Zlatko Zahovic
Encyclopedia
Zlatko Zahovič is a retired Slovenia
n footballer who played as an attacking midfielder.
After making a name for himself in Europe
in Portugal
, most notably with Porto and Benfica, he went on to have unassuming spells in Spain
and Greece
. He possessed dribble and goal-scoring ability alike.
The all-time record holder in caps
and goals for the Slovenian national team
, Zahovič was an essential member as it qualified for the first time ever to a European Championship
and a World Cup
, in the early 2000s.
, Slovenia
, Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia
. In 1989, the 18-year-old Kovinar
player was noticed by FK Partizan
's Milko Ǵurovski, at the time doing his mandatory military
service in town, and recommended the youngster to the national giants.
With the Belgrade
side, he was retatively used over the course of three seasons - he also played one year on loan for FK Proleter Zrenjanin
- contributing with 15 matches and three goals as Partizan won the 1992–93 national championship.
In 1992, aged 22, Zahovič moved to Portugal
and signed for Vitória de Guimarães, joining fellow first divisioner F.C. Porto after three solid seasons, and two UEFA Cup qualifications. With Porto, he was equally important, winning three consecutive leagues whilst rarely missing a game; in the his last year, he netted a career-best 14 goals.
Zahovič then experienced two turbulent years, first with Olympiacos F.C. of Greece
then Spain
's Valencia CF
. With the latter, he reached the final
of the 2000–01 UEFA Champions League
, lost after a penalty shootout against FC Bayern Munich
, with the midfielder having his attempt saved by Oliver Kahn
; additionally, he clashed with the coaches in both clubs, returning from holidays late when Dušan Bajević
was in charge at Olympiakos, then arguing with his successor Alberto Bigon
over tactics and complaining to Che boss Héctor Cúper
he was not being given enough opportunities.
In the 2001 summer, Zahovič returned to Portugal and joined S.L. Benfica, as Carlos Marchena
moved to Valencia. He was an important first-team member in his first three seasons, but lost his importance when manager Giovanni Trapattoni
arrived at the Reds, a situation which was aggravated in January 2005, with the arrival of Nuno Assis
; Benfica won the league precisely in that campaign, after a drought of 11 years, with the player contributing with ten matches (17 and four goals in all official matches, as Benfica also reached the round of 32 in the UEFA Cup), and retiring from football in June 2005, aged 34.
In the summer of 2007, Zahovič returned to his homeland, becoming director of football
at NK Maribor
.
was on 7 November 1992, a friendly match with Cyprus
.
The national team qualified for UEFA Euro 2000 in Belgium
and the Netherlands
, with the player scoring nine goals in 15 matches. In the finals, he continued to excel, netting three of Slovenia's four goals, in an eventual group stage exit.
Slovenia also managed to qualify
for the 2002 FIFA World Cup
in South Korea
and Japan
, another first. However, after being replaced by manager Srečko Katanec
in the 63rd minute of the first group match against Spain
(1–3 loss), Zahovič insulted the coach, who immediately sent him home following the match. Katanec resigned immediately after the World Cup, after three defeats in the group stage.
Zahovič played his last match for the national team on 28 April 2004 against Switzerland
. Altogether he appeared in 80 matches (a record) and scored 35 goals (also a record), thus making him the most successful Slovenian footballer since the country's independence in 1991, and the inception of its football association into FIFA
the following year.
|1989/90||Partizan
||First League
||9||1||||||||||||||||
|-
|1990/91||Proleter Zrenjanin
||First League
||25||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|1991/92||Partizan
||First League
||13||2||||||||||||||||
|-
|1992/93||Partizan
||First League
||15||3||||||||||||||||
|-
|1993/94||rowspan="3"|Vitória Guimarães||rowspan="3"|Primeira Liga||24||1||||||||||||||||
|-
|1994/95||22||4||||||||||||||||
|-
|1995/96||27||8||||||||||||||||
|-
|1996/97||rowspan="3"|Porto||rowspan="3"|Primeira Liga||26||7||||||||||||||||
|-
|1997/98||29||6||||||||||||||||
|-
|1998/99||29||14||||||||||||||||
|-
|1999/00||Olympiacos||Alpha Ethniki||14||7||||||||||||||||
|-
|2000/01||Valencia
||La Liga
||20||3||||||||||||||||
|-
|2001/02||rowspan="4"|Benfica||rowspan="4"|Primeira Liga||21||6||||||||||||||||
|-
|2002/03||28||6||||||||||||||||
|-
|2003/04||21||2||||||||||||||||
|-
|2004/05||10||0||||||||||||||||
47||3||||||||||||||||
15||3||||||||||||||||
237||54||||||||||||||||
14||7||||||||||||||||
20||3||||||||||||||||
333||70||||||||||||||||
|}
|1992||1||0
|-
|1993||1||0
|-
|1994||5||1
|-
|1995||6||3
|-
|1996||6||1
|-
|1997||3||1
|-
|1998||9||6
|-
|1999||11||8
|-
|2000||10||6
|-
|2001||8||4
|-
|2002||8||2
|-
|2003||9||2
|-
|2004||3||1
|-
!Total||80||35
|}
Porto
Olympiacos
Benfica
Valencia
Slovenia
Slovenia , officially the Republic of Slovenia , is a country in Central and Southeastern Europe touching the Alps and bordering the Mediterranean. Slovenia borders Italy to the west, Croatia to the south and east, Hungary to the northeast, and Austria to the north, and also has a small portion of...
n footballer who played as an attacking midfielder.
