Alen Halilović facts for kids
Halilović with Fortuna Sittard in 2023
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | 18 June 1996 | ||
| Place of birth | Dubrovnik, Croatia | ||
| Height | 1.69 m (5 ft 7 in) | ||
| Position(s) | Attacking midfielder | ||
| Team information | |||
|
Current team
|
Fortuna Sittard | ||
| Number | 10 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Dinamo Zagreb | |||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2012–2014 | Dinamo Zagreb | 44 | (7) |
| 2014–2015 | Barcelona B | 30 | (4) |
| 2014–2016 | Barcelona | 0 | (0) |
| 2015–2016 | → Sporting Gijón (loan) | 36 | (3) |
| 2016–2018 | Hamburger SV | 6 | (0) |
| 2017–2018 | → Las Palmas (loan) | 38 | (2) |
| 2018–2020 | AC Milan | 0 | (0) |
| 2019 | → Standard Liège (loan) | 14 | (0) |
| 2019–2020 | → Heerenveen (loan) | 17 | (1) |
| 2020–2021 | Birmingham City | 17 | (1) |
| 2021–2022 | Reading | 11 | (1) |
| 2022–2023 | Rijeka | 8 | (1) |
| 2023– | Fortuna Sittard | 58 | (6) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2010 | Croatia U14 | 2 | (1) |
| 2010–2011 | Croatia U15 | 6 | (3) |
| 2012 | Croatia U16 | 4 | (1) |
| 2012–2013 | Croatia U17 | 13 | (3) |
| 2014–2019 | Croatia U21 | 17 | (4) |
| 2013–2019 | Croatia | 10 | (0) |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 10 June 2025 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 21 June 2019 |
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Alen Halilović (born on June 18, 1996) is a professional footballer from Croatia. He plays as an attacking midfielder for the Dutch club Fortuna Sittard.
Alen was once seen as one of Europe's most promising young football talents. He became the youngest player to score a goal in Croatia's top league, the Prva HNL, and also the youngest player to play for the Croatian national team.
In 2014, Barcelona signed him. He played mostly for their B-team, but also made one appearance for the main team. He then played for several clubs, including Sporting Gijón, Hamburger SV, Las Palmas, AC Milan, Standard Liège, Heerenveen, Birmingham City, Reading, and Rijeka. In 2023, he joined Fortuna Sittard.
Club Career
Starting at Dinamo Zagreb
Alen Halilović started his professional career at Dinamo Zagreb. On September 27, 2012, he made his first team debut in a big match against Hajduk Split. He was only 16 years and 101 days old, making him the youngest player ever to play for Dinamo Zagreb.
Soon after, he scored his first goal against Slaven Belupo. This made him the youngest goalscorer in the history of the Croatian league, at 16 years and 112 days old. This record stood for many years. Alen also played in the UEFA Champions League for Dinamo, becoming one of the youngest players ever to appear in that competition.
Moving to Barcelona
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On March 27, 2014, FC Barcelona agreed to sign Alen Halilović. He joined the club in July 2014 and signed a five-year contract. He was initially assigned to Barcelona's reserve team, Barcelona B, which plays in a lower league.
There was a short delay because FIFA, the world football organization, had banned Barcelona from buying players. However, the ban was put on hold, allowing Alen's transfer to go through. He made his first appearance for Barcelona's main team on January 15, 2015, in a cup match against Elche CF.
Loan to Sporting Gijón
In August 2015, Alen was loaned to another Spanish team, Sporting de Gijón, for a season. He made his debut in La Liga, Spain's top league, on August 29. He scored his first La Liga goal on October 3 against RCD Espanyol. He also scored important goals in cup matches for Sporting Gijón.
Playing for Hamburger SV
In July 2016, Alen Halilović moved to Germany to play for Bundesliga club Hamburger SV. He signed a four-year contract. He scored his first goal for Hamburg in a cup match on August 22, 2016, which was also his debut for the club.
Loan to Las Palmas
In January 2017, Alen was loaned to Las Palmas, a team in Spain. He stayed there for 18 months. In his first game of the 2017–18 season for Las Palmas, he received a red card.
Time at AC Milan
On July 3, 2018, Alen Halilović joined the Italian club AC Milan on a free transfer. He signed a contract until June 2021.
Loan to Standard Liège
In January 2019, Alen was loaned to Standard Liège in Belgium. This loan included an option for the club to buy him permanently.
