Mirko Grabovac
Encyclopedia
Mirko Grabovac is a Croatian
-born Singaporean
former professional football player and coach. He had changed his nationality to Singaporean
in 2002 in order to play for the Singapore national football team
.
in 1999, 2000, 2001 and 2002 while playing for the Singapore Armed Forces FC
(SAFFC), and again in 2005 playing for Tampines Rovers
. He was named the S.League's Player of the Year in 2000.
With SAFFC, he scored a total of 150 S.League goals in five seasons along with seven goals in Asian competitions.
In 2007, he scored his 240th S.League goals in the RHB
Singapore Cup
semi-final against Bangkok University
to overtake Egmar Goncalves
as the all-time S.League top goalscorer.
A year later, Grabovac was hired by Sengkang Punggol to play as a striker as well as double up as the assistant coach under head coach Saswadimata Dasuki. However, he was unable to pass the mandatory beep test twice, and served as caretaker coach for the Dolphins for a short period, starting with a 1-0 win over Gombak United which was Sengkang's second victory of the season.
Grabovac stepped down two months later as Fandi Ahmad
was put in charge of the squad, and the Croatian decided to leave Singapore on 5 October 2008 to rejoin his family in his native Croatia renouncing his citizenship as well.
Croats
Croats are a South Slavic ethnic group mostly living in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and nearby countries. There are around 4 million Croats living inside Croatia and up to 4.5 million throughout the rest of the world. Responding to political, social and economic pressure, many Croats have...
-born Singaporean
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
former professional football player and coach. He had changed his nationality to Singaporean
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
in 2002 in order to play for the Singapore national football team
Singapore national football team
The Singapore national football team is the national association football team of Singapore. The team comes under the organization of the Football Association of Singapore...
.
Football career
Grabovac was the top scorer in Singapore's S.LeagueS.League
The S.League is the top men's professional association football league in Singapore. The league was launched in 1996 and currently involves 12 clubs.-History:...
in 1999, 2000, 2001 and 2002 while playing for the Singapore Armed Forces FC
Singapore Armed Forces Football Club
The Singapore Armed Forces Football Club is a professional football club that represents the Singapore Armed Forces and plays in the top-tier S.League. Singapore Armed Forces Football Club was officially established on 16 February 1996...
(SAFFC), and again in 2005 playing for Tampines Rovers
Tampines Rovers FC
Tampines Rovers Football Club are a professional association football club based in Tampines, Singapore, that play in the S.League. Founded in 1945, they have won the national league championship five times, the Singapore Cup thrice and the ASEAN Club Championship once...
. He was named the S.League's Player of the Year in 2000.
With SAFFC, he scored a total of 150 S.League goals in five seasons along with seven goals in Asian competitions.
In 2007, he scored his 240th S.League goals in the RHB
RhB
The Rhaetian Railway is a Swiss transport company, owning the largest network of all the private railways in Switzerland. The company operates most of the railways in the Swiss canton of Graubünden as the Swiss federal railway company SBB-CFF-FFS extend only a few kilometres over the cantonal...
Singapore Cup
Singapore Cup
The Singapore Cup is an annual soccer competition in Singapore.The Singapore Cup is the major cup competition in Singapore football, and has existed since the 1997 ....
semi-final against Bangkok University
Bangkok University FC
Bangkok United Football Club is a Thai professional football club based in Bangkok. Formerly known as Bangkok University FC until 2009. This club were relegated from the 2010 Thai Premier League only 4 years after winning their first league title in 2006...
to overtake Egmar Goncalves
Egmar Goncalves
Egmar Goncalves was a professional soccer player. He was born in Brazil, but changed his nationality to Singaporean in 2002 in order to play for the Singapore national football team.-Career:...
as the all-time S.League top goalscorer.
A year later, Grabovac was hired by Sengkang Punggol to play as a striker as well as double up as the assistant coach under head coach Saswadimata Dasuki. However, he was unable to pass the mandatory beep test twice, and served as caretaker coach for the Dolphins for a short period, starting with a 1-0 win over Gombak United which was Sengkang's second victory of the season.
Grabovac stepped down two months later as Fandi Ahmad
Fandi Ahmad
Fandi bin Ahmad is a football coach and former professional footballer from Singapore. During his playing career, he enjoyed success playing in both Europe and Asia, and was captain of the Singapore national football team...
was put in charge of the squad, and the Croatian decided to leave Singapore on 5 October 2008 to rejoin his family in his native Croatia renouncing his citizenship as well.
Tampines Rovers
- S.LeagueS.LeagueThe S.League is the top men's professional association football league in Singapore. The league was launched in 1996 and currently involves 12 clubs.-History:...
: 2004,2005 - Singapore CupSingapore CupThe Singapore Cup is an annual soccer competition in Singapore.The Singapore Cup is the major cup competition in Singapore football, and has existed since the 1997 ....
: 2004,2006 - ASEAN Club Championship:2005
Individual
- S.League Top Scorer Award: 1999,2000,2001,2002,2005
- S.League Player of the Year: 2000
- S.League Player of Decade
- 244 S.League Goals
External links
- Mirko Grabovac at National-Football-Teams.com
- Mirko Grabovac at Playerhistory.
- Mirko Grabovac at SLeague.com