 Šimunić in Croatia's chequered jersey | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Josip Šimunić | ||
| Date of birth | 18 February 1978 | ||
| Place of birth | Canberra, Australia | ||
| Height | 1.95 m (6 ft 5 in) | ||
| Playing position | Defender | ||
| Club information | |||
| Current club | Dinamo Zagreb | ||
| Number | 4 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1995–1996 | AIS | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 1995–1998 | Melbourne Knights | 30 | (3) |
| 1998–2000 | Hamburger SV | 8 | (0) |
| 2000–2009 | Hertha BSC | 222 | (3) |
| 2009–2011 | 1899 Hoffenheim | 41 | (1) |
| 2011– | Dinamo Zagreb | 62 | (3) |
| National team‡ | |||
| 2001–2013 | Croatia | 105 | (3) |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 23 August 2013.
† Appearances (Goals).
‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 01:04, 19 November 2013 (UTC) | |||
Josip Šimunić (Croatian pronunciation: [jǒsip ʃǐmunit͡ɕ]; born 18 February 1978) is a Croatian footballer who plays as a defender for Dinamo Zagreb and theCroatia national football team. He has been playing for Croatia since 2001, including participations in five major tournaments – World Cup 2002, World Cup 2006, Euro 2004, Euro 2008 and Euro 2012 – and is the third most capped player in the history of the Croatia national team. He is often nicknamed "Joe," "Ludi Joe" (Crazy Joe) and "Ministar Obrane" (The Minister of Defence).
Club career
Šimunić was born in Canberra, Australia to Bosnian Croat immigrants from the Otigošće village near Fojnica, Bosnia and Herzegovina, in what was thenYugoslavia.[1] He received early football training at the Australian Institute of Sport. The defender broke into the Melbourne Knights first team as a teenager in the 1995–96 season and ended it with a championship medal and 1996 NSL Youth Player of the Year award. Šimunić scored his first goals the following term, three in 14 outings, before moving to Europe to join Hamburger SV in 1998.[2]
Hertha BSC
Šimunić moved to Hertha BSC in 2000 after having fallen out with Hamburg coach Frank Pagelsdorf and has since become an integral member of a team which has enjoyed occasional forays in the UEFA Cup. He expressed on The World Game on SBS television that he wishes to return to Australia to live after concluding his career in Europe. At the end of the 2008–09 season, Šimunić was named the best centre-half in the Bundesliga by kicker magazine.[3]Hertha finished in fourth place that season, with a defence that conceded only 41 goals, tied for third in the league with VfL Wolfsburg.
TSG 1899 Hoffenheim
After nine years with Hertha, he left the club on 30 June 2009 to sign with TSG Hoffenheim on a contract which runs out on 30 June 2012.[4]
Dinamo Zagreb
On 31 August 2011, the board of Dinamo Zagreb confirmed signing of Šimunić on a free transfer in a contract that expires on 30 June 2013.[5] Šimunić was signed by the club in order to re-enforce their team for UEFA Champions League matches. He made his official debut in Croatian biggest derby match, between eternal rivals Dinamo Zagreb and Hajduk Split, on Poljud Stadium. During his first season with the club he made only 11 domestic league appearances, as he struggled to find his regular spot in the starting lineup due to injuries and tough competition in team`s defensive lineup that includedTonel, Leandro Cufre, Igor Bišćan and Domagoj Vida. He made his UEFA Champions League debut against Lyon on Stade de Gerland. At the end of the season he won his first double with the club, as Dinamo won both Croatian league and Croatian Cup.
In the beginning of his second season with the club he established himself as the first choice centre-half and regular starter. He played fully 90 minutes in each of six Dinamo's group-stage matches in 2012–13 UEFA Champions League.
International career
Šimunić was educated at the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS). He was eligible to play for Australia but opted to play for Croatia, even though his parents were from Bosnia and Herzegovina and not Croatia, albeit of Croatian ethnicity in Bosnia. After obtaining dual citizenship in October 2001 he made his international debut in Croatia's friendly match against South Korea on 10 November 2001. Šimunić did not play in any of Croatia's qualifiers for the 2002 World Cup, but was given a place in the squad for the finals after injury forced Igor Tudor out. He played all three of Croatia's matches in Korea and Japan. He also played in the Euro 2004, the 2006 World Cup, and Euro 2008, performing well in the latter tournament.
In a well-publicised incident, Šimunić was sent off in Croatia's final 2006 World Cup match against Australia. Šimunić having picked up a booking in the 61st minute, the referee Graham Poll took out a yellow card for his tackle in the 90th minute, but did not actually send him off. At the conclusion of the game three minutes later, however, Šimunić remonstrated with Poll and received a "third" yellow card, this time followed by a red card. FIFA initially noted all three bookings in its match report, before later removing the 90th minute (second) booking. This prompted the removal of Poll from the knockout stages referee pool. Shortly after the World Cup, Poll retired from refereeing international games, citing this game as a direct cause. Upon the release of his autobiography in 2007, Poll revealed that, upon booking Šimunić for the second time, he had erroneously recorded him as "Australia #3" (who was defender Craig Moore), due to Šimunić's Australian accent.
Šimunić is known for having great football technique, despite being a centre-half. His national teammate Niko Kranjčar says that, "on a training pitch, he does feints like Ronaldinho."[6]
Controversies]
Salute after Croatia-Iceland game
Šimunić was involved in controversy following a 2–0 win for Croatia against Iceland in Zagreb on 19 November 2013. He was accused of neo-Nazi sympathies having directed the crowd in a chant following the game. The use of the salute Za dom ("For the home"), with the fans responding, Spremni ("Ready!") was reminiscent of the salute used by the fascist Ustaše movement in Croatia during World War II.[7]
He defended his actions saying that he was driven by "love for his Croatian homeland." After the match Šimunić responded to his critics: "Those who are bothered by those shouts should study history. If it bothers someone, then it's their problem. I'm not afraid."[8] For this incident Šimunić was fined 25,000 kunas (around 3,000 euros) by the Croatian State Attorney's Office for inciting racial hatred and harassment of other participants of a public gathering.[9] After an investigation, FIFA has decided to suspend Šimunić for ten official matches, banned him from entering the confines of the stadiums for those ten matches and imposed a fine of CHF 30,000.[10] Šimunić's behaviour has been denounced by the Croatian Minister of Sports Željko Jovanović, Association of Anti-Fascist Fighters of Croatia (SABH) and various foreign and domestic media.[9] The severity of suspension by FIFA has been both criticised and embraced – while Jovanović called it expected and deserving, sending a strong message that Croatians do not want to be perceived by Europe as a backward rightists, and as backward country where minority rights are being violated to promote and glorify fascism,[11] others such as the Croatian Football Federation and Niko Kovač, manager of the national football team, have described the suspension as excessive and draconian.[12] All media have emphasised that the severity of suspension reflects FIFA's decision to more strictly punish racism and discrimination – in whatever form – at football matches
