Edin Džeko is a Bosnian footballer who plays as a forward for Premier League club Manchester
City and the Bosnia and Herzegovina national team for which he is captain.
He was named Bosnian Footballer of the Year for three years in a row. In Bosnia and Herzegovina,
he is known as Bosanski dijamant. Prior to joining Manchester City, he made a name for
himself while playing for German club Wolfsburg, with whom he won the Bundesliga in the 2008–09
season. He was second highest goal scorer with 26 goals. In the 2009–10 season, Džeko
was the top scorer with 22 goals. He also registered ten assists in both seasons.
Džeko has played 65 times for his country and scored 36 goals since 2007, becoming the
highest Bosnia and Herzegovinan goalscorer of all time on 7 September 2012 in a game
against Liechtenstein where he scored a hat-trick to surpass Zvjezdan Misimović and Elvir Bolić.
His ten goals in the qualifying campaign helped his national team qualify for its first international
tournament, the 2014 FIFA World Cup. During the 2011–12 Premier League season,
Džeko scored four goals in one game for Manchester City, completing a "perfect hat-trick" against
Tottenham Hotspur at White Hart Lane. On the final day of that season, he scored an equaliser
against Queens Park Rangers in the 92nd minute, before Sergio Agüero won it for City with
seconds to go, ensuring the team won a Premier League title for the first time in 44 years.
He later stated that the goal was one of the most important of his career.
Early career Džeko began his career at Željezničar,
playing as a midfielder between 2003 and 2005, but with little success. He was widely regarded
as too tall, and with poor technical abilities. Džeko's coach at the time though, Jiří
Plíšek, saw his potential and when Plíšek returned home to the Czech Republic, he advised
FK Teplice to buy him. Željezničar accepted a bid of just €25,000 for Džeko, prompting
one of the Bosnia and Herzegovinan club's directors to say, "[we] thought we won the
lottery". He had a loan spell with Ústí nad Labem in 2005, during which he scored
six goals in 15 games. Later that year, he moved back to Teplice, playing there until
2007. With 13 goals in 30 games, he was the second-top goalscorer of the Gambrinus liga
in the 2006–07 season. Due to his performances, VfL Wolfsburg manager Felix Magath signed
him for €4 million. Club career
Wolfsburg
After transferring to Wolfsburg, Džeko was an immediate hit, scoring five goals and recording
three assists in 11 games. He was also named by Sportal as the best striker in the first
half of the 2007–08 Bundesliga season. During his first season in Germany, Wolfsburg finished
in fifth place, qualifying for a UEFA Cup spot for the 2008–09 season. Džeko finished
the 2007–08 season with eight goals and seven assists in 17 games started.
After Wolfsburg acquired fellow Bosnian international Zvjezdan Misimović, Džeko's performance
was explosive in the second season. In May 2009, Džeko scored hat-tricks against TSG
Hoffenheim and Hannover 96 just two weeks later, contributing towards a very strong
finish to the 2008–09 season. He finished with a total of 26 league goals and 10 assists
in 32 league matches. His goal tally was second only to teammate Grafite, with whom he formed
the most successful strike duo in Bundesliga history. Wolfsburg ended the season as Bundesliga
champions for the first time in the club's history, finishing two points clear of Bayern
Munich. In the DFB-Pokal, he scored six goals in two
matches, and in the UEFA Cup, four goals and two assists in eight matches. These performances
resulted in him being given the Bundesliga Players' Footballer of the Year award. Despite
attracting interest from AC Milan, Džeko decided to stay, renewing his contract until
June 2013. He scored his first UEFA Champions League
goal on 30 September 2009 against Manchester United in a 2–1 defeat at Old Trafford.
He was one of 30 players nominated for the 2009 Ballon d'Or. He was top scorer of the
Bundesliga in the 2009–10 season with 22 goals scored.
On 28 August 2010, Džeko became the top league scorer in the club's history with 59 goals
in 96 appearances, surpassing Diego Klimowicz who scored 57 goals in 149 games. At the winter
break stage of the 2010–11 Bundesliga season, Džeko had scored 10 goals in 17 matches.
Manchester City After heavy speculation, Roberto Mancini,
manager of Manchester City, confirmed on 3 January 2011 that a fee of £27 million had
been agreed with Wolfsburg for Džeko, which was City's second highest transfer figure,
after Robinho's £32.5 million move from Real Madrid in 2008. The transfer fee was
the sixth highest in the Premier League. Also, the sum broke the Bundesliga record departure
transfer fee, Bosnian record transfer fee, as well as that of any player from ex-Yugoslavia
at the time. The previous ex-Yugoslav record stood for more than a decade – the transfer
fee paid by Real Madrid to Fenerbahçe for Elvir Baljić in 1999.
