Ivica Banovic
Encyclopedia
Ivica Banović is a Croatian
football midfielder
who plays for German
club FC Energie Cottbus.
when he was 6 years old and subsequently spent his entire youth career with the club, eventually being added to their first team in the summer of 1997. He went on to play in the Croatian First League with the club during the following three seasons.
After making 11 domestic league appearances in his first season as a professional, he went on to find his place as a regular with Zagreb. During the following two seasons, he made a total of 51 domestic league appearances and scored a total of 9 domestic league goals for the club, 8 of which came during the 1999–2000 season.
Bundesliga
side Werder Bremen
in the summer of 2000. He made his Bundesliga debut in Werder Bremen's 3-3 draw at home to Bayer Leverkusen on 14 October 2000, coming on as a substitute for Dieter Eilts
in the 58th minute. He went on to make a total of 17 Bundesliga appearances in his first season with Bremen, without scoring any goals.
He eventually scored his first Bundesliga goal in his third league appearance of the 2001–2002 season, netting the opening goal in Bremen's 2-1 defeat at 1. FC Kaiserslautern
on 9 September 2001. It was his only goal of the season, which he once again finished with a total of 17 Bundesliga appearances on his tally. He went on to make another 15 Bundesliga appearances during the following season in 2002–2003, scoring his second Bundesliga goal for Bremen in their 2-0 win at home to VfL Bochum
on 8 March 2003.
However, he lost his place in the first team during the 2003–2004 season, only appearing in three Bundesliga matches that season. He did, however, score one more goal for the club's first team, netting their 7th goal in a 9-1 win at Ludwigsfelder FC
in the first round of the German Cup
. Although the club won the league that season, his contribution to the achievement was minimal, as all of his three Bundesliga appearances of the season came in the first five matches. His final appearance for Bremen's first team came in the German Cup in December 2003.
Eventually finding himself relegated to the club's reserve squad, Banović appeared in five Regionalliga Nord matches during the spring of 2004. He scored five goals during his five appearances for the reserves, a hat-trick in a 3-3 draw against SC Paderborn 07
and a brace in a 4-2 win against SG Wattenscheid 09
.
to score the opening goal in their 3-1 win at 1. FC Kaiserslautern and netting the equaliser in a 1-1 draw at home to VfB Stuttgart
. He scored another goal in Nuremberg's 2-2 draw at home to Bayern Munich
in December 2004, converting a penalty to set the final score. He made a total of 22 Bundesliga appearances for Nuremberg in his first season with the club.
He went on to make another 23 league appearances during the following season in 2005-2006, scoring two more goals. His first goal of the season came in a 3-2 defeat at home to Arminia Bielefeld
in October 2005 and his second from a long-range free kick
in a 3-1 win at Kaiserslautern the following month. During the same season, he also scored two goals in the first two of the club's three matches in the German Cup, before they were knocked out in the round of 16.
He made a good start to the 2006–07 Bundesliga season with Nuremberg, assisting in all three goals for a 3-0 win at VfB Stuttgart in the club's opening match of the season. He started all of the club's opening three matches of the Bundesliga season, but later lost his place in the starting line-up. He did, however, continue to play regularly as a substitute until the end of the season. His final season with Nuremberg was statistically nevertheless his most successful in the Bundesliga, with a tally of 5 goals in 25 appearances.
He also helped Nuremberg win the 2006–07 German Cup, making four appearances and scoring the only goal of their away match at BV Cloppenburg
in the first round. His final appearance for Nuremberg came on 26 May 2007 in the German Cup final against VfB Stuttgart, in which he came off the bench for the final six minutes of extra time.
side SC Freiburg
on a free transfer following the expiration of his contract with Nuremberg at the end of June 2007. He signed a two-year contract with the club.
Banović quickly established himself as a regular at Freiburg, making his competitive debut against FC Villingen in the first round of the German Cup. He made his league debut against VfL Osnabrück
in the club's first league match of the season and subsequently only missed one league match during the entire season due to a yellow-card suspension. In only his second appearance in the 2nd Bundesliga, he scored his first and only league goal of the season in Freiburg's 1-0 win over SC Paderborn 07.
The following season in 2008–09, he made a total of 22 appearances in the 2nd Bundesliga and helped the club finish top of the league, securing promotion to the Bundesliga after four years of playing in the second division. He also scored two league goals for the club during the season, both in April 2009. The first of the two goals came in Freiburg's 2-1 win at 1. FSV Mainz 05
on 13 April 2009 and the second in their 3-2 win at home to FC Ingolstadt 04
a week later. At the end of the season, he extended his contract with Freiburg for another year.
