Haris Medunjanin facts for kids
Medunjanin with Bosnia and Herzegovina in 2015
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| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||
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| Full name | Haris Medunjanin | ||||||||||||||||||
| Date of birth | 8 March 1985 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Sarajevo, SFR Yugoslavia | ||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.86 m (6 ft 1 in) | ||||||||||||||||||
| Position(s) | Midfielder | ||||||||||||||||||
| Team information | |||||||||||||||||||
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Current team
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Castellón (assistant) | ||||||||||||||||||
| Youth career | |||||||||||||||||||
| Swift Atletiek | |||||||||||||||||||
| AFC'34 | |||||||||||||||||||
| AZ | |||||||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | |||||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | ||||||||||||||||
| 2004–2008 | AZ | 25 | (4) | ||||||||||||||||
| 2006–2007 | → Sparta Rotterdam (loan) | 32 | (7) | ||||||||||||||||
| 2008–2010 | Valladolid | 42 | (7) | ||||||||||||||||
| 2010–2013 | Maccabi Tel Aviv | 46 | (9) | ||||||||||||||||
| 2012–2013 | → Gaziantepspor (loan) | 30 | (4) | ||||||||||||||||
| 2013–2014 | Gaziantepspor | 32 | (2) | ||||||||||||||||
| 2014–2016 | Deportivo La Coruña | 24 | (2) | ||||||||||||||||
| 2016–2017 | Maccabi Tel Aviv | 33 | (4) | ||||||||||||||||
| 2017–2019 | Philadelphia Union | 98 | (5) | ||||||||||||||||
| 2020–2022 | FC Cincinnati | 70 | (4) | ||||||||||||||||
| 2022–2023 | PEC | 24 | (6) | ||||||||||||||||
| 2023–2024 | Castellón | 31 | (9) | ||||||||||||||||
| Total | 487 | (63) | |||||||||||||||||
| International career | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2006–2007 | Netherlands U21 | 7 | (0) | ||||||||||||||||
| 2009–2018 | Bosnia and Herzegovina | 60 | (9) | ||||||||||||||||
| Managerial career | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2024– | Castellón (assistant) | ||||||||||||||||||
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Medal record
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| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||||||||||||||||||
Haris Medunjanin, born on March 8, 1985, is a former professional football player from Bosnia. He played as a midfielder, which is a key position in the middle of the field. After retiring as a player, he became an assistant manager for the Spanish club Castellón.
Haris started his football journey at AZ in the Netherlands. He also played for clubs like Valladolid in Spain and Maccabi Tel Aviv in Israel. Later, he joined Philadelphia Union in the United States.
Even though he played for the Netherlands' youth team, Haris chose to play for his home country, Bosnia and Herzegovina, as a senior player. A big moment in his career was playing in the 2014 FIFA World Cup.
Contents
Haris Medunjanin's Club Career
Haris Medunjanin was born in Sarajevo, which was part of Yugoslavia at the time. He made his first professional appearance in the Eredivisie (the top Dutch league) on February 20, 2005, for AZ Alkmaar. He didn't get to play much during his first few years there.
Playing for Sparta Rotterdam
For the 2006–07 season, Haris was loaned to Sparta Rotterdam. He became a very important player for them, scoring seven goals and helping the team finish 13th in the league.
Time at Real Valladolid
In August 2008, Haris moved to Spain to play for Real Valladolid. In his first year, he often came on as a substitute. During the 2009–10 season, he scored five goals in La Liga, all while coming off the bench late in games.
Joining Maccabi Tel Aviv
In July 2010, Haris signed a four-year contract with Maccabi Tel Aviv F.C. in Israel. He played his first official game for them on July 15 in a UEFA Europa League match against FK Mogren, where he scored a goal in a 2–0 win.
Playing in Turkey with Gaziantepspor
On August 31, 2012, Haris moved to the Turkish team Gaziantepspor on a loan from Maccabi. The next season, he signed a permanent three-year deal with them.
Return to Spain with Deportivo
On August 12, 2014, Haris joined Deportivo de La Coruña in Spain. However, in January 2016, he left the club and returned to Maccabi Tel Aviv F.C. He signed a new contract with them for one and a half years.
Haris helped Maccabi reach the Europa League group stage in both the 2015–16 and 2016–17 seasons. They finished as runners-up in the Israeli Premier League both times.
Adventures in Major League Soccer
On January 31, 2017, the Major League Soccer club Philadelphia Union signed Haris to a two-year deal. He played his first game for them in the season opener against the Vancouver Whitecaps FC. He scored his first goal for the Union on May 14, 2017, in a big 4–0 win against D.C. United. Later that year, he was named their Player of the Year.
Haris became a very important midfielder for the Union. In the 2019 season, he played every minute of every league game. He also led all MLS players in total passes and completed passes, showing how central he was to their play. On November 20, 2019, he left the Union, and his rights were picked up by FC Cincinnati.
Time at FC Cincinnati
On December 5, 2019, Haris joined FC Cincinnati. He scored his first goal for them on September 19, 2020, with a special goal directly from a corner kick against the New York Red Bulls. He left the club in August 2022.
Later Career and Retirement
On August 9, 2022, Haris returned to the Netherlands after 14 years, signing a one-year contract with PEC Zwolle. In July 2023, he moved to Spain again, joining Primera Federación club CD Castellón.
After retiring as a player, Haris stayed with Castellón as an assistant manager. He now works alongside Dick Schreuder, who was his coach when he played for Philadelphia Union.
Haris Medunjanin's International Career
Haris Medunjanin played for two different national teams during his career.
Playing for the Netherlands Youth Team
Haris was part of the Netherlands under-21 team that won the UEFA European Under-21 Championship in both 2006 and 2007. Winning these tournaments also helped the team qualify for the 2008 Olympic Games.
Playing for Bosnia and Herzegovina
In 2009, Haris shared that he really wanted to play for his home country, Bosnia and Herzegovina. His request to change his football citizenship was approved. On October 31, 2009, he was called up to play for Bosnia and Herzegovina in the 2010 FIFA World Cup playoff games against Portugal. He made his first appearance in the second game of that playoff.
Haris scored his first goal for Bosnia and Herzegovina on November 17, 2010, in a friendly match against Slovakia. He scored three more important goals during the Euro 2012 qualifying campaign, helping Bosnia reach the playoffs.
On June 2, 2014, Haris was chosen to be part of the squad for the 2014 FIFA World Cup. He played his first World Cup game 14 days later against Argentina.
On October 13, 2015, Haris scored two crucial goals against Cyprus. These goals helped Bosnia and Herzegovina reach the Euro 2016 play-offs. In 2016, he was the captain for his country when they won the Kirin Cup.
Haris announced he was retiring from international football on March 27, 2018. His last game was a friendly match against Senegal, which was his 60th game for his country.
Personal Life of Haris Medunjanin
When the Bosnian War started in 1992, Haris was only seven years old. He moved to the Netherlands with his mother and sister to find safety. Sadly, his father was not able to leave and passed away during the war. Because he lived in the Netherlands for many years, Haris had dual citizenship, meaning he was a citizen of both Bosnia and the Netherlands.
In July 2019, Haris married Moran Rahimi, who is a model from Israel.
Achievements and Awards
Netherlands U21
- UEFA European Under-21 Championship: 2006, 2007
Individual Awards
- Philadelphia Union Player of the Year: 2017
See also
In Spanish: Haris Medunjanin para niños