2010–11 season Following his medical examination in London
he travelled to Manchester on 5 January, and on 7 January, Džeko was confirmed as a Manchester
City player, joining the club on a four and a half year deal.
He made his debut for the club in a 4–3 win over Wolverhampton Wanderers on 15 January
in which he set up Yaya Touré for the third goal of the match. Džeko marked his FA Cup
debut on 30 January 2011 with the equalising goal in Manchester City's fourth round match
against Notts County which ended in a 1–1 draw. In the replay on 20 February, Džeko
again scored, helping Manchester City progress to the next round with a 5–0. Džeko scored
twice against Aris Thessaloniki within four and a half minutes at the City of Manchester
Stadium in the second leg of the last 32 of the UEFA Europa League on 24 February 2011.
On 25 April 2011, Džeko scored his first Premier League goal with a right footed finish
against Blackburn Rovers at Ewood Park. This was the only goal of the game in a 1–0 win
for Manchester City His last goal was against Bolton Wanderers
on the final day of the season and guaranteed City third place in the Premier League over
Arsenal and automatic qualification into the group stage of the 2011–12 UEFA Champions
League. On 14 May 2011, Džeko was an unused substitute
in Manchester City's 1–0 win over Stoke City the 2011 FA Cup Final, winning his first
trophy with the club. 2011–12 season
Džeko started his second season with City by scoring the team's second goal in a 2–3
defeat against Manchester United in the FA Community Shield. In his third English Premier
League game of this season, Džeko scored four goals, completing a "perfect hat-trick"
and the last goal was a left-footed strike from outside the box, against Tottenham Hotspur.
In this game, Džeko broke another record by becoming the first Manchester City player
to score four goals in one Premier League match. His tally of six league goals in three
games won him the Premier League Player of the Month award for August.
Further on, he grabbed some important goals such as a header against Wigan Athletic that
sealed a 1–0 win for City and extended their lead over title rivals Manchester United to
three points, and a goal that put Manchester City 2–0 up against FC Porto in the Europa
League, as they won 6–1 on aggregate. He also scored a headed goal against Blackburn
Rovers, which put Manchester City 3–0 up, and sealed the game, this subsequently maintained
City's narrow two point margin over Manchester United.
Bosnia and Herzegovina national manager Safet Sušić urged Džeko to leave City at the
end of the season because of lack of first-team football towards the end of the season, with
the likes of Juventus and Bayern Munich interested. On the final day of the season, Džeko scored
a 92nd minute equaliser before Sergio Agüero scored in the 95th minute to beat Queens Park
Rangers 3–2 and secure the Premier League title, the club's first in 44 years. Following
his goal that helped win the championship, his 19th goal and 40th appearance in all competitions,
Džeko's agent denied reports that the striker would leave City saying it was all media speculation.
2012–13 season
Džeko began the new 2012–13 season with an equalising goal against Southampton in
a 3–2 win. He scored another goal against Queens Park Rangers taking his tally to two
goals in the opening three games. He then scored the first goal of City's Champions
League campaign against Real Madrid at the Estadio Santiago Bernabéu. On 29 September,
he scored an 87th minute winner away at Fulham, one minute after appearing as a substitute.
On 20 October, he came off the bench in the 79th minute to score a minute later. He scored
a second goal two minutes into stoppage time to seal a comeback win for 10-man City against
West Bromwich Albion. On 11 November, Džeko scored another late winning goal as a substitute
with a left footed volley in the 88th minute against Tottenham Hotspur. On 29 December
2012, he scored two goals against Norwich City in a 4–3 victory.
He finished the season with 14 goals in the Premier League and 15 overall.
2013–14 season On the opening day of the 2013–14 Premier
League season, Džeko was selected to start by new manager Manuel Pellegrini against Newcastle
United at the City of Manchester Stadium. He scored his first goal in a 3–2 defeat
at Cardiff City. Džeko scored his 50th goal in England with an only goal of the game against
Crystal Palace on 28 December 2013. On 25 March 2014, Džeko scored twice in a
3–0 Manchester Derby win against Manchester United. His first goal came after just 43
seconds, making it the fastest away goal scored at Old Trafford in Premier League history.
