Zvjezdan Misimovic
Encyclopedia
Zvjezdan Misimović (born 5 June 1982) is a German
-born Bosnian
footballer who plays for FC Dynamo Moscow
. Misimović is the co-captain of the Bosnia and Herzegovina national team
and the most capped player in the history of the team.
s who came to West Germany
from Bosanska Gradiška during the late 1960s.
) due to similar pronunciation to his first name, Misimović previously played for Bayern Munich
before joining Bochum
at the start of the 2004–05 season and then moving on to Nuremberg in July 2007. He led the Bundesliga in assists during the 2008–09 season with 18 (23 in all competitions). He also won the league that year with Wolfsburg. Just a year after being relegated with Nuremberg.
announced that Misimović had joined the team on a four-year contract for a sum of €7 million. On 18 November 2010, Misimović was consigned to the reserve squad, as the head coach Gheorghe Hagi
'does not need him in the squad'.
in a deal thought to be worth 4.5 million euro. The deal will keep him at the club until 2014. Before leaving Galatasaray, Misimović called coach Georghe Hagi a liar, but added that he wished his former club all the best. On 19 March 2011, Misimović scored his first goal from a penalty against Rostov.
, appearing for them at the 2001
UEFA European Under-18 Football Championship held in Finland
. In that team, he played alongside Nemanja Vidić
and Danko Lazović
.
Misimović later progressed to the FR Yugoslavia under-21 national team, but appeared in only one match as the 85th minute substitute against France
in November 2002. Head coach of the under-21s at the time Vladimir Petrović Pižon soon dropped Misimović, telling him he was overweight and slow.
, Hasan Salihamidžić
, about a possibility of playing for Bosnia. Misimović immediately accepted and debuted for the national team of Bosnia and Herzegovina under head coach Blaž Slišković
on 18 February 2004 in a friendly versus Macedonia.
campaign. He played the full 90 minutes in the opening home draws against Spain and Serbia-Montenegro, followed by a substitute appearance in the away loss to Belgium. Misimović then enjoyed a spell as a consistent starter before being substituted 10–20 minutes into the second half, in the 1–1 home draw with Lithuania (scored the opening goal), the away win at San Marino, and finally the 1–1 draw against Spain in Valencia (again scored the opening goal before Spain tied deep into injury-time in the 96th minute). For the deciding four qualifiers (home win versus Belgium, the away win at Lithuania, home victory over San Marino, and the away defeat to Serbia-Montenegro), Slišković dropped Misimović to the bench, bringing him into action only in the final 15–20 minutes of each tie.
As the winter break in qualifying commenced, the Bosnian team was in crisis mode with relations inside the organisation strained to the maximum. This led 13 Bosnian national team players (Misimović, Berberović
, Grujić
, Bartolović
, Hrgović
, Bajramović
, Papac
, Spahić
, Milenković
, Grlić
, Bešlija
, Hasagić
, and Tolja
) to release a statement published in Dnevni Avaz daily, announcing they would boycott all national team matches until four FA officials – Milan Jelić
, Iljo Dominković, Sulejman Čolaković, and Ahmet Pašalić – resigned. Some two months later in late December 2006, new head coach Fuad Muzurović
was announced. In relation to the boycott statement, Misimović soon did a complete turnaround, denying that he ever signed any such paper and stating that his relations with the FA had always been amicable.
Under new head coach Muzurović, Misimović truly came into his own, earning the captaincy of the national team.
replaced Muzurović as head coach in early January 2008, one of the changes he introduced was stripping Misimović of the captain's armband and awarding it to 27-year-old defender Emir Spahić
who had just returned to the national team after boycotting it since fall 2006. On 8 April 2008, Misimović (then still only 25 years old) announced his retirement from the national team, citing stating health concerns as he no longer felt able to keep up the physical rigors of playing for both club and country. However, many speculated that health had little to do with Misimović's sudden announcement. These suspicions were seemingly confirmed two days later by Bosnian national team general manager Elvir Bolić
who hinted that Misimović might have softened his original stance and revealed that head coach Meho Kodro would travel to Germany to visit the player personally and discuss the "real reasons" for his decision. On 12 April 2008, after speaking to Kodro, Misimović changed his mind and the Football Association of Bosnia and Herzegovina
(NSBiH) announced that he had decided to continue his international career.