After making a name for himself in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
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...
, most notably with Porto and Benfica, he went on to have unassuming spells in Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
and Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
. He possessed dribble and goal-scoring ability alike.
The all-time record holder in caps
Cap (sport)
In sports, a cap is a metaphorical term for a player's appearance on a select team, such as a national team. The term dates from the practice in the United Kingdom of awarding a cap to every player in an international match of association football...
and goals for the Slovenian national team
Slovenia national football team
The Slovenia national football team is the national football team of Slovenia and is controlled by the Football Association of Slovenia. The team played their first match in 1992 after the split of Yugoslavia in 1991....
, Zahovič was an essential member as it qualified for the first time ever to a European Championship
UEFA European Football Championship
The UEFA European Football Championship is the main football competition of the men's national football teams governed by UEFA . Held every four years since 1960, in the even-numbered year between World Cup tournaments, it was originally called the UEFA European Nations Cup, changing to the current...
and a World Cup
FIFA World Cup
The FIFA World Cup, often simply the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of Fédération Internationale de Football Association , the sport's global governing body...
, in the early 2000s.
Club career
Zahovič was born in MariborMaribor
Maribor is the second largest city in Slovenia with 157,947 inhabitants . Maribor is also the largest and the capital city of Slovenian region Lower Styria and the seat of the Municipality of Maribor....
, Slovenia
Slovenia
Slovenia , officially the Republic of Slovenia , is a country in Central and Southeastern Europe touching the Alps and bordering the Mediterranean. Slovenia borders Italy to the west, Croatia to the south and east, Hungary to the northeast, and Austria to the north, and also has a small portion of...
, Socialist Federal Republic of 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,...
. In 1989, the 18-year-old Kovinar
NK Tezno Maribor
NK Tezno is a Slovenian football club from Maribor, which plays in the Slovenian Regional League, the fourth level in the Slovenian football system....
player was noticed by FK 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...
's Milko Ǵurovski, at the time doing his mandatory military
Yugoslav People's Army
The Yugoslav People's Army , also referred to as the Yugoslav National Army , was the military of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia.-Origins:The origins of the JNA can...
service in town, and recommended the youngster to the national giants.
With the Belgrade
Belgrade
Belgrade is the capital and largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers, where the Pannonian Plain meets the Balkans. According to official results of Census 2011, the city has a population of 1,639,121. It is one of the 15 largest cities in Europe...
side, he was retatively used over the course of three seasons - he also played one year on loan for FK Proleter Zrenjanin
FK Proleter Zrenjanin
FK Proleter Zrenjanin was a football club from the city of Zrenjanin, Vojvodina, Serbia.-Early period:...
- contributing with 15 matches and three goals as Partizan won the 1992–93 national championship.
In 1992, aged 22, Zahovič moved to 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...
and signed for Vitória de Guimarães, joining fellow first divisioner F.C. Porto after three solid seasons, and two UEFA Cup qualifications. With Porto, he was equally important, winning three consecutive leagues whilst rarely missing a game; in the his last year, he netted a career-best 14 goals.
Zahovič then experienced two turbulent years, first with Olympiacos F.C. of Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
then Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
's Valencia CF
Valencia CF
Valencia Club de Fútbol is a Spanish football club based in Valencia, Spain. They play in La Liga and are one of the most successful and biggest clubs in Spanish Football and European Football. Valencia have won six La Liga titles, seven Copa del Rey trophies, two Fairs Cups which was the...
. With the latter, he reached the final
2001 UEFA Champions League Final
The 2001 UEFA Champions League Final was a football match that took place at San Siro in Milan, Italy, on 23 May 2001, to decide the winner of the 2000–01 UEFA Champions League. The match pitted Bayern Munich against Valencia. The match finished in a 1–1 draw, but Bayern clinched their fourth...
of the 2000–01 UEFA Champions League
UEFA Champions League
The UEFA Champions League, known simply the Champions League and originally known as the European Champion Clubs' Cup or European Cup, is an annual international club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations since 1955 for the top football clubs in Europe. It...