Banović started the 2009–10 Bundesliga season as a regular with Freiburg and scored his first goals of the season on 20 September 2009, netting a brace in Freiburg's 4-0 win at Hertha BSC. Two weeks later, he also scored one goal in Freiburg's 5-2 defeat at Hannover 96
.
for the rest of the 2010–11 season. He appeared in all but one of the club's matches and scored once. At the end of the season, he returned to Freiburg.
, but before the season began he transferred back to the 2nd division, joining Energie Cottbus.
teams, scoring a total of three international goals. His first appearance in the finals of an international youth tournament came at the 1998 European Under-18 Championship
in Cyprus
, where the team reached the third place after beating Portugal
in penalty shootout.
In the spring of 1999, Banović was part of the Croatian squad at the 1999 FIFA World Youth Championship
in Nigeria
, where he appeared as a second-half substitute in all of the team's four matches before they were eliminated by Brazil
in the round of 16, also scoring one goal in Croatia's 5-1 victory over Kazakhstan
in their second group match. He also played for the Croatian national under-21 team at the final tournament of the UEFA U-21 Championship 2000 in Slovakia
.
Banović won his first senior international cap for Croatia
as a substitute in their friendly match against Israel
on 18 August 2004 in Varaždin
, which they won 1-0. In October of the same year, he made his only appearance in the 2006 FIFA World Cup
qualifying, playing as a substitute in the final 14 minutes of Croatia's third qualifying match, in which they were held to a 2-2 draw by Bulgaria
in Zagreb
. After that, he was no longer part of the national team.
Croats
Croats are a South Slavic ethnic group mostly living in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and nearby countries. There are around 4 million Croats living inside Croatia and up to 4.5 million throughout the rest of the world. Responding to political, social and economic pressure, many Croats have...
football midfielder
Midfielder
A midfielder is an association football position. Some midfielders play a more defensive role, while others blur the boundaries between midfielders and forwards. The number of midfielders a team uses during a match may vary, depending on the team's formation and each individual player's role...
who plays for German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
club FC Energie Cottbus.
NK Zagreb
Banović began to play football at NK ZagrebNK Zagreb
NK Zagreb is a Croatian football club, from the Croatian capital of Zagreb.NK Zagreb's home is the Stadion Kranjčevićeva with capacity of 8,850. The club's fans are known as the White Angels...
when he was 6 years old and subsequently spent his entire youth career with the club, eventually being added to their first team in the summer of 1997. He went on to play in the Croatian First League with the club during the following three seasons.
After making 11 domestic league appearances in his first season as a professional, he went on to find his place as a regular with Zagreb. During the following two seasons, he made a total of 51 domestic league appearances and scored a total of 9 domestic league goals for the club, 8 of which came during the 1999–2000 season.
Werder Bremen
Banović went on to leave Zagreb for GermanGermany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
Bundesliga
Fußball-Bundesliga
The Fußball-Bundesliga is a professional association football league in Germany. At the top of Germany's football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. It is contested by 18 teams and operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the 2. Bundesliga...
side Werder Bremen
SV Werder Bremen
SV Werder Bremen is a German sports club best known for its association football team playing in Bremen, in the northwest German federal state of the same name. The club was founded on 4 February 1899 as Fußballverein Werder by a group of sixteen vocational high school students who had won a prize...
in the summer of 2000. He made his Bundesliga debut in Werder Bremen's 3-3 draw at home to Bayer Leverkusen on 14 October 2000, coming on as a substitute for Dieter Eilts
Dieter Eilts
Dieter Eilts was an acclaimed German footballer and was last the trainer of Hansa Rostock. His nickname was the Alemão of East Frisia, for his similarity with to Brazilian midfielder Alemão...
in the 58th minute. He went on to make a total of 17 Bundesliga appearances in his first season with Bremen, without scoring any goals.
He eventually scored his first Bundesliga goal in his third league appearance of the 2001–2002 season, netting the opening goal in Bremen's 2-1 defeat at 1. FC Kaiserslautern
1. FC Kaiserslautern
1. Fußball-Club Kaiserslautern, also known as 1. FCK, FCK or simply Kaiserslautern, is a German association football club based in Kaiserslautern, Rhineland-Palatinate. On 2 June 1900, Germania 1896 and FG Kaiserslautern merged to create FC 1900...
on 9 September 2001. It was his only goal of the season, which he once again finished with a total of 17 Bundesliga appearances on his tally. He went on to make another 15 Bundesliga appearances during the following season in 2002–2003, scoring his second Bundesliga goal for Bremen in their 2-0 win at home to VfL Bochum
VfL Bochum
Verein für Leibesübungen Bochum 1848 Fußballgemeinschaft, commonly referred to as simply VfL Bochum, is a German association football club based in the city of Bochum, North Rhine-Westphalia.-Founding to World War II:...
on 8 March 2003.