process, Misimović asserted himself as the team's undisputed leader on the pitch, displaying great playmaking abilities and leadership qualities. His fine performances culminated with a hat-trick in a 7–0 victory over Estonia. Bosnia finished the group in second place thus qualifying for the playoffs against Portugal
in November 2009.
However, the qualifying campaign ended on a sour note both for Misimović personally and for the team. Misimović had a poor outing in the first leg away in Lisbon
and was widely criticized for his sub-par performance even by the head coach Blažević himself, who publicly blasted him for lack of contribution. Two days later (and two days before the 18 November return leg), Misimović was ruled out by medical staff due to an apparent knee injury he picked up during the first leg.
The controversy arose three days after that on 21 November when he played the full 90 minutes for VfL Wolfsburg
in Bundesliga leading to veiled accusations in the Bosnian media that he faked the injury to get back at Blažević. Head coach Blažević went further, directly accusing Misimović of sabotaging him. Blažević even went as far as alluding to Misimović's Serbian ethnicity; suggesting a conspiracy on instructions from Republika Srpska
Prime Minister Milorad Dodik
and the Serbian lobby because "Republika Srpska would lose everything if Bosnia qualified for the World Cup". When informed of Blažević's comments, stunned Misimović responded he would not play for Bosnia as long as Blažević is the head coach, and further accused Blažević of scapegoating him in order to deflect attention from the fact that the team was thoroughly outplayed by Portugal in both matches. Even though he stated his intention to leave even before Misimović's latest words, Blažević's response was a claim that he will leave the post because "Misimović is more important to this team than I am". Blažević then suddenly announced that he and Misimović had supposedly resolved their differences after Blažević apparently called Misimović to congratulate the birth of his son, but this reconciliation was later denied by Misimović.
Blažević even announced his intent to travel to Wolfsburg
for the Champions League group stage
match between VfL Wolfsburg and Manchester United in order to visit Misimović personally, but ended up not doing so. Within days Blažević resigned his post with Bosnia, revealing that he took an offer from China
, and in his parting shot once again singled out Misimović as the reason why Bosnia is not going to the World Cup.
in September 2010, thus equaling Elvir Bolić
's record for most caps for Bosnia and Herzegovina
. Misimović surpassed Bolić in a match against France
in Sarajevo
on 7 September making him the most capped player in the history of the national team with 52 matches played.
|2000–01||rowspan="3"|Bayern Munich II
||rowspan="3"|Regionalliga Süd
||12||1||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||12||1
|-
|2001–02
||31||14||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||31||14
|-
|2002–03||28||8||1||0||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||29||8
|-
|2002–03||Bayern Munich
||Bundesliga
||1||0||0||0||0||0||0||0||1||0
|-
|2003–04
||Bayern Munich II
||Regionalliga Süd
||31||21||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||31||21
|-
|2003–04||Bayern Munich
||rowspan="2"|Bundesliga
||2||0||1||0||0||0||0||0||3||0
|-
|2004–05||rowspan="3"|VfL Bochum
||31||3||2||1||1||0||2||0||36||4
|-
|2005–06||2. Bundesliga
||31||11||2||1||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||33||12
|-
|2006–07||rowspan="5"|Bundesliga
||30||7||2||1||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||32||8
|-
|2007–08||1. FC Nuremberg||28||10||2||3||1||0||6||1||37||14
|-
|2008–09||rowspan="3"|VfL Wolfsburg
||33||7||4||0||colspan="2"|—||8||4||45||11
|-
|2009–10
||31||10||2||2||colspan="2"|—||6||1||39||13
|-
|2010–11
||1||0||1||0||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||2||0
|-
|2010–11
||Galatasaray
||Süper Lig||9||0||0||0||colspan="2"|—||0||0||9||0
|-
|2011–12
||Dynamo Moscow
||Russian Premier League
||21||3||1||0||colspan="2"|—||0||0||22||3
290||92||17||8||2||0||22||6||331||106
9||0||0||0||0||0||0||0||9||0
21||3||1||0||0||0||0||0||22||3
320||95||17||8||2||0||22||6||361||109
, Macedonia
and they have two sons together; Luka, born in 2004, and Niko, born in 2009.
