Vanja Drkušić

Slovenian footballer

Vanja Drkušić
Drkušić with Sochi in 2022
Personal information
Date of birth (1999-10-30) 30 October 1999 (age 24)
Place of birth Novo Mesto, Slovenia[1]
Height 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in)[2]
Position(s) Centre-back
Team information
Current team
 Red Star Belgrade
(on loan from Zenit Saint Petersburg)
Number 33
Youth career
0000–2013 Krka
2014–2015 Krško
2016–2018 Heerenveen
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2018–2019 Heerenveen 0 (0)
2019–2020 Rende 0 (0)
2020–2022 Bravo 69 (4)
2022–2024 Sochi 60 (3)
2024– Zenit Saint Petersburg 0 (0)
2024– → Red Star Belgrade (loan) 2 (0)
International career‡
2015–2016 Slovenia U17 17 (0)
2017 Slovenia U18 3 (0)
2017 Slovenia U19 5 (1)
2019 Slovenia U21 1 (0)
2023– Slovenia 13 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 14 September 2024
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 9 September 2024

Vanja Drkušić (born 30 October 1999) is a Slovenian footballer who plays as a centre-back for Serbian club Red Star Belgrade, on loan from Russian Premier League club Zenit Saint Petersburg, and the Slovenia national team.

Club career

In December 2015, Drkušić joined Dutch top-flight side Heerenveen, after receiving interest from Maribor, Dinamo Zagreb and Atalanta.[3] In August 2019, he signed for Rende in the Italian third division.[4] Before the second half of 2019–20, Drkušić signed for Slovenian team Bravo. On 23 February 2020, he debuted for Bravo during a 2–1 win against Tabor Sežana.[5] On 11 July 2020, Drkušić scored his first goal for Bravo during a 1–1 draw with Domžale.[5]

On 24 January 2022, Drkušić signed for Russian Premier League side Sochi for an alleged fee of €100,000.[6][7] On 27 August 2022, he extended his contract with Sochi until 2025.[8]

On 13 August 2024, Drkušić moved to fellow top-tier side Zenit Saint Petersburg, signing a five-year deal with the six-time defending Russian champions.[9][10] Three days later, Zenit loaned him to Red Star Belgrade for the 2024–25 season.[11][12]

International career

Drkušić represented Slovenia at youth international levels from under-17 to under-21. He made his debut for the senior team on 26 March 2023 in a European Championship qualifier against San Marino.[13]

Career statistics

As of match played 25 May 2024[5]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National cup Continental Other Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Heerenveen 2018–19 Eredivisie 0 0 0 0 — — 0 0
Rende 2019–20 Serie C 0 0 — — 1[a] 0 1 0
Bravo 2019–20 Slovenian PrvaLiga 15 1 — — — 15 1
2020–21 Slovenian PrvaLiga 35 1 1 0 — — 36 1
2021–22 Slovenian PrvaLiga 19 2 2 0 — — 21 2
Total 69 4 3 0 0 0 0 0 72 4
Sochi 2021–22 Russian Premier League 11 0 0 0 — — 11 0
2022–23 Russian Premier League 26 1 5 1 — — 31 2
2023–24 Russian Premier League 23 2 1 0 — — 24 2
Total 60 3 6 1 0 0 0 0 66 4
Zenit Saint Petersburg 2024–25 Russian Premier League 0 0 0 0 — — 0 0
Career total 129 7 9 1 0 0 1 0 139 8
  1. ^ Appearance in Coppa Italia Serie C

References

  1. ^ "Drkušić, Vanja Drkušić – Footballer". bdfutbol.com. Retrieved 24 January 2022.
  2. ^ "Вања Дркушић". crvenazvezdafk.com (in Serbian). Red Star Belgrade. Archived from the original on 7 September 2024. Retrieved 7 September 2024.
  3. ^ Kovačič, Igor (27 December 2015). "Vanja Drkušić ob Mariboru in Dinamu izbral Heerenveen". Žurnal24 (in Slovenian). Retrieved 24 January 2022.
  4. ^ "Heerenveen en Sloveen (19) gaan na drie jaar en zeven reservebeurten uit elkaar". voetbalprimeur.nl (in Dutch). 31 August 2019. Retrieved 24 January 2022.
  5. ^ a b c "Slovenia – V. Drkušić – Profile with news, career statistics and history". Soccerway. Retrieved 5 June 2024.
  6. ^ "URADNO: Vanja Drkušić je pred leti naletel na zid na Nizozemskem, zdaj pa si je odprl pot v Rusijo" (in Slovenian). Nogomania. 24 January 2022. Retrieved 24 January 2022.
  7. ^ "Ваня Дркушич стал игроком "Сочи"" (in Russian). PFC Sochi. 24 January 2022. Archived from the original on 24 January 2022. Retrieved 24 January 2022.
  8. ^ "Ваня Дркушич продлил контракт с "Сочи"" [Vanja Drkušić extended contract with Sochi] (in Russian). PFC Sochi. 27 August 2022. Retrieved 18 March 2023.
  9. ^ "Vanja Drkusic signs for Zenit". FC Zenit Saint Petersburg. 13 August 2024. Retrieved 13 August 2024.
  10. ^ "Prestopne sage je konec! Vanja Drkušić bo Zenitu v tej sezoni pomagal na poti k sedmemu zaporednemu naslovu". Planet Nogomet (in Slovenian). 13 August 2024. Retrieved 13 August 2024.
  11. ^ "«Зенит» отдал в аренду купленного три дня назад футболиста". RBC (in Russian). 16 August 2024. Retrieved 16 August 2024.
  12. ^ "URADNO: Želja vseh strani je izpolnjena, Drkušić je naslednji Slovenec pri Crveni zvezdi" (in Slovenian). Nogomania. 16 August 2024. Retrieved 16 August 2024.
  13. ^ "Vanja Drkušić, international football player". eu-football.info. Retrieved 1 October 2023.
  • Vanja Drkušić at Soccerway
  • Vanja Drkušić at National-Football-Teams.com
  • v
  • t
  • e
Red Star Belgrade – current squad
  • v
  • t
  • e
Slovenia squad – UEFA Euro 2024
Slovenia