Ilija Spasojević facts for kids
Spasojević playing for Persib Bandung in 2015
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Ilija Spasojević | ||
| Date of birth | 11 September 1987 | ||
| Place of birth | Bar, SR Montenegro, SFR Yugoslavia | ||
| Height | 1.87 m (6 ft 2 in) | ||
| Position(s) | Striker | ||
| Team information | |||
|
Current team
|
Bhayangkara | ||
| Number | 9 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Vojvodina | |||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2004–2005 | Vojvodina | 0 | (0) |
| 2005–2006 | Sutjeska Nikšić | 17 | (7) |
| 2006 | ČSK Čelarevo | 12 | (1) |
| 2007–2009 | Dinamo Tbilisi | 57 | (23) |
| 2009 | Borac Čačak | 6 | (0) |
| 2010 | Liepājas Metalurgs | 9 | (4) |
| 2010 | Trikala | 12 | (0) |
| 2011 | Bali Devata | 14 | (8) |
| 2011–2013 | PSM Makassar | 27 | (15) |
| 2013 | Mitra Kukar | 16 | (10) |
| 2014 | Putra Samarinda | 23 | (12) |
| 2015 | Persib Bandung | 2 | (0) |
| 2016–2017 | Melaka United | 33 | (27) |
| 2017 | Bhayangkara | 16 | (13) |
| 2018–2024 | Bali United | 155 | (73) |
| 2024– | Bhayangkara | 16 | (6) |
| International career | |||
| 2007–2008 | Montenegro U21 | 2 | (0) |
| 2017–2023 | Indonesia | 7 | (4) |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 21 January 2025 | |||
Ilija Spasojević (born on September 11, 1987) is a professional football player. He plays as a striker for the Liga 2 club Bhayangkara. Ilija was born in Montenegro. He now plays for the Indonesia national team.
Spasojević is famous for scoring many goals. He has won the Liga 1 Golden Boot and the Malaysia Premier League Golden Boot. He is also the top scorer of all time for Bali United.
Contents
- Club Football Journey
- Starting His Career
- Playing for Dinamo Tbilisi
- Moving to Borac Čačak
- Time with Liepājas Metalurgs
- Joining Trikala
- Success with Bali Devata
- Playing for PSM Makassar
- Time with Mitra Kukar
- Joining Putra Samarinda
- Playing for Persib Bandung
- Moving to Melaka United
- Joining Bhayangkara
- Playing for Bali United
- Return to Bhayangkara
- International Football Career
- Personal Life
- Career Statistics
- Awards and Achievements
- See also
Club Football Journey
Starting His Career
Ilija Spasojević was born in Bar, Montenegro. He began his football journey with the Serbian club Vojvodina. In the 2005–06 season, he played for Sutjeska Nikšić in Montenegro. There, he scored 7 goals in 17 games. In 2006–07, he played for ČSK Čelarevo in the Serbian First League, scoring 1 goal in 12 matches.
Playing for Dinamo Tbilisi
In January 2007, Spasojević joined Dinamo Tbilisi in Georgia. This club had won the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup before. While playing for Dinamo Tbilisi, he scored 30 goals in 61 matches. These goals were in the Georgian League and the Georgian Cup. He became the first foreign player to be the top scorer for Dinamo Tbilisi.
During his time there, Spasojević won the Georgian League, Georgian Cup, and Georgian Super Cup. He also played his first game in the UEFA Champions League on July 30, 2008.
Moving to Borac Čačak
In July 2009, Spasojević almost joined a German club, Arminia Bielefeld. However, the deal did not happen because of money issues. Red Star Belgrade also wanted him. On August 31, 2009, he finally joined Borac Čačak in the Serbian SuperLiga.
Time with Liepājas Metalurgs
On March 30, 2010, Liepājas Metalurgs, the champions of Latvia, signed Spasojević. In Latvia, he scored 6 goals in 11 matches. These games were in the Latvian League and the Latvian Football Cup.
Joining Trikala
On September 10, 2010, Spasojević joined Trikala in the Greek Football League. He arrived late, so he often played as a substitute. He played only 203 minutes in his first 13 matches. Then, he received an offer from an Indonesian club, Bali Devata. Spasojević accepted and moved to Indonesia.
Success with Bali Devata
On January 1, 2011, Spasojević arrived in Indonesia. He signed with Bali Devata. He quickly became an important player. He scored 8 goals in the first half of the Indonesian league season. He also scored two goals in a friendly match against Indonesia U-23.
Playing for PSM Makassar
On October 1, 2011, Spasojević signed with PSM Makassar in the Indonesian Premier League. In January 2012, an Italian club, Brescia Calcio, wanted to sign him. But PSM Makassar said no to the offer. In his first season with PSM Makassar, he was the club's top scorer. He scored 14 goals in total.
He was chosen by Goal.com for the best team of the 2011–12 season in Indonesia. The Indonesian Football Association invited him to play with Barcelona star Cesc Fàbregas. This was an exhibition game between the Indonesian national team and "Fabregas and friends." The game was in Jakarta on July 5, 2012, and ended in a 1-1 draw. Spasojević scored the only goal for "Fabregas and friends." He scored 19 goals in 29 matches for PSM Makassar.
Time with Mitra Kukar
On May 15, 2013, Spasojević joined Mitra Kukar in the Indonesian Super League. This happened after the club tried to sign Andriy Shevchenko but failed. Spasojević signed a contract until the end of the 2013 season. He scored 10 goals in 16 matches. He became one of the best strikers in the league. His goals helped Mitra Kukar get third place in the league. This was the club's best result ever.
Joining Putra Samarinda
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In January 2014, Spasojević signed with Putra Samarinda. He played in the Indonesian Super League. In 20 matches during the 2014 season, he scored 10 goals. He was the club's top scorer and the third top scorer in the league. He also scored 2 goals in 3 matches in the 2014 Inter Island Cup.