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...
-born Bosnian
Bosnian
Bosnian may refer to:*Anything related to Bosnia or its inhabitants*Anything related to the state of Bosnia and Herzegovina or its inhabitants* Bosnian language, a South Slavic language spoken mainly in Bosnia and Herzegovina...
footballer who plays for FC Dynamo Moscow
FC Dynamo Moscow
Dynamo Moscow is a Russian football club based in Moscow, currently playing in the Russian Premier League. Dynamo's traditional kit colours are blue and white...
. Misimović is the co-captain of the Bosnia and Herzegovina national team
Bosnia and Herzegovina national football team
The Bosnia and Herzegovina national football team is the national football team of Bosnia and Herzegovina, governed by the Football Association of Bosnia and Herzegovina...
and the most capped player in the history of the team.
Early life
Misimović's parents are Bosnian Serb gastarbeiterGastarbeiter
Gastarbeiter is German for "guest worker." It refers to migrant workers who had moved to West Germany mainly in the 1960s and 70s, seeking work as part of a formal guest worker programme...
s who came to West Germany
West Germany
West Germany is the common English, but not official, name for the Federal Republic of Germany or FRG in the period between its creation in May 1949 to German reunification on 3 October 1990....
from Bosanska Gradiška during the late 1960s.
Club career
Known in Germany as Zwetschge (German word for damsonDamson
The damson or damson plum is an edible drupaceous fruit, a subspecies of the plum tree. Sometimes called the Damask plum, damsons are commonly used in the preparation of jams and jellies...
) due to similar pronunciation to his first name, Misimović previously played for 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....
before joining 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:...
at the start of the 2004–05 season and then moving on to Nuremberg in July 2007. He led the Bundesliga in assists during the 2008–09 season with 18 (23 in all competitions). He also won the league that year with Wolfsburg. Just a year after being relegated with Nuremberg.
Galatasaray
On 31 August 2010, GalatasarayGalatasaray S.K. (football team)
Galatasaray Anonim Şirketi is a Turkish football club, part of the Galatasaray S.K. multi-sport club of Istanbul. Galatasaray is a major sports club in Turkey, holding 17 Turkish Super League titles and the highest number of Turkish Cups....
announced that Misimović had joined the team on a four-year contract for a sum of €7 million. On 18 November 2010, Misimović was consigned to the reserve squad, as the head coach Gheorghe Hagi
Gheorghe Hagi
Gheorghe Hagi is a former Romanian footballer. He was famous for his passing, close control, long shots and was regarded as one of the best attacking midfielders in Europe during the 1980s and 1990s and is considered the greatest Romanian footballer of all time...
'does not need him in the squad'.
Dynamo Moscow
On 3 March 2011, he signed for Russian club Dynamo MoscowFC Dynamo Moscow
Dynamo Moscow is a Russian football club based in Moscow, currently playing in the Russian Premier League. Dynamo's traditional kit colours are blue and white...
in a deal thought to be worth 4.5 million euro. The deal will keep him at the club until 2014. Before leaving Galatasaray, Misimović called coach Georghe Hagi a liar, but added that he wished his former club all the best. On 19 March 2011, Misimović scored his first goal from a penalty against Rostov.
Youth level
Misimović played for the FR Yugoslavia under-18 national squadSerbia national under-19 football team
The Serbia national under-19 football team is the national under-19 football team of Serbia and is controlled by the Football Association of Serbia....
