Mario Mandžukić is a Croatian footballer who plays for Spanish club Atlético Madrid
and for the Croatian national team as a striker.
Besides being a prolific striker, he is known for his great defensive contribution and aerial
power.
He started his career in his hometown club Marsonia from where he moved to two Croatian
capital city football clubs, first joining NK Zagreb and then signing with Dinamo Zagreb
in 2007, where he was Prva HNL top goalscorer in the 2008–09 season.
His prolific scoring earned him a transfer to VfL Wolfsburg in 2010.
After some impressive performances at UEFA Euro 2012, where he was the joint top scorer
with three goals, he was signed by German Bundesliga giants Bayern Munich.
In his first season with the club he won three trophies; the Bundesliga, DFB-Pokal, and the
Champions League, while also becoming the first Croat to score in a Champions league
final.
At international level, Mandžukić was given his debut for Croatia in November 2007 under
manager Slaven Bilić.
He was named Croatian Footballer of the Year in 2012 and 2013.
Club career Early days
Mandžukić made his first footballing steps at the German club TSF Ditzingen, based near
Stuttgart, in 1992.
Upon his return to his home city, he spent the period between 1996 and 2003 at NK Marsonia
before spending a season at the city minnows NK Željezničar.
The next season, he returned to Marsonia and in the summer of 2005 he made a move to NK
Zagreb.
He thrived under the tuition of Miroslav Blažević and earned much interest from other clubs,
such as Chelsea and Manchester United.
Dinamo Zagreb In the summer of 2007, Mandžukić was bought
by the Croatian powerhouse Dinamo Zagreb for €1.3 million as a replacement for their
Arsenal-bound star striker Eduardo.
Upon his arrival, he managed to secure his spot in starting eleven, playing mostly in
the position of second striker.
On 4 October 2007, he put on an impressive performance against AFC Ajax in Amsterdam
when he scored two goals in extra-time to secure Dinamo's 2–3 away win, as Dinamo
qualified for the group stage of 2007–08 UEFA Cup.
He finished his first season at Dinamo with 12 goals and 11 assists throughout 29 matches,
but also had a poor discipline record, collecting eight yellow cards.
He started the 2008–09 season with two goals against Linfield in a qualifier for the UEFA
Cup.
In the 2008–09 Prva HNL, Mandžukić was the league's top goalscorer, bagging 16 goals
in 28 appearances.
He also scored three goals in the season's UEFA Cup.
This was the season of his rise in the Croatian national team as well, as he collected eight
caps in 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifying matches.
After the 2008–09 season had finished, he was linked with German side Werder Bremen,
but the €12 million offer was rejected by the Dinamo board, who were of opinion that
Mandžukić's worth was at least €15 million.
He started the 2009–10 season by scoring a goal in a Champions League play-off match
against Red Bull Salzburg.
Mandžukić received red card in the last minutes of the game.
After he told the referee that he got hit by the bottle that somebody threw from the
stands, he gave him his second yellow card and ruled him out of the game.
On 17 September 2009, after Dinamo lost 2–0 at home to Anderlecht in Europa League, Mandžukić
was controversially fined €100,000 after being accused of poor effort.
It was the first time in the history of the club that a player was financially fined.
On 20 September, Mandžukić captained Dinamo to a 6–0 victory against HNK Rijeka in Prva
HNL.
In a post–match interview, Mandžukić rejected any speculation about him leaving the club
after the fine, stating that it was his childhood dream to captain the Dinamo side and that
he gives his best in any match he plays for the club.
During that season, he appeared in 24 league matches, scoring 14 goals.
He appeared in five Europa League matches as well.
Wolfsburg On 14 July 2010, Mandžukić signed for VfL
Wolfsburg for a fee believed to be around €7 million.
Upon his arrival, in the first half of the 2010–11 season, he played regularly but
mostly coming on as a substitute.
At the time, he was mostly used as left winger under coach Steve McClaren, who played with
only one striker, Edin Džeko.
Things changed for Mandžukić, however, after the departure of Džeko to Manchester City
in January 2011.
Mandžukić scored his first Bundesliga goal for Wolfsburg on Matchday 26 against 1.