However, he lost his place in the first team during the 2003–2004 season, only appearing in three Bundesliga matches that season. He did, however, score one more goal for the club's first team, netting their 7th goal in a 9-1 win at Ludwigsfelder FC
Ludwigsfelder FC
Ludwigsfelder FC is a German football club from Ludwigsfelde in Brandenburg.- History :The association was created in 1947 as Vorwärts Ludwigsfelde as the postwar successor to Rot-Weiß Ludwigsfelde established in 1939...
in the first round of the German Cup
DFB-Pokal
The DFB-Pokal or DFB Cup is a German knockout football cup competition held annually. 64 teams participate in the competition, including all clubs from the Bundesliga and the 2nd Bundesliga. It is considered the second most important national title in German football after the Bundesliga...
. Although the club won the league that season, his contribution to the achievement was minimal, as all of his three Bundesliga appearances of the season came in the first five matches. His final appearance for Bremen's first team came in the German Cup in December 2003.
Eventually finding himself relegated to the club's reserve squad, Banović appeared in five Regionalliga Nord matches during the spring of 2004. He scored five goals during his five appearances for the reserves, a hat-trick in a 3-3 draw against SC Paderborn 07
SC Paderborn 07
SC Paderborn 07 is a German association football club based in Paderborn, North Rhine-Westphalia, currently playing in the 2. Bundesliga.-History:...
and a brace in a 4-2 win against SG Wattenscheid 09
SG Wattenscheid 09
SG Wattenscheid 09 is a German association football club, located in Wattenscheid which is part of Bochum, North Rhine-Westphalia. The club claims an official founding date of 18 September 1909 as Ballspiel-Verein Wattenscheid out of the merger of two earlier sides known as BV Sodalität der...
.
1. FC Nuremberg
In the summer of 2004, Banović left Bremen for Bundesliga rivals 1. FC Nuremberg. He scored two goals in his first two Bundesliga matches for Nuremberg, converting a penaltyPenalty kick
A penalty kick is a type of direct free kick in association football, taken from twelve yards out from goal and with only the goalkeeper of the defending team between the penalty taker and the goal.Penalty kicks are performed during normal play...
to score the opening goal in their 3-1 win at 1. FC Kaiserslautern and netting the equaliser in a 1-1 draw at home to VfB Stuttgart
VfB Stuttgart
Verein für Bewegungsspiele Stuttgart 1893 e. V., commonly known as VfB Stuttgart, is a German sports club based in Stuttgart, Baden-Württemberg. The club is best known for its football team, which has participated in all but two Bundesliga seasons...
. He scored another goal in Nuremberg's 2-2 draw at home to Bayern Munich
FC Bayern Munich
FC Bayern Munich , is a German sports club based in Munich, Bavaria. It is best known for its professional football team, which is the most successful football club in Germany, having won 22 national titles and 15 cups....
in December 2004, converting a penalty to set the final score. He made a total of 22 Bundesliga appearances for Nuremberg in his first season with the club.
He went on to make another 23 league appearances during the following season in 2005-2006, scoring two more goals. His first goal of the season came in a 3-2 defeat at home to Arminia Bielefeld
Arminia Bielefeld
DSC Arminia Bielefeld is a German sports club from Bielefeld, North Rhine-Westphalia. Arminia offers the sports of football, field hockey, figure skating and cue sports. The club has 11,394 members and the club colours are black, white and blue...
in October 2005 and his second from a long-range free kick
Direct free kick
A direct free kick is a method of restarting play in a game of association football following a foul. Unlike an indirect free kick, a goal may be scored directly against the opposing side without the ball having first touched another player.-Award:...
in a 3-1 win at Kaiserslautern the following month. During the same season, he also scored two goals in the first two of the club's three matches in the German Cup, before they were knocked out in the round of 16.
