Vladimir Vasilj is a former Croatia

Croatia

Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...

n football

Football (soccer)

Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...

 goalkeeper.

He was born in Hanover

Hanover

Hanover or Hannover, on the river Leine, is the capital of the federal state of Lower Saxony , Germany and was once by personal union the family seat of the Hanoverian Kings of Great Britain, under their title as the dukes of Brunswick-Lüneburg...

 and started his professional career at Croatian club Hrvatski Dragovoljac

NK Hrvatski Dragovoljac

NK Hrvatski Dragovoljac is a Croatian football club based in the Novi Zagreb neighbourhood of the country's capital city of Zagreb. The team's fans are known as the "Black Warriors"...

 in the 1995-96 season. He continued to play for the club in the following three seasons, being their first-choice goalkeeper in two of the three seasons.

In the spring of 1998, he became the Croatian national team

Croatia national football team

The Croatia national football team represents Croatia in international football. The team is controlled by the Croatian Football Federation, the governing body for football in the country, and has been managed since 2006 by former player Slaven Bilić...

's third-choice goalkeeper and was also named to the final 22-man squad for the 1998 World Cup

1998 FIFA World Cup

The 1998 FIFA World Cup, the 16th FIFA World Cup, was held in France from 10 June to 12 July 1998. France was chosen as host nation by FIFA on 2 July 1992. The tournament was won by France, who beat Brazil 3-0 in the final...

 finals in France

France

The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

, but did not play any matches at the tournament where Croatia surprisingly finished third. Prior to the World Cup, he made his international debut by appearing as a substitute goalkeeper in the second half of Croatia's friendly match against Slovakia

Slovakia national football team

The Slovakia national football team represents Slovakia in association football and is controlled by the Slovak Football Association , the governing body for football in Slovakia. Slovakia's home stadium is Štadión Pasienky and their head coach is Vladimír Weiss...

 played on 29 May 1998 in Pula

Pula

Pula is the largest city in Istria County, Croatia, situated at the southern tip of the Istria peninsula, with a population of 62,080 .Like the rest of the region, it is known for its mild climate, smooth sea, and unspoiled nature. The city has a long tradition of winemaking, fishing,...

.

He left Hrvatski Dragovoljac for Dinamo Zagreb

Dinamo Zagreb

GNK Dinamo Zagreb, commonly referred to as Dinamo Zagreb , or by their nickname Modri are a Croatian football club based in Zagreb. They play their home matches at Stadion Maksimir. They are the most successful club in Croatian football, having won thirteen Croatian championship titles, ten...

 in the summer of 1998, but was merely the club's third-choice goalkeeper and managed to make only two domestic league

Croatian First League

The Prva HNL , also known as 1. HNL or for sponsorship reasons the MAXtv Prva Liga, is the top Croatian football league competition, established in 1992. The winners qualify for the UEFA Champions League...

 appearances in the following two seasons. He became the club's second-choice goalkeeper after Dražen Ladić

Dražen Ladic

Dražen Ladić is a former Croatian football goalkeeper. Between 2006 and 2011 he was the head coach of the Croatian national under-21 team.-Club:...

's retirement in May 2000 and made three domestic league appearances in the 2000-01 season before transferring to Dinamo's local rivals NK Zagreb

NK Zagreb

NK Zagreb is a Croatian football club, from the Croatian capital of Zagreb.NK Zagreb's home is the Stadion Kranjčevićeva with capacity of 8,850. The club's fans are known as the White Angels...

 for the 2001-02 season. He played for the club in the following two seasons and was their first-choice goalkeeper in both of them, also playing a significant role in the Zagreb team that surprisingly won the Croatian First League champions title in 2002.

In the spring of 2002, he returned to the Croatian national team as their third-choice goalkeeper and was also named to the final 23-man squad for the 2002 World Cup

2002 FIFA World Cup

The 2002 FIFA World Cup was the 17th staging of the FIFA World Cup, held in South Korea and Japan from 31 May to 30 June. It was also the first World Cup held in Asia, and the last in which the golden goal rule was implemented. Brazil won the tournament for a record fifth time, beating Germany 2–0...

 finals in Korea

South Korea

The Republic of Korea , , is a sovereign state in East Asia, located on the southern portion of the Korean Peninsula. It is neighbored by the People's Republic of China to the west, Japan to the east, North Korea to the north, and the East China Sea and Republic of China to the south...

 and Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

, but once again did not manage to play any matches at the tournament. Prior to the World Cup, he won his second international cap in a friendly match against Hungary

Hungary national football team

The Hungary national football team represents Hungary in international football and is controlled by the Hungarian Football Federation....

. He subsequently did not win any international caps, but was called up to be the Croatian national team's third-choice goalkeeper at the Euro 2004 finals in Portugal

Portugal

Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...

 after the team's first-choice goalkeeper Stipe Pletikosa

Stipe Pletikosa

Stipe Pletikosa is a Croatian football goalkeeper who plays for the Russian Premier League club FC Rostov and the Croatian national team, for which he has made 86 appearances.-Hajduk Split:...

 was forced to withdraw from the tournament due to an injury.

At club level, Vasilj left Zagreb for Varteks Varaždin in the summer of 2003 and spent one season at the club as their first-choice goalkeeper, making 30 domestic league appearances as well as appearing in both of the club's two matches in the first round of the UEFA Cup

UEFA Cup

The UEFA Europa League is an annual association football cup competition organised by UEFA since 1971 for eligible European football clubs. It is the second most prestigious European club football contest after the UEFA Champions League...

, where they were eliminated by Hungarian

Hungary

Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...

 club Debreceni VSC

Debreceni VSC

Debreceni VSC or just Debrecen or DVSC is a football club from the city of Debrecen in Hungary. They are best known for reaching the group stages of the UEFA Champions League 2009–10 season. Debreceni VSC has been the most successful Hungarian club since 2000. The club has won the Hungarian...

. He returned to Dinamo Zagreb in the summer of 2004 and spent one season at the club as their first-choice goalkeeper, making a total of 20 domestic league appearances and also appearing in all of the club's six UEFA Cup matches that season.

He left Dinamo in the summer of 2005 and joined Turkish

Turkey

Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...

 club Konyaspor

Konyaspor

Konyaspor is a professional Turkish football club based in Konya. Konyaspor currently play in the Süper Lig. The club was founded in 1922 but then reformed in 1981. The club colours are green and white and they play their home games at Konya Atatürk Stadium....

, where he spent the first part of the 2005-06 season as the second-choice goalkeeper, making only two appearances in the Süper Lig

Turkcell Super League

The Süper Lig is a Turkish professional league for association football clubs. It is the top-flight of the Turkish football league system. It is one of the top leagues in the UEFA confederation and the winner of the competition automatically qualifies for the UEFA Champions League...

, and he subsequently went on to leave Konyaspor for NK Široki Brijeg

NK Široki Brijeg

NK Široki Brijeg is a Bosnian-Herzegovinian team from the town of Široki Brijeg that currently plays in the Premier League of Bosnia and Herzegovina....

 from Bosnia and Herzegovina

Bosnia and Herzegovina

Bosnia and Herzegovina , sometimes called Bosnia-Herzegovina or simply Bosnia, is a country in Southern Europe, on the Balkan Peninsula. Bordered by Croatia to the north, west and south, Serbia to the east, and Montenegro to the southeast, Bosnia and Herzegovina is almost landlocked, except for the...

at the beginning of 2006, signing an 18-month contract until June 2007. He was released by the club and then retired in July 2009.

External links

• Vladimir Vasilj profile at Transfermarkt.de