Nikola Vlašić facts for kids
.jpg)
Vlašić playing for CSKA Moscow in 2019
|
||||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Nikola Vlašić | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Date of birth | 4 October 1997 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Split, Croatia | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.79 m (5 ft 10+1⁄2 in) | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Position(s) | Attacking midfielder | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Team information | ||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Current team
|
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 | 63 | (8) | |||||||||||||||||||
| International career‡ | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| 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 | 58 | (8) | |||||||||||||||||||
|
Medal record
|
||||||||||||||||||||||
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 30 May 2025 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 20 March 2025 |
||||||||||||||||||||||
Nikola Vlašić (born on October 4, 1997) is a Croatian professional footballer. He plays as an attacking midfielder for the Italian club Torino. He also plays for the Croatia national team.
Nikola comes from a family of famous athletes in Croatia. He started his football journey at the Hajduk Split academy. He made his first team debut in 2014. Later that year, he was even featured on The Guardian's "Next Generation" list. His strong performances led him to join Everton in 2017. After a season there, he moved to CSKA Moscow, first on loan, then permanently.
Vlašić first played for his country in 2017. He became a regular player for Croatia after the 2018 FIFA World Cup. He has represented Croatia 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 joined the Omladinac Vranjic academy. When he was 12, he moved to Hajduk Split. He was a very talented youth player. In the 2013–14 season, he played well with Andrija Balić for the Hajduk U17 team. They finished first without losing a single game. Both players then signed professional contracts and moved to the U19 team.
He played his first senior game on July 17, 2014, in a UEFA Europa League qualifying match. He scored a goal in this game against Dundalk. This made him Hajduk Split's youngest goal scorer in international games. He was 16 years and 9 months old. That season, Vlašić played 37 games and scored four goals.
In 2016, Hajduk announced that Vlašić would be the club's vice-captain. He even captained Hajduk for the first time on July 14, 2016. This was in a Europa League qualifying match. Even though he was very young, Vlašić captained the team four more times that season.
Time at Everton
On August 31, 2017, Vlašić joined Premier League club Everton. He signed a five-year contract. Everton's manager and director were impressed by him when Everton played against Hajduk in the Europa League. Vlašić scored his first goal for Everton on September 28, 2017, in a Europa League match. He scored again in the return game. After playing 19 games, he was told he was not part of the new coach's plans.
Success with CSKA Moscow
.jpg)
On August 15, 2018, Nikola Vlašić joined Russian club CSKA Moscow on loan for the 2018–19 season. He played his first league game three days later. In his Champions League debut on September 19, he scored two goals. On October 2, Vlašić scored the only goal in a 1–0 win against Real Madrid in the Champions League. In the return game, he helped set up another goal in a big 3–0 win. He finished the season with eight goals and seven assists.
CSKA was happy with his play and signed him permanently on June 19. On September 22, he scored a penalty, assisted a goal, and scored again in a 3–2 win. On December 12, he scored the only goal in a 1–0 away win in the Europa League. On June 30, 2020, Vlašić scored two goals in a 2–0 win against Spartak Moscow. He ended his second season with 13 goals and seven assists.
At the start of the 2020–21 season, other clubs were interested in him, but CSKA did not want to sell him. On December 21, Vlašić was named Footballer of the Year by the Russian Premier League and other sports groups. His relationship with CSKA became difficult in 2021 because the club was hesitant to sell him.
Moving to West Ham United
On August 31, 2021, Vlašić joined Premier League club West Ham United. He signed a five-year contract. Some reports said the transfer fee was around €30 million.
Vlašić played his first game for West Ham on September 11. His first goal contribution was on November 25 in a Europa League match. He assisted a goal in a 2–0 win. On December 28, Vlašić scored his first and only goal for West Ham in a 4–1 victory. By the end of the season, he had played the fewest minutes in his senior career.
Joining Torino
On August 11, 2022, Vlašić joined Torino on loan for the 2022–23 season. The move became permanent in August 2023. He had played 31 games for West Ham and scored one goal.
International Career
Youth Teams
Vlašić first played for the Croatia U16 team when he was 14. He often played with older teammates in the U17 and U18 teams.
He was part of Croatia's U21 squad for the UEFA Under-21 Euro 2019. He scored goals in matches against Romania and England.
Senior National Team
Early Senior Appearances
On May 28, 2017, Vlašić made his debut for the senior team in a friendly game against Mexico. On November 18, 2018, he assisted a goal in a UEFA Nations League match against England.
On September 6, 2019, Vlašić scored his first goal for Croatia in a Euro 2020 qualifying match against Slovakia. Croatia won that game 4–0. He scored another opening goal on October 13 against Wales. On November 16, Vlašić scored the tying goal against Slovakia at home, helping Croatia win 3–1 and qualify for the tournament.