, appearing for them at the 2001
2001 UEFA European Under-18 Football Championship
-Final:-External links:*...
UEFA European Under-18 Football Championship held in Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
. In that team, he played alongside Nemanja Vidić
Nemanja Vidic
Nemanja Vidić is a Serbian footballer who captains English Premier League club Manchester United. He was part of the Serbia national football team from 2002 to 2011....
and Danko Lazović
Danko Lazovic
Danko Lazović is a Serbian footballer who plays for Russian Premier League club Zenit as a second striker or a winger.-Feyenoord:...
.
Misimović later progressed to the FR Yugoslavia under-21 national team, but appeared in only one match as the 85th minute substitute against France
France national under-21 football team
The France national under-21 football team , known in France as Les Espoirs , is the national under-21 football team of France and is controlled by the French Football Federation. The team competes in the UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship, held every two years...
in November 2002. Head coach of the under-21s at the time Vladimir Petrović Pižon soon dropped Misimović, telling him he was overweight and slow.
Senior
By late 2003 and early 2004, 21-year-old Misimović was still not attached to any senior national team. He was approached in the club's gym by then teammate at Bayern MunichFC 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....
, Hasan Salihamidžić
Hasan Salihamidžic
Hasan Salihamidžić is a Bosnian football midfielder currently playing for VfL Wolfsburg in the Bundesliga.-Early life:His father Ahmed and mother Šefika gave him the nickname "Braco" meaning "little brother" in Bosnian since Hasan has an older sister, hence his current nickname "Brazzo". He...
, about a possibility of playing for Bosnia. Misimović immediately accepted and debuted for the national team of Bosnia and Herzegovina under head coach Blaž Slišković
Blaž Sliškovic
Blaž "Baka" Slišković is a former Bosnian Croat football player and currently the manager of Al-Ansar....
on 18 February 2004 in a friendly versus Macedonia.
2006 World Cup qualifying
Misimović was used sparingly by Slišković during 2006 World Cup qualifying2006 FIFA World Cup qualification - UEFA Group 7
The 2006 FIFA World Cup qualification UEFA Group 7 was a UEFA qualifying group for the 2006 FIFA World Cup. The group comprised Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Lithuania, San Marino, Serbia and Montenegro and Spain....
campaign. He played the full 90 minutes in the opening home draws against Spain and Serbia-Montenegro, followed by a substitute appearance in the away loss to Belgium. Misimović then enjoyed a spell as a consistent starter before being substituted 10–20 minutes into the second half, in the 1–1 home draw with Lithuania (scored the opening goal), the away win at San Marino, and finally the 1–1 draw against Spain in Valencia (again scored the opening goal before Spain tied deep into injury-time in the 96th minute). For the deciding four qualifiers (home win versus Belgium, the away win at Lithuania, home victory over San Marino, and the away defeat to Serbia-Montenegro), Slišković dropped Misimović to the bench, bringing him into action only in the final 15–20 minutes of each tie.
Euro 2008 qualifying
Euro 2008 qualifying began in fall 2006 with Slišković still team manager and 24-year-old Misimović an established starter and goalscorer. The opening match dismantling of Malta was followed by the shocking 1–3 defeat to Hungary at home that prompted Slišković's resignation, which he retracted a couple of weeks later and stayed on. Still more disappointment was to follow with the 2–2 draw at lowly Moldova, as Misimović sparked a comeback that ultimately fell short by scoring a goal at 2–0 down. Four days later Bosnia were heavily defeated 0–4 by Greece at home, forcing Slišković to resign for the second time in three months – this time the resignation was final.As the winter break in qualifying commenced, the Bosnian team was in crisis mode with relations inside the organisation strained to the maximum. This led 13 Bosnian national team players (Misimović, Berberović
Džemal Berberovic
Džemal Berberović is a Bosnian football defender who plays for Germann club MSV Duisburg.-Career:Džemal Berberović started his career at FK Sarajevo. At age 22, he signed with German club Bayer Leverkusen, but did not play in official matches. In January 2005, he returned for six months in Bosnia...
