Niko Kovač
Kovač with Red Bull Salzburg
|
|||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | 15 October 1971 | ||
| Place of birth | West Berlin, Germany | ||
| Height | 1.76 m (5 ft 9 1⁄2 in) | ||
| Playing position | Central midfielder | ||
| Club information | |||
|
Current team
|
Eintracht Frankfurt (manager) | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1987–1989 | Rapide Wedding | ||
| 1989–1990 | Hertha Zehlendorf | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1990–1991 | Hertha Zehlendorf | 25 | (7) |
| 1991 | Hertha BSC II | 12 | (1) |
| 1992–1996 | Hertha BSC | 148 | (15) |
| 1996–1999 | Bayer Leverkusen | 77 | (8) |
| 1999–2001 | Hamburger SV | 55 | (12) |
| 2001–2003 | Bayern Munich | 34 | (3) |
| 2003–2006 | Hertha BSC | 75 | (8) |
| 2006–2009 | Red Bull Salzburg | 65 | (9) |
| Total | 491 | (63) | |
| National team | |||
| 1996–2008 | Croatia | 83 | (14) |
| Teams managed | |||
| 2009–2011 | Red Bull Salzburg (academy) | ||
| 2011–2012 | Red Bull Salzburg (assistant) | ||
| 2012–2013 | Croatia U21 | ||
| 2013–2015 | Croatia | ||
| 2016– | Eintracht Frankfurt | ||
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. |
|||
Niko Kovač (Croatian pronunciation: [nǐːko kǒʋaːt͡ʃ]; born 15 October 1971) is a former Croatian footballer and current coach of Eintracht Frankfurt, having also managed the Croatian national football team.
He was the long-standing captain of Croatia before retiring from international football in January 2009. A defensive midfielder who is known for his excellent passing and tackling skills, Kovač was, at the time of his retirement, the oldest player in the Croatian squad and had been an important motivation raiser for them, having captained them at the 2006 FIFA World Cup and the UEFA Euro 2008. He has also enjoyed a high level of top club action, having spent most of his club career in the German Bundesliga. He ended his playing career in the Austrian club Red Bull Salzburg where he then took the non-playing role of the reserve team coach and eventually becoming assistant manager under team manager Ricardo Moniz. In January 2013 he took over the Croatia national under-21 football team and in October 2013 he took over the Croatian national football team following the dismissal of Igor Štimac.
He is the older brother of Robert Kovač.
Born in West Berlin to a family hailing from Livno in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kovač started to play football at local club Hertha Zehlendorf and became a member of their first team in the summer of 1989 at the age of 17. He moved to Hertha BSC in the summer of 1991 and started his professional career with the club that competed in the 2. Bundesliga at the time.
...
Wikipedia