UEFA Nations League and World Cup
On October 11, 2020, Vlašić scored the first goal in a 2–1 UEFA Nations League win against Sweden. Three days later, he scored again in a 2–1 loss to France. On May 17, 2021, Vlašić was chosen for Croatia's 26-player squad for the UEFA Euro 2020. This was his first major tournament. On June 22, Vlašić was named "Star of the Match" in a 3–1 win against Scotland after scoring the first goal. This helped Croatia reach the Round of 16.
On November 9, 2022, Vlašić was named in 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 move forward in the tournament. Croatia won third place in the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
Personal Life
Nikola Vlašić was born in Split. His mother, Venera Milin, was a cross-country skier. His father, Joško Vlašić, is an athletics coach. His older sister, Blanka Vlašić, is a world champion high jumper. Nikola's father started training him in football when he was four years old.
On May 22, 2021, Vlašić married his long-time girlfriend Ana in Split. In late June of the same year, they had a baby boy named Noa.
Career Statistics
Club
| Club | Season | League | National cup | League cup | Europe | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Hajduk Split | 2014–15 | Prva HNL | 27 | 3 | 5 | 0 | — | 5 | 1 | 37 | 4 | |
| 2015–16 | Prva HNL | 23 | 1 | 3 | 0 | — | 8 | 1 | 34 | 2 | ||
| 2016–17 | Prva HNL | 30 | 4 | 1 | 0 | — | 6 | 0 | 37 | 4 | ||
| 2017–18 | Prva HNL | 6 | 3 | 0 | 0 | — | 6 | 0 | 12 | 3 | ||
| Total | 86 | 11 | 9 | 0 | — | 25 | 2 | 120 | 13 | |||
| Everton | 2017–18 | Premier League | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 2 | 19 | 2 |
| CSKA Moscow (loan) | 2018–19 | Russian Premier League | 25 | 5 | 0 | 0 | — | 6 | 3 | 31 | 8 | |
| CSKA Moscow | 2019–20 | Russian Premier League | 30 | 12 | 2 | 0 | — | 6 | 1 | 38 | 13 | |
| 2020–21 | Russian Premier League | 26 | 11 | 3 | 1 | — | 5 | 0 | 34 | 12 | ||
| 2021–22 | Russian Premier League | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 5 | 0 | |||
| Total | 86 | 28 | 5 | 1 | — | 17 | 4 | 108 | 33 | |||
| West Ham United | 2021–22 | Premier League | 19 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 31 | 1 |
| Torino (loan) | 2022–23 | Serie A | 34 | 5 | 3 | 0 | — | — | 37 | 5 | ||
| Torino | 2023–24 | Serie A | 33 | 3 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 35 | 3 | ||
| 2024–25 | Serie A | 30 | 5 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 30 | 5 | |||
| Total | 97 | 13 | 5 | 0 | — | — | 102 | 13 | ||||
| Career total | 300 | 53 | 22 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 54 | 8 | 380 | 62 | ||
International
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Croatia | 2017 | 2 | 0 |
| 2018 | 2 | 0 | |
| 2019 | 7 | 3 | |
| 2020 | 6 | 2 | |
| 2021 | 16 | 2 | |
| 2022 | 15 | 0 | |
| 2023 | 5 | 0 | |
| 2024 | 4 | 1 | |
| 2025 | 1 | 0 | |
| Total | 58 | 8 | |
- Scores and results list Croatia's goal tally first.
| No. | Date | Venue | Cap | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 6 September 2019 | Anton Malatinský Stadium, Trnava, Slovakia | 6 |  Slovakia |
1–0 | 4–0 | UEFA Euro 2020 qualifying |
| 2 | 13 October 2019 | Cardiff City Stadium, Cardiff, Wales | 9 |  Wales |
1–0 | 1–1 | UEFA Euro 2020 qualifying |
| 3 | 16 November 2019 | Stadion Rujevica, Rijeka, Croatia | 10 | Slovakia |
1–1 | 3–1 | UEFA Euro 2020 qualifying |
| 4 | 11 October 2020 | Stadion Maksimir, Zagreb, Croatia | 14 |  Sweden |
1–0 | 2–1 | 2020–21 UEFA Nations League A |
| 5 | 14 October 2020 | Stadion Maksimir, Zagreb, Croatia | 15 |  France |
1–1 | 1–2 | 2020–21 UEFA Nations League A |
| 6 | 22 June 2021 | Hampden Park, Glasgow, Scotland | 25 |  Scotland |
1–0 | 3–1 | UEFA Euro 2020 |
| 7 | 7 September 2021 | Stadion Poljud, Split, Croatia | 29 |  Slovenia |
3–0 | 3–0 | 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 8 | 26 March 2024 | New Administrative Capital Stadium, New Administrative Capital, Egypt | 55 |  Egypt |
1–1 | 4–2 | 2024 FIFA Series |
Honours and Awards
Croatia
- FIFA World Cup third place: 2022
- UEFA Nations League runner-up: 2022–23
Individual Awards
- Russian Premier League Player of the Month: September 2018, December 2018, July 2020
- Sport-Express, Russian Football Union and Russian Premier League Footballer of the Year: 2020
See also
In Spanish: Nikola Vlašić para niños
