 Badelj with Hamburger SV in 2013 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Milan Badelj | ||
| Date of birth | 25 February 1989 | ||
| Place of birth | Zagreb, SFR Yugoslavia | ||
| Height | 1.86 m (6 ft 1 in) | ||
| Playing position | Midfielder | ||
| Club information | |||
| Current club | Hamburger SV | ||
| Number | 14 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1995–2002 | Ponikve | ||
| 2002–2005 | NK Zagreb | ||
| 2005–2007 | Dinamo Zagreb | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 2007–2012 | Dinamo Zagreb | 113 | (25) |
| 2007–2008 | → Lokomotiva (loan) | 28 | (7) |
| 2012– | Hamburger SV | 45 | (2) |
| National team‡ | |||
| 2004 | Croatia U16 | 3 | (0) |
| 2004–2005 | Croatia U17 | 28 | (2) |
| 2005–2006 | Croatia U18 | 5 | (0) |
| 2006–2008 | Croatia U19 | 14 | (0) |
| 2009 | Croatia U20 | 2 | (0) |
| 2008–2011 | Croatia U21 | 14 | (0) |
| 2010– | Croatia | 9 | (1) |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 7 December 2013.
† Appearances (Goals).
‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 9 September 2013 | |||
Milan Badelj (pronounced [baːdêʎ]; born 25 February 1989) is a Croatian footballer who plays as a midfielder for Hamburger SV in the Bundesliga
Club career
Milan Badelj signed for Dinamo Zagreb as a 17-year old in 2007, just after he was snapped up from the youth system of Dinamo Zagreb's city rival, NK Zagreb. For the 2007–08 season, he was sent on loan to Dinamo Zagreb's affiliate Lokomotiva to gain first–team experience at the senior level. He played in 28 matches and scored seven goals in Lokomotiva's Treća HNL East title–winning campaign.
Dinamo Zagreb
At an early age he was already spotted as possible replacement for Luka Modrić, a key figure in the club's first–team squad that was transferred toTottenham Hotspur in 2008.[1]
In 2008, he joined the first team and immediately established himself as an important player. He made his senior debut for Dinamo Zagreb in Champions League qualifier against Linfield F.C. He made his domestic debut for Dinamo Zagreb in the opening match of the 2008–09 season against HNK Rijeka, scoring the first goal in 2–0 victory. He finished his first season with Dinamo with 31 domestic appearances and 12 UEFA Cup appearances.[2]
He continued to impress at his young age, establishing himself as a first–team regular for the 2009–10 season. In March 2011, he scored a goal in a 2–0 victory in the derby match against great rivals Hajduk Split. Badelj continued with impressive performances in the 2010–11 season as well, wearing the captain's armband in some matches as well.
In the 2011–12 season, he was one of the main players in Dinamo Zagreb squad that reached the UEFA Champions League group stage, for the first time after 12 years. He appeared in all six of Dinamo Zagreb games in group stage against Real Madrid, Olympique Lyonnais and AFC Ajax.
In his final game at the Maksimir for Dinamo in the UEFA Champions League play-offs, Badelj scored an own goal giving Maribor an equaliser in the first leg match in Zagreb. However the midfielder got the winning goal at the other end in the second half.
Hamburger SV
He joined Hamburger SV in August 2012, for an undisclosed fee of 3.5 million euros (according to the Croatian media).[3] He made his Bundesliga debut soon after joining the club, in match against SV Werder Bremen. He immediately established himself as the first team regular starter, playing in the position of deep-lying playmaker. Badelj scored his first Bundesliga goal against FC Schalke 04 on November 2012.
National team
Badelj earned 66 caps during his time in the Croatian youth ranks, nine of which came in the UEFA U21 Championship where he was very impressive. He was often called up to the first team but usually sat the whole game on the bench. He made his competitive debut in a UEFA Euro 2012 qualifier againstMalta in which he scored a goal. He was a part of the Croatia team on Euro 2012, but failed to make an appearance.