He made a good start to the 2006–07 Bundesliga season with Nuremberg, assisting in all three goals for a 3-0 win at VfB Stuttgart in the club's opening match of the season. He started all of the club's opening three matches of the Bundesliga season, but later lost his place in the starting line-up. He did, however, continue to play regularly as a substitute until the end of the season. His final season with Nuremberg was statistically nevertheless his most successful in the Bundesliga, with a tally of 5 goals in 25 appearances.
He also helped Nuremberg win the 2006–07 German Cup, making four appearances and scoring the only goal of their away match at BV Cloppenburg
BV Cloppenburg
BV Cloppenburg is a German association football club located in Cloppenburg, Lower Saxony. The club was founded after World War I in 1919 as the successor to SV Cloppenburg 1911...
in the first round. His final appearance for Nuremberg came on 26 May 2007 in the German Cup final against VfB Stuttgart, in which he came off the bench for the final six minutes of extra time.
SC Freiburg
The day after the end of the 2006–2007 Bundesliga season, it was confirmed that Banović will move to 2nd Bundesliga2. Fußball-Bundesliga
- Changes in division set-up :* Number of clubs: currently 18. From 1974 to 1981 there were two conferences, each of 20 teams. In 1981–91 it had 20...
side SC Freiburg
SC Freiburg
Sport-Club Freiburg, commonly known as SC Freiburg, is a German association football club, based in the city of Freiburg im Breisgau, Baden-Württemberg. SC Freiburg has played in the Bundesliga, the top tier of German football, since their promotion in 2009...
on a free transfer following the expiration of his contract with Nuremberg at the end of June 2007. He signed a two-year contract with the club.
Banović quickly established himself as a regular at Freiburg, making his competitive debut against FC Villingen in the first round of the German Cup. He made his league debut against VfL Osnabrück
VfL Osnabrück
VfL Osnabrück is a German multi-sport club in Osnabrück, Lower Saxony. It currently fields teams in basketball, gymnastics, swimming, table tennis, and tennis, but is by far best known for its football section.- Foundation to WW2 :...
in the club's first league match of the season and subsequently only missed one league match during the entire season due to a yellow-card suspension. In only his second appearance in the 2nd Bundesliga, he scored his first and only league goal of the season in Freiburg's 1-0 win over SC Paderborn 07.
The following season in 2008–09, he made a total of 22 appearances in the 2nd Bundesliga and helped the club finish top of the league, securing promotion to the Bundesliga after four years of playing in the second division. He also scored two league goals for the club during the season, both in April 2009. The first of the two goals came in Freiburg's 2-1 win at 1. FSV Mainz 05
1. FSV Mainz 05
1. Fußball- und Sportverein Mainz 05 e. V., usually shortened to 1. FSV Mainz 05, Mainz 05, or simply Mainz, is a 1905 founded German association football club based in Mainz, Rhineland-Palatinate. In addition to the football section the 1. FSV Mainz 05 has a handball and table tennis department...
on 13 April 2009 and the second in their 3-2 win at home to FC Ingolstadt 04
FC Ingolstadt 04
FC Ingolstadt 04 is a German football club based in Ingolstadt, Bavaria. The club was founded in 2004 out of the merger of the football sides of two other clubs: ESV Ingolstadt and MTV Ingolstadt.-ESV Ingolstadt:...
a week later. At the end of the season, he extended his contract with Freiburg for another year.
Banović started the 2009–10 Bundesliga season as a regular with Freiburg and scored his first goals of the season on 20 September 2009, netting a brace in Freiburg's 4-0 win at Hertha BSC. Two weeks later, he also scored one goal in Freiburg's 5-2 defeat at Hannover 96
Hannover 96
Hannoverscher Sportverein von 1896, commonly referred to as Hannover 96, Hannover or simply 96, is a German association football club based in the city of Hanover, Lower Saxony.-Foundation to WWII:...
.
MSV Duisburg
By January 2011, Banović had lost his place in Freiburg's starting formation and was loaned to MSV DuisburgMSV Duisburg
MSV Duisburg is a German association football club based in Duisburg, North Rhine-Westphalia. Nicknamed "the Zebras" for their traditional striped jerseys, the club was one of the original members of the Bundesliga when it was formed in 1963.-Early years:...
for the rest of the 2010–11 season. He appeared in all but one of the club's matches and scored once. At the end of the season, he returned to Freiburg.
Energie Cottbus
After preparing for the 2011–12 season with SC FreiburgSC Freiburg
Sport-Club Freiburg, commonly known as SC Freiburg, is a German association football club, based in the city of Freiburg im Breisgau, Baden-Württemberg. SC Freiburg has played in the Bundesliga, the top tier of German football, since their promotion in 2009...