, Grujić
Vladan Grujic
Vladan Grujić is a Bosnian football midfielder who played for AEP Paphos.Vladan Grujić played for FK Borac Banja Luka and Serbian clubs FK Obilić and Red Star Belgrade. Since, Grujić has played for the German club 1. FC Köln before moving to Alania Vladikavkaz...
, Bartolović
Mladen Bartolovic
Mladen Bartolović is a Bosnian football player. Although he spent almost his entire career in Croatia, he is part of the Bosnia and Herzegovina national football team. Not to be confused with Croatian player Mladen Bartulović.He formerly played for HNK Čapljina, HNK Cibalia, Dinamo Zagreb, 1...
, Hrgović
Mirko Hrgovic
Mirko Hrgović is a Croatia-born Bosnian football player who most current playes for Croatian club RNK Split.-NK Široki Brijeg:...
, Bajramović
Zlatan Bajramovic
Zlatan Bajramović is a German-born Bosnian footballer. He last played for Eintracht Frankfurt....
, Papac
Saša Papac
Saša Papac is a Bosnian association footballer who currently plays for Rangers in the Scottish Premier League and the Bosnia & Herzegovina national team....
, Spahić
Emir Spahic
Emir Spahić is a Bosnian football central defender playing for Sevilla FC in the Spanish La Liga and captains the Bosnia and Herzegovina national team...
, Milenković
Ninoslav Milenkovic
Ninoslav Milenković is a Bosnian international footballer who plays for Croatian First Division side NK Istra 1961.-Club career:...
, Grlić
Ivica Grlic
Ivica Grlić is a Bosnian former football midfielder.Grlić is a free kick specialist and has scored several goals like this both for his club and for the Bosnia and Herzegovina national football team....
, Bešlija
Mirsad Bešlija
Mirsad Bešlija is a Bosnian football winger who is currently playing for Bosnian side, FK Željezničar. He has also played for the Bosnia and Herzegovina national team....
, Hasagić
Kenan Hasagic
Kenan Hasagić is a Bosnian football goalkeeper.His football career began in his hometown with the local FK Rudar of Premier League of Bosnia and Herzegovina. At the age of 16, he made his debut in a first division match...
, and Tolja
Almir Tolja
Almir Tolja, born October 25, 1974 in Travnik, Bosnia and Herzegovina) is a Bosnian football goalkeeper who formerly playd for Saba Battery F.C. in Iran's Premier Football League and the Bosnia and Herzegovina national football team....
) to release a statement published in Dnevni Avaz daily, announcing they would boycott all national team matches until four FA officials – Milan Jelić
Milan Jelic
Dr. Milan Jelić was a Serb politician in Bosnia and Herzegovina. From 9 November 2006 until his death from a heart attack, he was President of Republika Srpska....
, Iljo Dominković, Sulejman Čolaković, and Ahmet Pašalić – resigned. Some two months later in late December 2006, new head coach Fuad Muzurović
Fuad Muzurovic
Fuad Muzurović is a Bosnian football manager and was the head coach of Bosnia and Herzegovina national football team...
was announced. In relation to the boycott statement, Misimović soon did a complete turnaround, denying that he ever signed any such paper and stating that his relations with the FA had always been amicable.
Under new head coach Muzurović, Misimović truly came into his own, earning the captaincy of the national team.
