Nikola Vlašić facts for kids
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Vlašić playing for CSKA Moscow in 2019
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| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Date of birth | 4 October 1997 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Split, Croatia | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.79 m (5 ft 10+1⁄2 in) | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Playing position | Attacking midfielder | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Club information | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Current club | Torino | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Number | 10 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Youth career | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2006–2009 | Omladinac Vranjic | |||||||||||||||||||||
| 2010–2014 | Hajduk Split | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2014–2017 | Hajduk Split | 86 | (11) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2017–2019 | Everton | 12 | (0) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2018–2019 | → CSKA Moscow (loan) | 25 | (5) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2019–2021 | CSKA Moscow | 61 | (23) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2021–2023 | West Ham United | 19 | (1) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2022–2023 | → Torino (loan) | 34 | (5) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2023– | Torino | 48 | (5) | |||||||||||||||||||
| National team‡ | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2012–2013 | Croatia U16 | 8 | (1) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2013 | Croatia U17 | 8 | (1) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2014 | Croatia U18 | 2 | (1) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2015 | Croatia U19 | 3 | (0) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2015–2019 | Croatia U21 | 17 | (6) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2017– | Croatia | 57 | (8) | |||||||||||||||||||
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Honours
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† Appearances (Goals). |
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Nikola Vlašić (born 4 October 1997) is a professional footballer from Croatia. He plays as an attacking midfielder for the Italian club Torino. He also plays for the Croatia national team.
Nikola comes from a well-known sports family in Croatia. He started his football journey at the Hajduk Split academy when he was young. He made his first team debut in 2014. That same year, he was recognized by The Guardian as one of the "Next Generation" of talented young players. In 2017, he moved to the English club Everton. After one season, he was loaned to CSKA Moscow in Russia, and later joined them permanently.
Vlašić first played for the Croatian national team in 2017. He became a regular player after Croatia's great performance in the 2018 FIFA World Cup. He has represented his country in major tournaments like the UEFA Euro 2020, 2022 FIFA World Cup, and Euro 2024.
Contents
Club Career Highlights
Starting at Hajduk Split
Nikola Vlašić began his football training at the Omladinac Vranjic academy. When he was 12, he joined Hajduk Split. He was very good in the youth teams. In the 2013–14 season, he and Andrija Balić were a strong midfield duo for the Hajduk U17 team. They finished the first half of the season without losing a single game. Because of their talent, both players signed professional contracts and moved up to the U19 team.
Vlašić made his first team debut for Hajduk Split on 17 July 2014. This was in a UEFA Europa League qualifying match. He scored a goal in his very first game! This made him Hajduk Split's youngest goal scorer in international competitions. He was only 16 years and 9 months old. During that season, Vlašić played 37 games and scored four goals.
In 2016, Vlašić became the vice-captain of Hajduk Split. He even captained the team for the first time on 14 July in a Europa League qualifying match. This was a big responsibility for someone so young. He captained the team four more times that season.
Moving to Everton
On 31 August 2017, Vlašić signed a five-year contract with the Premier League club Everton. The transfer fee was about £10 million, which was a record for Hajduk Split. Everton's manager, Ronald Koeman, was impressed by Vlašić when their teams played each other in the 2017–18 UEFA Europa League.
Vlašić scored his first goal for Everton on 28 September at Goodison Park. This was in a Europa League match against Apollon Limassol. He scored again in the return game. However, he only played 19 games in total that season. At the end of the season, the new coach, Marco Silva, told him he was not part of the team's future plans.
Success at CSKA Moscow
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On 15 August 2018, Vlašić joined the Russian club CSKA Moscow on a loan for the 2018–19 season. He made his league debut three days later. In his Champions League debut on 19 September, he scored two goals in a 2–2 draw.
On 2 October, Vlašić scored the only goal in a big 1–0 home victory against Real Madrid. Real Madrid were the ruling champions of the Champions League at the time. In the return game, CSKA Moscow won 3–0, which was Madrid's biggest ever home defeat in Europe. Vlašić finished the season with eight goals and seven assists.