FC Nürnberg under interim manager Pierre Littbarski.
Upon the arrival of manager Felix Magath, Mandžukić was played in his natural position
as striker.
In the last seven matches of the domestic season, he scored eight goals, two of which
came in the last match against TSG 1899 Hoffenheim, and were crucial for the club as they avoided
relegation.
In his second season in Wolfsburg, he became a regular starter in the Bundesliga and was
the club's top goalscorer with 12 goals.
In his two years at Wolfsburg, he scored 20 times in 56 appearances, establishing himself
as one of Wolfsburg's best players during his stay and quickly becoming a fan favourite
due to his goalscoring ability and attitude.
Bayern Munich On 26 June, Mandžukić signed a contract
with Bundesliga club Bayern Munich for a transfer fee of €13 million, pending a medical test,
subsequent to his strong performance at UEFA Euro 2012 in Ukraine and Poland, and because
of his terrific form for Wolfsburg in the Bundesliga.
On 27 June, the transfer was officially announced by Bayern.
2012–13 season On 24 July 2012, Mandžukić made his debut
for Bayern in a 6–0 win against Chinese Super League side Beijing Guoan, scoring the
fifth goal in the friendly match in the 79th minute.
On 12 August, he scored his first goal in an official game against reigning Bundesliga
champions Borussia Dortmund in the sixth minute, helping his team win the German DFL Supercup.
He scored his first league goal for Bayern against Greuther Fürth on matchday one and
added another one the next matchday in a 6–1 win against VfB Stuttgart.
He went on to score twice against his former club Wolfsburg.
Mandžukić then added four more goals in five more Bundesliga matches, taking his tally
to nine goals in 11 matches in the German top tier.
After the Bundesliga winter break, Mandžukić continued with his goal scoring activity,
netting three more goals in first two games, against Greuther Fürth and Stuttgart.
He scored another brace against 1.
FSV Mainz 05.
He finished his first Bundesliga season with Bayern as the club's top goalscorer, netting
a total of 15 goals in 24 matches and having a major impact in winning the Bundesliga title.
He scored his first Champions League goal of the season in the Round of 16 match against
Arsenal.
He netted another one in the quarter-final match against Juventus in Turin, giving Bayern
the 0–1 away lead.
On 25 May, Bayern faced Borussia Dortmund in the 2013 UEFA Champions League Final and
Mandžukić scored the first goal of the match, giving Bayern a 1–0 lead in 60th minute.
Bayern went on to win the match 2–1 after a late goal from Arjen Robben.
With this goal, Mandžukić became the first Croat to score in a Champions League final
game and it capped a highly successful first season for him in Munich, as the club completed
a treble-winning season, claiming the Bundesliga, Champions League, and DFB-Pokal, as well as
the German Supercup at the start of the campaign.
2013–14 season Mandžukić first began the season slowly,
having small issues adjusting to new Bayern coach Pep Guardiola's system.
Guardiola changed Bayern's formation from the 4-2-3-1 they had used previously under
Jupp Heynckes to a new 4-1-4-1 style.
While it took a bit of time to adjust, Mandžukić regained his form nonetheless in time for
league play.
He opened the new season in the Bundesliga by scoring two goals in two league appearances.
Mandžukić scored his first Champions League goal of the season when Bayern Munich began
the defence of their Champions League title against CSKA Moscow with a 3–0 victory at
the Allianz Arena.
He headed the only goal as Bayern defeated a valiant FC Viktoria Plzeň in November to
move into the knockout stages with a record-equalling ninth successive UEFA Champions League win.
Mandžukić scored his tenth goal of the new Bundesliga season in a December match against
Hamburger SV.
In the first semi-final of 2013 FIFA Club World Cup, Mandžukić dove low to head Thiago
Alcantara's cross into goal for 2–0 against Guangzhou Evergrande.
He eventually won the competition with Bayern after the final with Raja Casablanca, ended
with a 2–0 victory.
Upon the Bundesliga winter break, Mandžukić was left out of the Bayern Munich 18-man roster
in their match against Borussia Mönchengladbach, with Guardiola reportedly unimpressed with
his performances in training.
He returned to the squad for the next match against VfB Stuttgart.