, lost after a penalty shootout against FC Bayern Munich
FC Bayern Munich
FC Bayern Munich , is a German sports club based in Munich, Bavaria. It is best known for its professional football team, which is the most successful football club in Germany, having won 22 national titles and 15 cups....
, with the midfielder having his attempt saved by Oliver Kahn
Oliver Kahn
Oliver Rolf Kahn is a former German football goalkeeper. He started his career in the Karlsruher SC Junior team. He had his debut game in the professional squad in 1987...
; additionally, he clashed with the coaches in both clubs, returning from holidays late when Dušan Bajević
Dušan Bajevic
Dušan Bajević is a Bosnian football manager and former Yugoslav international.-Playing career:...
was in charge at Olympiakos, then arguing with his successor Alberto Bigon
Alberto Bigon
Alberto "Albertino" Bigon is an Italian football manager and former player.-Playing career:Bigon started his playing career for his native city team Padova. He made his Serie A debut with SPAL in 1967, but obtained most of his playing triumphs with AC Milan, where he played from 1971 to 1980...
over tactics and complaining to Che boss Héctor Cúper
Héctor Cúper
Héctor Raúl Cúper is an Argentinean former football defender and a current manager.-Coach:...
he was not being given enough opportunities.
In the 2001 summer, Zahovič returned to Portugal and joined S.L. Benfica, as Carlos Marchena
Carlos Marchena
Carlos Marchena López is a Spanish footballer who plays for Villarreal CF and the Spanish national team.Mainly a central defender with an aggressive approach, he can also pitch in as a defensive midfielder...
moved to Valencia. He was an important first-team member in his first three seasons, but lost his importance when manager Giovanni Trapattoni
Giovanni Trapattoni
Giovanni Trapattoni , sometimes known as "Trap" or "Il Trap", is an Italian football coach and former player, considered the most successful club coach in the history of Serie A. As a player he was part of Italy's squad at the 1962 FIFA World Cup....
arrived at the Reds, a situation which was aggravated in January 2005, with the arrival of Nuno Assis
Nuno Assis
Nuno Assis Lopes de Almeida, known as Assis , is a Portuguese footballer who plays for Vitória Sport Clube as an attacking midfielder.-Club career:...
; Benfica won the league precisely in that campaign, after a drought of 11 years, with the player contributing with ten matches (17 and four goals in all official matches, as Benfica also reached the round of 32 in the UEFA Cup), and retiring from football in June 2005, aged 34.
In the summer of 2007, Zahovič returned to his homeland, becoming director of football
Director of football
"Director of football" is a term describing a senior management figure at a football club, most commonly used in Europe. The exact nature of the role is often unclear and extremely variable and causes much debate in the sports media...
at NK Maribor
NK Maribor
Nogometni Klub Maribor , commonly referred to as NK Maribor or simply Maribor, is a professional association football club based in the city of Maribor, Slovenia. Founded on 12 December, 1960, Maribor is one of only three football clubs in the country who have never been relegated from...
.
International career
Zahovič's first match for SloveniaSlovenia national football team
The Slovenia national football team is the national football team of Slovenia and is controlled by the Football Association of Slovenia. The team played their first match in 1992 after the split of Yugoslavia in 1991....
was on 7 November 1992, a friendly match with Cyprus
Cyprus national football team
The Cyprus national football team represents Cyprus in association football and is controlled by the Cyprus Football Association, the governing body for football in Cyprus. Cyprus' home ground is the GSP Stadium in Nicosia and the current coach is Nikos Nioplias...
.
The national team qualified for UEFA Euro 2000 in Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
and the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
, with the player scoring nine goals in 15 matches. In the finals, he continued to excel, netting three of Slovenia's four goals, in an eventual group stage exit.
Slovenia also managed to qualify
2002 FIFA World Cup qualification (UEFA)
Listed below are the dates and results for the 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification rounds for the European zone . For an overview of the qualification rounds, see the article 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification....
for the 2002 FIFA 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...
in South 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...
, another first. However, after being replaced by manager Srečko Katanec
Srecko Katanec
Srečko Katanec is a Slovenian football manager and a former player capped for Yugoslavia and Slovenia. His last position was as the manager of the United Arab Emirates national football team.-Career:...
in the 63rd minute of the first group match against Spain
Spain national football team
The Spain national football team represents Spain in international association football and is controlled by the Royal Spanish Football Federation, the governing body for football in Spain. The current head coach is Vicente del Bosque...
(1–3 loss), Zahovič insulted the coach, who immediately sent him home following the match. Katanec resigned immediately after the World Cup, after three defeats in the group stage.
Zahovič played his last match for the national team on 28 April 2004 against Switzerland
Switzerland national football team
The Swiss national football team is the national football team of Switzerland...
