Milan Rapaic
Encyclopedia
Milan "Miki" Rapaić was a Croatia
Croatia
Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...

n football (soccer)
Football (soccer)
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...

 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 last played for HNK Trogir
HNK Trogir
NK Trogir is a former Croatian football club, from town of Trogir on the Croatian coast. Trogir played its home matches at Igralište Batarija.- History :...

 after his contract with Standard Liège
Standard Liège
Royal Standard de Liège, commonly referred to as Standard Liège Royal Standard de Liège, commonly referred to as Standard Liège Royal Standard de Liège, commonly referred to as Standard Liège (Dutch: Standard Luik [], German: Standard Lüttich , is a Belgian football club from the city of Liège....

 ended in July 2007.

Previously, Rapaić played for Hajduk Split (1991–1996, 2002–2003), Perugia (1996–2000), Fenerbahçe (2000–2002), and Ancona
A.C. Ancona
Associazione Calcio Ancona was a professional Italian football club, based in Ancona, Marche. It was founded in 1905 as Unione Sportiva Anconitana, changing its name to Ancona Calcio 1905 in 1981 and being refounded in 2004 with its last denomination....

 (2003–2004).

A regular in the Croatia national football team
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...

, he had earned 45 caps and scored five goals as of the end of 2004. Rapaić played two games for his country at the 2002 FIFA World Cup
2002 FIFA World Cup
The 2002 FIFA World Cup was the 17th staging of the FIFA World Cup, held in South Korea and Japan from 31 May to 30 June. It was also the first World Cup held in Asia, and the last in which the golden goal rule was implemented. Brazil won the tournament for a record fifth time, beating Germany 2–0...

. He will be most remembered for his spectacular if somewhat lucky winning goal scored against Italy
Italy national football team
The Italy National Football Team , represents Italy in association football and is controlled by the Italian Football Federation , the governing body for football in Italy. Italy is the second most successful national team in the history of the World Cup having won four titles , just one fewer than...

. He also played three games for Croatia in Euro 2004
2004 UEFA European Football Championship
The 2004 UEFA European Football Championship, better known as Euro 2004, was the 12th European Football Championship, a quadrennial football tournament for European national teams. It was hosted in Portugal, for the first time, between 12 June and 4 July 2004, following its selection by UEFA, in...

 and scored one goal.

He has proved a fan favourite wherever he has played, and after impressive performances he once again earned a call up for the Croatian national side after missing 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...

. Croatia went on to beat the world champions Italy (0-2, in August 2006) with Rapaić playing a large role. He is also known for his boisterous night life which is one of the reasons (together with his spontaneous and simple character) he is so popular among fans, and also one of the reasons his tremendous talent never fully grew.

International goals

Goal Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1 25 April 2001 Stadion Varteksa, 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...

2 – 2
2 – 2
Friendly
Exhibition game
An exhibition game is a sporting event in which there is no competitive value of any significant kind to any competitor regardless of the outcome of the competition...

2 8 May 2002 PMFC
Stadion PMFC
Stadion PMFC is a multi-use stadium in Pécs, Hungary. It is currently used mostly for football matches and is the home stadium of Pécsi MFC. The stadium is able to hold 7,160 people and was opened in 1955.-External links:*...

, Pécs
Pécs
Pécs is the fifth largest city of Hungary, located on the slopes of the Mecsek mountains in the south-west of the country, close to its border with Croatia. It is the administrative and economical centre of Baranya county...

1 – 0
2 – 0
Friendly
Exhibition game
An exhibition game is a sporting event in which there is no competitive value of any significant kind to any competitor regardless of the outcome of the competition...

3 8 June 2002 Kashima, Kashima
Kashima, Ibaraki
is a port city located in Ibaraki Prefecture, Japan.As of October 1, 2010, the city has an estimated population of 66,249 and a population density of 708.02 persons per km². The total area is 93.57 km². Kashima was formerly a town in Kashima District and became a city after merging with the...

2 – 1
2 – 1
World Cup 2002
2002 FIFA World Cup
The 2002 FIFA World Cup was the 17th staging of the FIFA World Cup, held in South Korea and Japan from 31 May to 30 June. It was also the first World Cup held in Asia, and the last in which the golden goal rule was implemented. Brazil won the tournament for a record fifth time, beating Germany 2–0...

4–5 2 April 2003 Stadion Varteksa, 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...

1 – 0
2 – 0
Euro 2004 Qualifying
2 – 0
6 17 June 2004 Dr. Magalhães Pessoa
Estádio Dr. Magalhães Pessoa
The Estádio Dr. Magalhães Pessoa is a football stadium in Leiria, Portugal, built as a venue for the UEFA Euro 2004 finals held in Portugal. It is the home for Leiria's main football club, União de Leiria. It was designed by Tomás Taveira in 2003. The stadium contains different coloured seats as...

, Leiria
Leiria
Leiria is a city in Leiria Municipality in the Centro Region, Portugal. It is the capital of Leiria District. The city proper has 50,200 inhabitants and the entire municipality has nearly 120,000...

1 – 1
2 – 2
Euro 2004

Honours

  Hajduk Split
  • Croatian Championship: 1994, 1995
  • Croatian Cup
    Croatian Cup
    The Croatian Cup is an annually held football tournament for Croatian football clubs and is the second most important competition in Croatian football after the Prva HNL league championship. It is governed by the Croatian Football Federation and usually runs from late August to May...

    : 1993, 1995
  • Croatian Supercup
    Croatian Supercup
    The Croatian Supercup is a football match between the winners of the Prva HNL and the Croatian Cup. The Supercup serves as a curtain raiser of the new football season and is only held when different clubs happen to win the two most important competitions during the previous season The Croatian...

    : 1993, 1994


  Fenerbahçe
  • Turkish Championship: 2000–01

External links

  • Milan Rapaić international stats at the Croatian Football Federation
    Croatian Football Federation
    The Croatian Football Federation is the governing body of association football in Croatia. It was originally formed in 1912 and is based in the capital city of Zagreb. The organisation is a member of both FIFA and UEFA, and is responsible for overseeing all aspects of the game of football in Croatia...

    website
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