, but before the season began he transferred back to the 2nd division, joining Energie Cottbus.
International career
Between 1996 and 2001, Banović won a total of 25 international caps for the Croatian national under-17, under-19 and under-21Croatia national under-21 football team
The Croatia national under-21 football team, also known as Croatia under-21 or Croatia U21 is a youth association football national team which represents Croatia at this age level and is a feeder team for the Croatia national football team....
teams, scoring a total of three international goals. His first appearance in the finals of an international youth tournament came at the 1998 European Under-18 Championship
UEFA European Under-19 Football Championship
The European Under 19 Football Championship is an annual football competition organised by the sport's European governing body, UEFA. The competition has been held since 1948. It was originally called the FIFA junior tournament, until it was taken over by UEFA in 1955...
in Cyprus
Cyprus
Cyprus , officially the Republic of Cyprus , is a Eurasian island country, member of the European Union, in the Eastern Mediterranean, east of Greece, south of Turkey, west of Syria and north of Egypt. It is the third largest island in the Mediterranean Sea.The earliest known human activity on the...
, where the team reached the third place after beating Portugal
Portugal national football team
The Portugal national football team represents Portugal in association football and is controlled by the Portuguese Football Federation, the governing body for football in Portugal. Portugal's home ground is Estádio Nacional in Oeiras, and their head coach is Paulo Bento...
in penalty shootout.
In the spring of 1999, Banović was part of the Croatian squad at the 1999 FIFA World Youth Championship
1999 FIFA World Youth Championship
The 1999 FIFA World Youth Championship took place in Nigeria between April 3 and April 24, 1999. The 1999 championship was the 12th contested.- Qualification :The following 24 teams qualified for the 1999 FIFA World Youth Championship.-Squads:...
in Nigeria
Nigeria
Nigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...
, where he appeared as a second-half substitute in all of the team's four matches before they were eliminated by Brazil
Brazil national football team
The Brazil national football team represents Brazil in international men's football and is controlled by the Brazilian Football Confederation , the governing body for football in Brazil. They are a member of the International Federation of Association Football since 1923 and also a member of the...
in the round of 16, also scoring one goal in Croatia's 5-1 victory over Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan national under-21 football team
The Kazakhstan national under-21 football team is the national under-21 football team of Kazakhstan and is controlled by the Football Federation of Kazakhstan...
in their second group match. He also played for the Croatian national under-21 team at the final tournament of the UEFA U-21 Championship 2000 in Slovakia
Slovakia
The Slovak Republic is a landlocked state in Central Europe. It has a population of over five million and an area of about . Slovakia is bordered by the Czech Republic and Austria to the west, Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east and Hungary to the south...
.
Banović won his first senior international cap for Croatia
Croatia national football team
The Croatia national football team represents Croatia in international football. The team is controlled by the Croatian Football Federation, the governing body for football in the country, and has been managed since 2006 by former player Slaven Bilić...
as a substitute in their friendly match against Israel
Israel national football team
The Israel national football team is the national football team of Israel, controlled by the Israel Football Association .Israel National Football is the direct successor of the Eretz Yisrael National Team during British Mandate...
on 18 August 2004 in Varaždin
Varaždin
Varaždin is a city in north Croatia, north of Zagreb on the highway A4. The total population is 47,055, with 38,746 on of the city settlement itself . The centre of Varaždin county is located near the Drava river, at...
, which they won 1-0. In October of the same year, he made his only appearance in the 2006 FIFA World Cup
2006 FIFA World Cup
The 2006 FIFA World Cup was the 18th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international football world championship tournament. It was held from 9 June to 9 July 2006 in Germany, which won the right to host the event in July 2000. Teams representing 198 national football associations from all six...
qualifying, playing as a substitute in the final 14 minutes of Croatia's third qualifying match, in which they were held to a 2-2 draw by Bulgaria
Bulgaria national football team
The FIFA Bulgaria national football team is an association football team fielded by the Bulgarian Football Union, a member association of UEFA. The team's home ground is Vasil Levski in Sofia and Luboslav Penev is in charge manager after replacement of Lothar Matthäus...
in Zagreb
Zagreb
Zagreb is the capital and the largest city of the Republic of Croatia. It is in the northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the Medvednica mountain. Zagreb lies at an elevation of approximately above sea level. According to the last official census, Zagreb's city...
. After that, he was no longer part of the national team.
External links
- Ivica Banović profile at Kicker.de
- Ivica Banović profile at Weltfussball.de