. Altogether he appeared in 80 matches (a record) and scored 35 goals (also a record), thus making him the most successful Slovenian footballer since the country's independence in 1991, and the inception of its football association into FIFA
FIFA
The Fédération Internationale de Football Association , commonly known by the acronym FIFA , is the international governing body of :association football, futsal and beach football. Its headquarters are located in Zurich, Switzerland, and its president is Sepp Blatter, who is in his fourth...
the following year.
Club
|-|1989/90||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...
||First League
Yugoslav First League
The Yugoslav First League was the premier football league in the Kingdom of Yugoslavia and socialist Yugoslavia...
||9||1||||||||||||||||
|-
|1990/91||Proleter Zrenjanin
FK Proleter Zrenjanin
FK Proleter Zrenjanin was a football club from the city of Zrenjanin, Vojvodina, Serbia.-Early period:...
||First League
Yugoslav First League
The Yugoslav First League was the premier football league in the Kingdom of Yugoslavia and socialist Yugoslavia...
||25||0||||||||||||||||
|-
|1991/92||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...
||First League
Yugoslav First League
The Yugoslav First League was the premier football league in the Kingdom of Yugoslavia and socialist Yugoslavia...
||13||2||||||||||||||||
|-
|1992/93||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...
||First League
Serbian Superliga
Serbian 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...
||15||3||||||||||||||||
|-
|1993/94||rowspan="3"|Vitória Guimarães||rowspan="3"|Primeira Liga||24||1||||||||||||||||
|-
|1994/95||22||4||||||||||||||||
|-
|1995/96||27||8||||||||||||||||
|-
|1996/97||rowspan="3"|Porto||rowspan="3"|Primeira Liga||26||7||||||||||||||||
|-
|1997/98||29||6||||||||||||||||
|-
|1998/99||29||14||||||||||||||||
|-
|1999/00||Olympiacos||Alpha Ethniki||14||7||||||||||||||||
|-
|2000/01||Valencia
Valencia CF
Valencia Club de Fútbol is a Spanish football club based in Valencia, Spain. They play in La Liga and are one of the most successful and biggest clubs in Spanish Football and European Football. Valencia have won six La Liga titles, seven Copa del Rey trophies, two Fairs Cups which was the...
||La Liga
La Liga
The Primera División of the Liga Nacional de Fútbol Profesional , commonly known as La Liga or, for sponsorship reasons, Liga BBVA since 2008, is the top professional association football division of the Spanish football league system...
||20||3||||||||||||||||
|-
|2001/02||rowspan="4"|Benfica||rowspan="4"|Primeira Liga||21||6||||||||||||||||
|-
|2002/03||28||6||||||||||||||||
|-
|2003/04||21||2||||||||||||||||
|-
|2004/05||10||0||||||||||||||||
47||3||||||||||||||||
15||3||||||||||||||||
237||54||||||||||||||||
14||7||||||||||||||||
20||3||||||||||||||||
333||70||||||||||||||||
|}
National team
|-|1992||1||0
|-
|1993||1||0
|-
|1994||5||1
|-
|1995||6||3
|-
|1996||6||1
|-
|1997||3||1
|-
|1998||9||6
|-
|1999||11||8
|-
|2000||10||6
|-
|2001||8||4
|-
|2002||8||2
|-
|2003||9||2
|-
|2004||3||1
|-
!Total||80||35
|}
Honours
Partizan- Yugoslav LeagueYugoslav First LeagueThe Yugoslav First League was the premier football league in the Kingdom of Yugoslavia and socialist Yugoslavia...
: 1992–93
Porto
- Portuguese League: 1996–97, 1997–98, 1998–99
- Portuguese CupTaça de PortugalThe Taça de Portugal is the main Portuguese national football knock-out competition. The tournament has been officially known as the Taça de Portugal Millennium since 2008, due to its sponsorship by Portuguese private bank Millennium BCP. It has occurred on a yearly basis since 1938 and is...
: 1997–98 - Portuguese Supercup: 1998, 1999
Olympiacos
- Greek League: 1999–2000
Benfica
- Portuguese League: 2004–05
- Portuguese CupTaça de PortugalThe Taça de Portugal is the main Portuguese national football knock-out competition. The tournament has been officially known as the Taça de Portugal Millennium since 2008, due to its sponsorship by Portuguese private bank Millennium BCP. It has occurred on a yearly basis since 1938 and is...
: 2003–04
Valencia
- UEFA Champions LeagueUEFA Champions LeagueThe UEFA Champions League, known simply the Champions League and originally known as the European Champion Clubs' Cup or European Cup, is an annual international club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations since 1955 for the top football clubs in Europe. It...
: Runner-up 2000–01
External links
- Stats and profile at Zerozero
- Stats at ForaDeJogo
- Zlatko Zahovic - Goals in International Matches; at RSSSFRec.Sport.Soccer Statistics FoundationThe Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation is an international amateur organization dedicated to collecting statistics about association football...