A week later, against Eintracht Frankfurt, Mandžukić delivered a response with a commanding
performance in Bayern's 5–0 win, scoring the last goal of the match and delivering
a pinpoint pass to Mario Götze who opened the scoring.
On 12 February, Mandžukić scored his first hat-trick of the season, as Bayern Munich
eased their way into the DFB-Pokal semi-final with a 5–0 rout of Hamburger SV.
In the match against Hannover 96, Mandžukić celebrated his 100th Bundesliga appearance
by meeting Rafinha's cross to complete the goal.
Despite being the club's top scorer with 26 goals, Mandžukić was dropped from the team
by Guardiola ahead of the 2014 DFB-Pokal Final.
Mandžukić stated that he wanted to leave Bayern because "the playing style of coach
Pep Guardiola simply does not fit" him.
Atlético Madrid On 10 July 2014, Mandžukić signed a four-year
deal with the Spanish club Atlético Madrid, for a fee believed to be around €22 million.
International career After putting together a string of solid performances
in the 2007–08 Prva HNL, as well as in Dinamo's UEFA Champions League and UEFA Cup matches,
he earned a call–up to the Croatian national team, for which he debuted in a game against
Macedonia on 17 November 2007.
On 10 September 2008, he scored his first ever goal for Croatia in a 4–1 loss against
England.
Euro 2012 His influence in the national team increased
during the UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying.
His first goal of the campaign came in June 2011, when he scored an equalizer against
Georgia at the Stadion Poljud.
He added another header against Latvia in the last match of the qualifiers.
With Croatia finishing second in their group, they had to face Turkey in the Euro 2012 play-offs.
In the first match played in Istanbul, Croatia stunned the home fans by winning 0–3, with
Mandžukić scoring the second goal from a header in the 32nd minute of the match.
Mandžukić was one of two of manager Slaven Bilić's first choice strikers for Croatia
at UEFA Euro 2012, being paired with the Everton striker Nikica Jelavić.
He scored twice in Croatia's opening game of the Euro against the Republic of Ireland.
He also scored against Italy in the following group game.
He was the joint-top scorer of the tournament with three goals alongside Mario Balotelli,
Fernando Torres, Cristiano Ronaldo, Alan Dzagoev, and future Bayern teammate Mario Gómez.
2014 World Cup He opened the 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification
by providing two assists in the first two matches, against Macedonia in Zagreb and against
Belgium in Brussels.
He scored his first goal of the campaign against Wales in Osijek.
Mandžukić added another goal to his tally in qualification match against Serbia, giving
Croatia a 1–0 lead, in Zagreb.
He also scored in the second match between the two sides in Belgrade.
In the second leg of Croatia's play-off match against Iceland in Zagreb, Mandžukić gave
Croatia the lead in an eventual 2–0 win.
However, he later received a red card after a reckless high tackle on Jóhann Berg Guðmundsson
connected with the Icelandic midfielder's left knee.
Mandžukić was named in Croatia's squad for the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil, but was
suspended for the team's first match against the host nation in São Paulo on 12 June 2014.
He returned to the team for Croatia's second match against Cameroon on 18 June, and marked
his debut at the World Cup scoring twice in a 4–0 win.
He was awarded the "Man of the Match" award.
Career statistics As of 10 May 2014
International goals Honours
Club Dinamo Zagreb
Croatian First League: 2007–08, 2008–09, 2009–10
Croatian Cup: 2007–08, 2008–09 Bayern Munich
Bundesliga: 2012–13, 2013–14 DFB-Pokal: 2012–13, 2013–14
DFL-Supercup: 2012 UEFA Champions League: 2012–13
UEFA Super Cup: 2013 FIFA Club World Cup: 2013
Individual Croatian First League Top Goalscorer: 2008–09
Best Player of the Croatian First League: 2008–09
UEFA Euro Co-Top Scorer: 2012 Croatian Footballer of the Year: 2012, 2013
Croatian Sportsman of the Year: 2013 References
External links Mario Mandžukić – FIFA competition record
Mario Mandžukić – UEFA competition record Mario Mandžukić statistics – ESPNsoccernet
Mario Mandžukić at National-Football-Teams.com