Loan to SC Heerenveen
Later in September 2019, his loan to Standard Liège ended, and he was loaned to the Dutch team SC Heerenveen for a year. After the football season was stopped due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Alen returned to Milan. In October 2020, his contract with AC Milan ended.
Joining Birmingham City
On November 23, 2020, Alen Halilović joined EFL Championship club Birmingham City in England. He made his debut in December 2020. He scored his only goal for Birmingham on February 27, 2021, with a great shot from outside the box. He played 17 league games for the club.
Moving to Reading
Alen signed a one-year deal with another Championship club, Reading, on August 27, 2021. He left the club in May 2022 when his contract ended.
Return to Rijeka
On July 6, 2022, Halilović signed with Rijeka, a club in Croatia's top league. However, his contract with the club ended in January 2023.
Playing for Fortuna Sittard
On July 18, 2023, Alen Halilović returned to the Netherlands and signed a contract with Fortuna Sittard. He scored his first goal and made his first assist for the club on September 16, 2023, in a match against FC Volendam. He continues to play for Fortuna Sittard.
International Career
Alen Halilović could have chosen to play for either Croatia or Bosnia and Herzegovina internationally. He chose to represent Croatia and played for their youth teams.
On June 10, 2013, Alen made his debut for the senior Croatian national team in a friendly match against Portugal. He was only 16 years old, making him the youngest player ever to debut for Croatia.
In 2016, he was not chosen for the Euro 2016 tournament, which he reportedly found disappointing. He did not play for the national team again until June 2019, in a friendly game against Tunisia. Later that month, he was the captain of Croatia's Under-21 team at the Under-21 Euro 2019.
Personal Life
Alen's father, Sejad Halilović, was also a professional footballer who played for the Bosnian national team and Dinamo Zagreb. Alen has two younger brothers, Dino and Damir, who also play football. When Alen joined Barcelona, his whole family moved to Spain, and his brothers joined Barcelona's youth teams. Alen is a fan of the Bosnian club FK Sarajevo.
Career Statistics
Club
| Club | Season | League | National cup | Europe | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Dinamo Zagreb | 2012–13 | Prva HNL | 18 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | — | 21 | 2 | |
| 2013–14 | Prva HNL | 26 | 5 | 6 | 1 | 8 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 41 | 6 | |
| Total | 44 | 7 | 6 | 1 | 11 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 62 | 8 | ||
| Barcelona B | 2014–15 | Segunda División | 30 | 4 | — | — | — | 30 | 4 | |||
| Barcelona | 2014–15 | La Liga | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 1 | 0 | |
| Sporting Gijón (loan) | 2015–16 | La Liga | 36 | 3 | 1 | 2 | — | — | 37 | 5 | ||
| Hamburger SV | 2016–17 | Bundesliga | 6 | 0 | 1 | 1 | — | — | 7 | 1 | ||
| Las Palmas (loan) | 2016–17 | La Liga | 18 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 18 | 0 | ||
| 2017–18 | La Liga | 20 | 2 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 21 | 2 | |||
| Total | 38 | 2 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 39 | 2 | ||||
| AC Milan | 2018–19 | Serie A | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | — | 3 | 0 | |
| Standard Liège (loan) | 2018–19 | Belgian First Division A | 14 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 14 | 0 | ||
| Heerenveen (loan) | 2019–20 | Eredivisie | 17 | 1 | 3 | 0 | — | — | 20 | 1 | ||
| Birmingham City | 2020–21 | EFL Championship | 17 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 17 | 1 | ||
| Reading | 2021–22 | EFL Championship | 11 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 12 | 1 | ||
| Rijeka | 2022–23 | Prva HNL | 8 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 11 | 1 | |
| Fortuna Sittard | 2023–24 | Eredivisie | 31 | 4 | 3 | 1 | — | — | 34 | 5 | ||
| 2024–25 | Eredivisie | 15 | 2 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 16 | 2 | |||
| Total | 46 | 6 | 4 | 1 | — | — | 50 | 7 | ||||
| Career total | 267 | 25 | 19 | 5 | 16 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 303 | 31 | ||
International
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Croatia| | 2013 | 3 | 0 |
| 2014 | 4 | 0 | |
| 2015 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2016 | 2 | 0 | |
| 2017 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2018 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2019 | 1 | 0 | |
| Total | 10 | 0 | |
Honours
Dinamo Zagreb
- Prva HNL: 2012–13, 2013–14
- Croatian Supercup: 2013
Barcelona
- Copa del Rey: 2014–15
See also
In Spanish: Alen Halilović para niños
