Ognjen Vukojević Facts for Kids

Quick facts for kids
Ognjen Vukojević
Personal information
Vukojević with Dynamo Kyiv in 2011
Full name	Ognjen Vukojević
Date of birth	(1983-12-20) 20 December 1983 (age 41)
Place of birth	Bjelovar, SR Croatia, Yugoslavia
Height	1.83 m (6 ft 0 in)
Position(s)	Defensive midfielder, Centre back
Team information
Current team	Croatia U20 (manager) Croatia (scout)
Youth career
	Mladost Ždralovi
	Bjelovar
1996-2002	Varteks Varaždin
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2002–2003	Bjelovar	7	(0)
2003–2005	Slaven Belupo	53	(5)
2005	Lierse	9	(0)
2006–2008	Dinamo Zagreb	66	(11)
2008–2015	Dynamo Kyiv	141	(10)
2013	→ Spartak Moscow (loan)	9	(0)
2014–2015	→ Dinamo Zagreb (loan)	17	(0)
2015–2017	Austria Wien	22	(1)
Total		324	(27)
International career
2003–2005	Croatia U21	17	(3)
2007–2014	Croatia	55	(4)
Managerial career
2017–2020	Dynamo Kyiv (scout)
2018–	Croatia (scout)
2019–	Croatia U20 (Head coach)
2020–2022	Dynamo Kyiv (assistant)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Ognjen Vukojević (born on December 20, 1983) is a Croatian football manager and a former professional football player. He used to play as a defensive midfielder or a centre back.

Today, Ognjen is the manager for the Croatia national under-20 team. He also works as an assistant manager for the Ukrainian Premier League club Dynamo Kyiv. Additionally, he is a scout for the Croatia national team.

Vukojević played football for 15 years. He played for clubs in Croatia, Belgium, Ukraine, Russia, and Austria. He also played for his national team for seven years. During this time, he represented Croatia in two UEFA European Championships and the 2014 FIFA World Cup.

Playing Career Highlights
Playing for Croatia
- International Goals Scored
Managerial Career
Awards and Trophies
See also

Playing Career Highlights

Starting Out in Football

Ognjen Vukojević began his football journey at a club called Mladost Ždralovi. Later, he moved to NK Bjelovar. In 1996, he joined NK Varteks Varaždin. He played there until 2002, when he finished his youth career.

After playing one season back at NK Bjelovar, Vukojević started his professional career. This was in 2003 with Slaven Belupo. In 2005, he moved to the Belgian team Lierse S.K.. However, he did not get many chances to play there. So, in December 2005, he decided to return to Croatia. He then signed with Dinamo Zagreb.

Time at Dinamo Zagreb

Vukojević played his first game for Dinamo Zagreb on March 4, 2006. They won 3–0 against Međimurje at home. During the 2006–07 season, he became a regular player for the club. Fans often called him "Dinamo's Gattuso" because of his strong playing style.

In the autumn of 2006, Vukojević played in six European matches for Dinamo Zagreb. He played in all four of their UEFA Champions League qualifying games. These were against Ekranas and Arsenal. He also played in both matches against Auxerre in the first round of the UEFA Cup. He scored one goal in Dinamo's 5–2 home win against Ekranas.

In the first part of the 2007–08 season, Vukojević played in all 12 of Dinamo Zagreb's European matches. He made six appearances in the UEFA Champions League qualifying rounds. He also played six more games in the UEFA Cup. He scored one goal in home matches against Domžale and Werder Bremen in the Champions League qualifiers. He also scored both of Dinamo's goals in the UEFA Cup group stage. He scored the tying goal in a 2–1 away loss to Brann. He also scored the first goal in a 1–1 away draw against Rennes.

In the 2007–08 season, he also had a great season for Dinamo Zagreb in the Prva HNL. He scored 11 goals in 29 league games. The club won their third league title in a row that season. During his time at Dinamo Zagreb, the club also won two Croatian Football Cup titles in a row.

Playing for Dynamo Kyiv

In action at Spartak Moscow

On May 26, 2008, Vukojević signed a five-year contract with Dynamo Kyiv. He played his first Ukrainian Premier League game on July 19, 2008. Dynamo Kyiv won 2–0 at home against Illichivets. He quickly became a regular player for the club.

Vukojević also helped Dynamo Kyiv reach the UEFA Champions League group stage. He played in all four of their qualifying matches. These were against Drogheda United and Spartak Moscow. In his first Champions League group stage match, a 1–1 draw at home to Arsenal, he won a penalty. This happened after he was fouled by Bacary Sagna. Ismaël Bangoura scored the first goal of the match from that penalty.

On October 4, 2008, Vukojević scored his first goal for Dynamo Kyiv. He scored the first goal in their 4–0 away win against Kharkiv in the Ukrainian Premier League. He went on to play in all six of Dynamo Kyiv's UEFA Champions League group matches. He helped the club finish third in their group. This allowed them to continue their European journey in the UEFA Cup. He kept playing regularly in the competition. He scored his first European goal for Dynamo Kyiv on March 12, 2009. This was in the first game of their round of 16 match against Metalist Kharkiv. He scored the only goal in his team's 1–0 win. He missed the second game because of a yellow card suspension. Dynamo won the match based on the away goals and moved to the quarter-finals. In the second leg of the quarter-final against Paris Saint Germain, he scored the final goal in a 3–0 win. This helped his team win 3–0 overall.

Loan Spells

After not playing as much for Dynamo Kyiv, Vukojević was loaned to the Russian team Spartak Moscow. This loan lasted until the end of the 2012–13 season.

On August 11, 2014, Vukojević joined Dinamo Zagreb again. This was a loan for one season.

Playing for Croatia

Vukojević was first called to play for the Croatia national team in August 2007. He made his first international appearance on October 16, 2007. This was in Croatia's 3–0 win in a friendly match against Slovakia. He came on as a substitute at half-time. He scored his first international goal just two minutes into the second half, giving Croatia a 2–0 lead. His first official game for Croatia was a 2–0 away loss to Macedonia. This was during the UEFA Euro 2008 qualifiers. He came off the bench to replace Niko Kranjčar in the last 15 minutes of the game.

Vukojević was also part of Croatia's team at the UEFA Euro 2008 finals. These games were held in Austria and Switzerland. He played in two of the team's four matches. He came on as a late substitute for Ivica Olić in Croatia's first match against Austria. He played the full 90 minutes in their last group match against Poland. Croatia won both of these matches 1–0.

He played his first game in the 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifiers on October 11, 2008. This was in Croatia's 0–0 draw against Ukraine. He also played in their 4–0 home win against Andorra four days later. He started both of these matches.

On June 27, 2014, Vukojević announced he was retiring from the Croatia national team. He played a total of 55 games for his country, scoring 4 goals. His last international game was a May 2014 friendly match against Mali.

International Goals Scored

List of international goals scored by Ognjen Vukojević
No.	Date	Venue	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition
1	16 October 2007	Stadion Kantrida, Rijeka, Croatia	Slovakia	2–0	3–0	Friendly
2	14 October 2009	Astana Arena, Astana, Kazakhstan	Kazakhstan	0–1	1–2	2010 FIFA World Cup qualification
3	2 September 2011	Ta'Qali Stadium, Ta' Qali, Malta	Malta	0–1	1–3	UEFA Euro 2012 qualification
4	25 May 2012	Stadion Aldo Drosina, Pula, Croatia	Estonia	3–0	3–1	Friendly