On 27 April, he scored City's first goal of a 2–0 defeat of Crystal Palace at Selhurst
Park, closing the gap on league leaders Liverpool to three points with a game in hand.
He scored a brace in City's match at Everton on 3 May, helping City to a 3–2 win and
lift the club to the top of the table with two matches left. His second goal of the game
was Man City 150th goal in all competitions. In City's penultimate game of the season against
Aston Villa, Džeko scored two second-half goals as City won 4–0, ensuring that the
club would be crowned champions with a draw against West Ham United at home on the final
day. International career
Džeko's first appearance for his home country came with the Bosnia and Herzegovina national
under-19 football team. He was also part of the under-21 team and played in the play-offs
hosted in the Netherlands in 2007. Bosnia's first challenges in this competition were
Armenia and Norway. They beat Armenia 3–2 and tied with Norway 1–1, qualifying for
the playoff against the Czech Republic. In the first leg, Bosnia lost 2–1; in the second,
the game ended in a 1–1 draw. Džeko scored one goal in the tournament.
He made his senior debut against Turkey on 2 June 2007. It was a memorable debut for
the player, with a volleyed goal from the bench to the penalty area during the first
half stoppage time. The goal levelled the score at 2–2 and Bosnia went on to win 3–2.
On 28 March 2009, Bosnian sports commentator, Marjan Mijajlović, named Džeko "the Bosnian
Diamond" during a game versus Belgium in Genk in which he scored a remarkable goal.
He scored nine goals in 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifying and finished as the second highest
goalscorer in UEFA qualification, tied with England's Wayne Rooney, behind Greek striker
Theofanis Gekas' 10 goals. On 8 September 2012, in an 8–1 win over
Liechtenstein, Džeko scored his first hat-trick for the national team and at the same time
became the leading goal scorer in the history of the Bosnia and Herzegovina national team
with 24 goals. The record was previously held by Elvir Bolić who scored 22 goals.
Džeko ended the 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification campaign as second-top scorer in the UEFA
section with ten goals as Bosnia-Herzegovina qualified for the first major tournament in
its history. In June 2014, Džeko was named in the Dragons'
squad for the 2014 FIFA World Cup. On 25 June, during the final group match against Iran,
Džeko scored the opening goal to help Bosnia-Herzegovina to their first ever FIFA World Cup win.
Personal life Džeko was born in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina,
at that time part of SFR Yugoslavia, to Bosniak parents Midhat and Belma. He stated that his
family was always supportive throughout his career, especially his father, who took him
to training sessions while he was at Sarajevo club Željezničar. His father also played
professionally in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Džeko is considered a superstar in Sarajevo.
Džeko is multilingual, speaking four languages fluently: Bosnian, Czech, German and English.
He is a Muslim. Džeko stated that A.C. Milan has always been his favourite club and Andriy
Shevchenko his favourite player. In his home in Sarajevo, he still has a Milan jersey with
the number 7 on the wall in his room. Džeko is a first cousin of fellow national team
player and captain Emir Spahić. In November 2009, Džeko became Bosnia's first UNICEF
ambassador. He has since visited schools and children in his home country affected by the
Bosnian War. On 6 July 2012, Džeko was accepted to the University of Sarajevo where he will
study sport and physical education. Career statistics
Club As of match played 11 May 2014.
Includes goal and appearance in 2011 FA Community Shield
International As of match played 25 June 2014.
International goals Scores and results list Bosnia and Herzegovina's
goal tally first. Honours
Club Wolfsburg
Bundesliga: 2008–09 Manchester City
Premier League: 2011–12, 2013–14 FA Cup: 2010–11; Runner-up: 2012–13
FA Community Shield: 2012; Runner-up: 2014 League Cup: 2013–14
Individual Ballon d'Or: 13th place 2009
Bosnian Footballer of the Year: 2009, 2010, 2011–12
Castrol Performance Index EDGE Performance of the Month: August 2011
Bundesliga Players' Player of the Year: 2008–09 Bundesliga Top Goalscorer: 2009–10
Premier League Player of the Month: August 2011
League Cup Top Goalscorer: 2014 2014 FIFA World Cup Man of the Match: Bosnia
v Iran All-time top scorer of the Bosnian national
team References
External links Official website
Edin Džeko at National-Football-Teams.com Edin Džeko – FIFA competition record
Edin Džeko – UEFA competition record Edin Džeko at ESPN FC
Edin Džeko Profile Manchester City F.C.