothar Matthäus...
in a friendly match on 17 November 2010.
Ljajić had been already part of the Serbian Under-17 and Under-19
Serbia national under-19 football team
The Serbia national under-19 football team is the national under-19 football team of Serbia and is controlled by the Football Association of Serbia....
teams since 2007.
Career statistics
| Club | Season | League | Cup | Europe | Other | Total | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Partizan FK Partizan Fudbalski klub Partizan is a professional football club based in Belgrade, Serbia. In its long history, FK Partizan won as many as 37 trophies. The club is the holder of 23 national championships, 12 national cups and 1 national supercup, and has also won the Mitropa Cup in 1978... |
2008–09 | 24 | 5 | 5 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 33 | 6 |
| 2009–10 2009–10 Serbian Superliga -League table:-Results:... |
14 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 24 | 6 | |
| Total | 38 | 9 | 7 | 1 | 12 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 57 | 12 | |
| Fiorentina ACF Fiorentina ACF Fiorentina, commonly referred to as simply Fiorentina, is a professional Italian football club from Florence, Tuscany. Founded by a merger in 1926, Fiorentina have played at the top level of Italian football for the majority of their existence; only four clubs have played in more Serie A... |
2009–10 2009–10 Serie A The 2009–10 Serie A was the seventy-eighth season since its establishment. There were three promoted teams from the Serie B, replacing the three teams that were relegated following the 2008–09 season. Nike provided a new match ball - the T90 Ascente - for this season... |
9 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 0 |
| 2010–11 2010–11 Serie A The 2010–11 Serie A was the 79th season since its establishment, the first under a league committee separate from Serie B. It began on 28 August 2010 and ended on 22 May 2011... |
26 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 28 | 3 | |
| 2011–12 2011–12 Serie A The 2011–12 Serie A is the eightieth season since its establishment, and the second under a league committee separate from Serie B. It began on 9 September 2011 and will end on 13 May 2012. The league was originally scheduled to start on 27 August, but this was delayed due to a strike by the players... |
3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | |
| Total | 38 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 43 | 3 | |
| Career total | 76 | 12 | 12 | 1 | 12 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 100 | 15 | |
Club
Partizan- Serbian SuperLigaSerbian SuperligaSerbian SuperLiga is a Serbian professional league for football clubs. At the top of the Serbian football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. It is contested by 16 clubs, operating a system of promotion and relegation with the Serbian First League...
(1): 2008–09 - Serbian CupSerbian CupThe Serbian Cup is the national football cup of Serbia. For sponsorship reasons it is referred to in the media as Lav Cup of Serbia since 2007.The winner of the competition gets a spot in the UEFA Europa League qualifying round.-Sponsorship:...
(1): 2008–09