CSKA was very happy with his performance. On 19 June, they signed Vlašić permanently from Everton. In his second season (2019–20), he scored 13 goals and made seven assists. CSKA finished fourth in the league.
At the start of the 2020–21 season, other big clubs like Napoli and Atalanta were interested in Vlašić. But CSKA refused to sell him. On 21 December 2020, Vlašić was named the Footballer of the Year in Russia by several important sports organizations.
Time at West Ham United
On 31 August 2021, Vlašić joined the Premier League club West Ham United. He signed a five-year contract. Some reports said the transfer fee was around €30 million, making it one of the most expensive transfers for a Croatian player.
He played his first game for West Ham on 11 September. His first goal contribution came on 25 November in a Europa League match, where he assisted a goal. On 28 December, Vlašić scored his first and only goal for West Ham in a 4–1 win against Watford. By the end of the season, he had played the fewest minutes of his senior career.
Joining Torino
On 11 August 2022, Vlašić joined the Italian club Torino on loan for the 2022–23 season. Torino also had an option to buy him permanently.
The move became permanent in August 2023. He signed a full contract with Torino for an undisclosed fee. He had played 31 games for West Ham and scored one goal.
International Career with Croatia
Vlašić started playing for the Croatia U16 team when he was just 14 years old. He often played with older teammates in the U17 and U18 teams.
On 28 May 2017, he made his debut for the senior national team in a friendly match against Mexico. He was in the starting lineup. On 18 November 2018, he assisted a goal in a UEFA Nations League match against England.
Vlašić was part of Croatia's squad for the UEFA Under-21 Euro 2019. He scored goals in matches against Romania and England during this tournament.
On 6 September 2019, he scored his first goal for the senior team. This was in a Euro 2020 qualifying match against Slovakia, which Croatia won 4–0. He scored another opening goal against Wales on 13 October. On 16 November, he scored an important equalizer against Slovakia at home, helping Croatia win 3–1 and qualify for the tournament.
In 2020, Vlašić scored two more goals for Croatia in UEFA Nations League matches against Sweden and France.
On 17 May 2021, Vlašić was chosen for Croatia's 26-man squad for the UEFA Euro 2020. This was his first major tournament. On 22 June, he was named the "Star of the Match" in Croatia's 3–1 victory over Scotland. He scored the opening goal in that game, which helped Croatia move to the next round.
On 9 November 2022, Vlašić was selected for Croatia's squad for the 2022 FIFA World Cup. In the knockout stage matches against Japan and Brazil, both of which went to a penalty shootout, Vlašić was the first player to shoot for Croatia. He scored both times, helping Croatia advance in the tournament. Croatia finished third in the 2022 World Cup.
Personal Life
Nikola Vlašić was born in Split. He comes from a family of athletes. His mother, Venera Milin, was a cross-country skier. His father, Joško Vlašić, is an athletics coach. Nikola's older sister, Blanka Vlašić, is a world champion high jumper.
His father started training him personally when Nikola was just four years old. Many people saw Nikola's football career as his father's special "project."
On 22 May 2021, Nikola Vlašić married his long-time girlfriend, Ana. In late June of the same year, they welcomed their baby boy, whom they named Noa.
Career Achievements
Nikola Vlašić has achieved several notable things in his career:
- FIFA World Cup third place: 2022 (with Croatia)
- UEFA Nations League runner-up: 2022–23 (with Croatia)
He has also received individual awards:
- Russian Premier League Player of the Month: September 2018, December 2018, July 2020
- Footballer of the Year in Russia: 2020 (awarded by Sport-Express, Russian Football Union, and Russian Premier League)
Images for kids
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Vlašić with Croatia U19 in 2015
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Vlašić playing for CSKA Moscow in 2018
See also
In Spanish: Nikola Vlašić para niños