Playing for Persib Bandung
After his great performance in 2014, many clubs wanted Spasojević. He joined PBR on December 1, 2014. This made him the most expensive player in the 2015 Indonesia Super League. But he left PBR due to club issues. He then joined Indonesian champions Persib Bandung on March 23, 2015.
He was named "man of the match" in his first league game. He played only two league matches for Persib Bandung in 2015. The league was stopped because of a ban by the government. In August 2015, the President Cup started. Spasojević played very well in this cup. He helped Persib Bandung win the trophy. He scored 4 goals and made 1 assist in 6 matches. He was named "man of the match" twice. He was also named the best striker in the President Cup.
Moving to Melaka United
In December 2015, Spasojević signed a two-year contract with Melaka United. He became the team captain because of his experience. This was a good choice. He led Melaka United to win the Malaysia Premier League 2016. He scored 24 goals, which was half of the team's total goals. This was the club's first league trophy in 33 years.
Spasojević also won the Malaysia Golden Boot in 2016. He was named PFA Malaysia Player of the Month twice. He received an award from the Melaka Governor. This made him the first foreign player in the club's history to get this award. He scored 30 goals in 35 matches in Malaysia. He left Melaka United in June 2017.
Joining Bhayangkara
In August 2017, Spasojević signed with Bhayangkara in Indonesian Liga 1. He quickly showed his goal-scoring skills. He scored 13 goals in 16 league matches. He was the club's top scorer for the 2017 season. In the final match for the league title, Spasojević scored three goals. Bhayangkara beat Madura United 3-1. They became the first champions of Indonesian Liga 1.
Playing for Bali United
In December 2017, Spasojević signed a three-year contract with Bali United. He scored his first goal for Bali United in a 2018 AFC Champions League qualifying play-offs game. His team won 3–1. In 2018, he scored 14 goals in 35 games. In 2019, he scored against Persebaya in a 2–1 win. He scored two goals against Borneo FC and Badak Lampung. Spasojević scored 19 goals in 36 games in 2019. He helped his team win the 2019 Liga 1.
He scored his first goal in the 2020 season in the 2020 AFC Cup group stage. He scored again in the next match. Spasojević scored two goals in the 2021 Menpora Cup. Bali United reached the quarter-finals. On September 11, 2021, he scored his first league goal of the 2021 season. He scored two goals against Persita Tangerang. At the end of the season, Spasojević was the league's top scorer. He scored 23 goals in 34 matches. He helped Bali United win their second Liga 1 title in a row.
On September 10, 2022, Spasojević scored three goals in a 6–0 win. This was against Dewa United. On September 20, 2023, he scored twice in an AFC Cup game. His team won 5–2 against Stallion Laguna.
Return to Bhayangkara
On July 13, 2024, Spasojević left Bali United after six years. He rejoined Liga 2 club Bhayangkara. He scored in his first game for them. It was the only goal in a win against Persipa Pati on September 8.
International Football Career
Spasojević played for Serbia-Montenegro U17 and Serbia-Montenegro U19. In 2006, Serbia and Montenegro became separate countries. Spasojević chose to play for Montenegro U21.
In October 2017, Spasojević officially became an Indonesian citizen. He made his first official game for Indonesia on November 25. He scored two goals in a 2–1 win against Guyana.
In December 2022, Spasojević was chosen for the 2022 AFF Championship squad. He scored a goal against Brunei in a 7–0 win during the group stage.
Personal Life
Ilija Spasojević was born in Bar, Montenegro. His parents are Dragutin and Leposava. He has two brothers, Krsto and Mirko. Spasojević is married to Ljiljana. They have a daughter named Lara (born 2022). He also has a son, Dragan (born 2014), and another daughter, Irina (born 2017).
Career Statistics
International Games and Goals
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Indonesia | 2017 | 1 | 2 |
| 2019 | 1 | 1 | |
| 2022 | 2 | 1 | |
| 2023 | 3 | 0 | |
| Total | 7 | 4 | |
- Scores and results list Indonesia's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Spasojević goal.
| No. | Date | Venue | Cap | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 25 November 2017 | Patriot Chandrabhaga Stadium, Bekasi, Indonesia | 1 |  Guyana |
1–1 | 2–1 | Friendly |
| 2 | 2–1 | ||||||
| 3 | 25 March 2019 | Mandalarthiri Stadium, Mandalay, Myanmar | 2 |  Myanmar |
2–0 | 2–0 | Friendly |
| 4 | 26 December 2022 | Kuala Lumpur Stadium, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia | 4 |  Brunei |
4–0 | 7–0 | 2022 AFF Championship |
Awards and Achievements
Dinamo Tbilisi
- Georgian League: 2007–08
- Georgian Cup: 2009
- Georgian Super Cup: 2008
Persib Bandung
- Indonesia President's Cup: 2015
Melaka United
- Malaysia Premier League: 2016
Bhayangkara
- Liga 1: 2017
Bali United
- Liga 1: 2019, 2021–22
Indonesia
- Aceh World Solidarity Cup runner-up: 2017
Individual Awards
- PFAM Player of the Month (Premier League): July 2016, August 2016
- Malaysia Premier League Golden Boot: 2016 (24 goals)
- Malaysia All Competitions Golden Boot: 2016 (27 goals)
- Liga 1 Team of the Season: 2019, 2021–22
- Indonesian Soccer Awards: Favorite Footballer 2019
- Liga 1 Player of the Month: September 2021, September 2022
- Liga 1 Top Goalscorer: 2021–22
- APPI Indonesian Football Award Best 11: 2021–22
See also
- List of Indonesia international footballers born outside Indonesia
