Eugene Galekovic Facts for Kids

Quick facts for kids
Eugene Galekovic

Galekovic with Adelaide United in 2010

Personal information

Full name

Eugen Josip Galekovic

Date of birth

12 June 1981 (age 44)

Place of birth

Melbourne, Australia

Height

1.88 m

Playing position

Goalkeeper

Club information

Current club

Adelaide United (Goalkeeper coach)

Youth career

1993–1997

Chelsea Hajduk

1997–1998

Bulleen Lions

Senior career*

Years

Team

Apps^†

(Gls)^†

1999–2000

Melbourne Knights

(0)

2000–2001

Eastern Pride

(0)

2002–2004

South Melbourne

(0)

2004–2005

Beira-Mar

(0)

2005–2007

Melbourne Victory

(0)

2007–2017

Adelaide United

238

(0)

2017–2019

Melbourne City

(0)

National team

2003–2004

Australia U23

(0)

2009–2015

Australia

(0)

Teams managed

2019–

Adelaide United (goalkeeper coach)

Honours

Men's Association football

Representing Australia
AFC Asian Cup
Winner	2015 Australia
Runner-up	2011 Qatar

Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only.

† Appearances (Goals).

Eugen Josip Galekovic (born 12 June 1981) is an Australian former professional footballer. He played as a goalkeeper. He is now the goalkeeper and assistant coach for Adelaide United.

Galekovic played over 250 games in the A-League. Most of these games, 238, were for Adelaide United. Many people think he is one of the best A-League goalkeepers ever. He is also considered one of Adelaide United's greatest players.

About Eugene Galekovic
Playing for Australia
Awards and Achievements
Images for kids
See also

About Eugene Galekovic

Starting His Football Journey

Eugene Galekovic started playing football when he was young. He mostly played for a club called Chelsea Hajduk in Melbourne. He also played school football for St Bede's College.

His professional career began in December 2000. He was 19 years old and joined Eastern Pride. After that, he signed with South Melbourne.

Playing for South Melbourne

At South Melbourne, Galekovic was first a backup goalkeeper. He learned a lot from the main goalkeeper, Dean Anastasiadis. Eugene made his first appearance in 2002 against Melbourne Knights.

He played very well for his age. Soon, he became South Melbourne's main goalkeeper for the 2002 season. During his time there, he played 37 games. He also kept the opposing team from scoring in 17 of those games. His great performances led to him being chosen for the Australian Under-23 team, known as the Olyroos.

He stayed with South Melbourne until the league closed in 2004. After that, he joined a team in Portugal called Beira-Mar. This happened after he was the main goalkeeper for Australia's Olympic team in Athens in 2004.

Time with Melbourne Victory

His time in Portugal was short, and he didn't play much. So, he came back to Melbourne. In 2005, he joined Melbourne Victory, a new team in the A-League. He played his first game for them against Sydney FC.

Eugene played 11 games in his first season with Melbourne Victory. He was the second-choice goalkeeper in the 2006–07 season. But when the main goalkeeper got injured, Eugene got to play more.

Becoming a Star at Adelaide United

Galekovic warming up for Adelaide United in 2008.

In October 2007, Eugene joined Adelaide United. He was a replacement for an injured goalkeeper. He quickly became a key player for the team. In December 2008, he made many amazing saves. This helped Adelaide win a game 1–0 against Perth Glory. It was his fifth game that season where the other team didn't score.

In February 2010, Eugene won the Adelaide United Player of the Year Award. This showed how important he was to the team. In 2011–12, he became the captain of Adelaide United. This was a big honor.

On 11 March 2016, Eugene played his 250th game. This was a huge milestone in his career.

Moving to Melbourne City

On 16 June 2017, Galekovic signed a two-year deal with Melbourne City. He played 35 games for them. After the 2018–19 season, he announced he was retiring from playing football.

Back to Adelaide United as a Coach

After he stopped playing, Eugene Galekovic returned to Adelaide United. In 2019, he started a new role as the club's Goalkeeping Coach. He now helps train the next generation of goalkeepers.

Playing for Australia

Eugene Galekovic also played for the Australian national team, known as the Socceroos. He was called up after playing well in the A-League.

He made his first international appearance for Australia in January 2009. This was in a game against Indonesia. He was part of the Australian squad for the 2010 FIFA World Cup and the 2014 FIFA World Cup. He also helped Australia win the 2015 AFC Asian Cup.