Ivan Leko facts for kids
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Leko with Hajduk Split in 2023
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | 7 February 1978 | ||
| Place of birth | Split, SR Croatia, SFR Yugoslavia | ||
| Height | 1.78 m | ||
| Playing position | Midfielder | ||
| Club information | |||
| Current club | Standard Liège (head coach) | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 1995–2001 | Hajduk Split | 143 | (33) |
| 1996 | → HNK Trogir (loan) | 7 | (3) |
| 2001–2005 | Málaga | 79 | (4) |
| 2005 | Hajduk Split | 14 | (3) |
| 2005–2009 | Club Brugge | 98 | (21) |
| 2009 | → Germinal Beerschot (loan) | 30 | (4) |
| 2009–2014 | Lokeren | 122 | (12) |
| Total | 493 | (80) | |
| National team | |||
| 1993–1994 | Croatia U16 | 2 | (0) |
| 1993 | Croatia U17 | 4 | (0) |
| 1994–1995 | Croatia U18 | 3 | (1) |
| 1994–1995 | Croatia U19 | 4 | (0) |
| 1998 | Croatia U20 | 1 | (0) |
| 1994–2000 | Croatia U21 | 21 | (5) |
| 2001 | Croatia B | 1 | (0) |
| 1999–2006 | Croatia | 13 | (0) |
| Teams managed | |||
| 2014 | OH Leuven | ||
| 2015–2016 | PAOK (assistant) | ||
| 2016–2017 | Sint-Truiden | ||
| 2017–2019 | Club Brugge | ||
| 2019 | Al-Ain | ||
| 2020 | Antwerp | ||
| 2021–2022 | Shanghai Port | ||
| 2023 | Hajduk Split | ||
| 2024– | Standard Liège | ||
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Ivan Leko (born 7 February 1978) is a Croatian professional football manager and former player. He is currently the head coach for the Belgian Pro League team Standard Liège. Leko played as a Midfielder during his career.
Contents
Playing Career: Clubs and Teams
Ivan Leko started his football journey with his hometown club, Hajduk Split. He played there for several seasons. Early in his career, he also spent some time on loan at HNK Trogir.
In 2001, Leko moved to Spain to join Málaga. He played for them until 2005.
In January 2005, Leko briefly returned to Hajduk Split. Later that summer, he moved to Club Brugge in Belgium. He stayed there for four years.
In 2009, Leko signed with Germinal Beerschot. He finished his playing career at Lokeren, where he played until 2014.
Playing Career: International Matches
Ivan Leko played for the Croatian national team. His first game was in June 1999 against Egypt. He played a total of 13 games for Croatia.
He was part of the Croatian team for the 2006 FIFA World Cup. However, he did not play in any matches during that tournament. Croatia was eliminated in the group stage. His last international game was in June 2006 against Spain.
Coaching Career: Leading Teams
Ivan Leko began his coaching career in 2014 with OH Leuven. He coached the club for one season.
In 2015, he became an assistant coach for the Greek team PAOK. He worked under Croatian manager Igor Tudor.
For the 2016–17 season, Leko managed Sint-Truiden. After that, he became the manager of Club Brugge for two seasons (2017–18 and 2018–19).
Success at Club Brugge
At Club Brugge, Leko achieved great success. In his first season, he won the Jupiler Pro League title. He also won the Belgian Super Cup. Because of his achievements, Leko was named the Professional Manager of the Year.
In May 2019, Leko left Club Brugge. He had been with the club since 2017.
Coaching in the UAE and China
On 1 June 2019, Leko was appointed manager of Al Ain in the United Arab Emirates. He left Al Ain in December 2019 after five months.
In May 2020, Leko became the manager of Royal Antwerp in Belgium. He led the team to win their first Belgian Cup since 1992. They beat his former team, Club Brugge, 1–0 in the final.
This cup win helped Antwerp qualify for the 2020–21 UEFA Europa League group stage. It was the first time in the club's history. They played against strong teams like Tottenham Hotspur. Leko guided the team to a surprising second-place finish in their group. They even had a 1–0 home victory against Tottenham. This meant they qualified for the knockout stage.
In December 2020, Leko left Royal Antwerp. He moved to Shanghai Port in China. He was introduced as their new head coach in February 2021.
Return to Croatia and New Role
On 31 December 2022, Ivan Leko returned to Croatia. He became the coach of his former club, Hajduk Split. He coached them until October 2023.
On 4 January 2024, he became the head coach of the Belgian team Standard Liège.
Coaching Statistics
| Team | From | To | Record | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| P | W | D | L | Win % | |||
| OH Leuven | 26 February 2014 | 28 November 2014 | 32 | 16 | 7 | 9 | 50.00 |
| Sint-Truiden | 1 July 2016 | 8 June 2017 | 44 | 16 | 8 | 20 | 36.36 |
| Club Brugge | 8 June 2017 | 2 June 2019 | 99 | 53 | 24 | 22 | 53.54 |
| Al-Ain | 2 June 2019 | 21 December 2019 | 17 | 9 | 5 | 3 | 52.94 |
| Antwerp | 20 May 2020 | 29 December 2020 | 26 | 14 | 4 | 8 | 53.85 |
| Shanghai Port | 1 January 2021 | 1 December 2022 | 58 | 32 | 12 | 14 | 55.17 |
| Hajduk Split | 31 December 2022 | 23 October 2023 | 37 | 22 | 4 | 11 | 59.46 |
| Standard Liège | 1 January 2024 | present | 25 | 5 | 9 | 11 | 20.00 |
| Total | 338 | 167 | 73 | 98 | 49.41 | ||
Honours and Awards
Ivan Leko has won several titles both as a player and as a manager.
As a Player
Hajduk Split
- Prva HNL: 2000–01, 2004–05
- Croatian Cup: 1999–2000
Málaga
- UEFA Intertoto Cup: 2002
Club Brugge
- Belgian Cup: 2006–07
- Belgian Supercup: 2005
Lokeren
- Belgian Cup: 2011–12
As a Manager
Club Brugge
- Jupiler Pro League: 2017–18
- Belgian Super Cup: 2018
Antwerp
- Belgian Cup: 2019–20
Hajduk Split
- Croatian Cup: 2022–23
Individual Awards
- Professional Manager of the Year: 2017–18
See also
In Spanish: Ivan Leko para niños