Six months under Meho Kodro
After Meho KodroMeho Kodro
Mehmed "Meho" Kodro Sejtanić , known as Kodro, is a retired Bosnian footballer who played as a striker, and a current manager....
replaced Muzurović as head coach in early January 2008, one of the changes he introduced was stripping Misimović of the captain's armband and awarding it to 27-year-old defender Emir Spahić
Emir Spahic
Emir Spahić is a Bosnian football central defender playing for Sevilla FC in the Spanish La Liga and captains the Bosnia and Herzegovina national team...
who had just returned to the national team after boycotting it since fall 2006. On 8 April 2008, Misimović (then still only 25 years old) announced his retirement from the national team, citing stating health concerns as he no longer felt able to keep up the physical rigors of playing for both club and country. However, many speculated that health had little to do with Misimović's sudden announcement. These suspicions were seemingly confirmed two days later by Bosnian national team general manager Elvir Bolić
Elvir Bolic
Elvir Bolić is a former Bosnian football forward. He is the all-time leading scorer for the Bosnia and Herzegovina national football team....
who hinted that Misimović might have softened his original stance and revealed that head coach Meho Kodro would travel to Germany to visit the player personally and discuss the "real reasons" for his decision. On 12 April 2008, after speaking to Kodro, Misimović changed his mind and the Football Association of Bosnia and Herzegovina
Football Association of Bosnia and Herzegovina
The Football Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina |football]] in Bosnia and Herzegovina based in Sarajevo.It operates the Premier League of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Bosnia and Herzegovina national football team, the Bosnia and Herzegovina national under-21 football team, Bosnia and Herzegovina...
(NSBiH) announced that he had decided to continue his international career.
2010 World Cup qualifying
Under the next head coach Ćiro Blažević during 2010 World Cup qualification2010 FIFA World Cup qualification - UEFA Group 5
The 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification UEFA Group 5 was a UEFA qualifying group for the 2010 FIFA World Cup. The group comprised European champions Spain, Turkey, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Armenia and Estonia....
process, Misimović asserted himself as the team's undisputed leader on the pitch, displaying great playmaking abilities and leadership qualities. His fine performances culminated with a hat-trick in a 7–0 victory over Estonia. Bosnia finished the group in second place thus qualifying for the playoffs against 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 November 2009.
However, the qualifying campaign ended on a sour note both for Misimović personally and for the team. Misimović had a poor outing in the first leg away in Lisbon
Lisbon
Lisbon is the capital city and largest city of Portugal with a population of 545,245 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Lisbon extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of 3 million on an area of , making it the 9th most populous urban...
and was widely criticized for his sub-par performance even by the head coach Blažević himself, who publicly blasted him for lack of contribution. Two days later (and two days before the 18 November return leg), Misimović was ruled out by medical staff due to an apparent knee injury he picked up during the first leg.
The controversy arose three days after that on 21 November when he played the full 90 minutes for VfL Wolfsburg
VfL Wolfsburg
VfL Wolfsburg is a professional German association football club based in Wolfsburg, Lower Saxony, who play in the Bundesliga football competition. Wolfsburg have won the Bundesliga once in their history, in the 2008–09 season, and were DFB-Pokal runners-up in 1995. The current head coach is Felix...
in Bundesliga leading to veiled accusations in the Bosnian media that he faked the injury to get back at Blažević. Head coach Blažević went further, directly accusing Misimović of sabotaging him. Blažević even went as far as alluding to Misimović's Serbian ethnicity; suggesting a conspiracy on instructions from Republika Srpska
Republika Srpska
Republika Srpska is one of two main political entities of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the other being the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina...
Prime Minister Milorad Dodik
Milorad Dodik
Milorad Dodik , is the President of Republika Srpska, and the president of the Alliance of Independent Social Democrats political party. He graduated from the Belgrade University of Political Sciences .-Political career:...
and the Serbian lobby because "Republika Srpska would lose everything if Bosnia qualified for the World Cup". When informed of Blažević's comments, stunned Misimović responded he would not play for Bosnia as long as Blažević is the head coach, and further accused Blažević of scapegoating him in order to deflect attention from the fact that the team was thoroughly outplayed by Portugal in both matches. Even though he stated his intention to leave even before Misimović's latest words, Blažević's response was a claim that he will leave the post because "Misimović is more important to this team than I am". Blažević then suddenly announced that he and Misimović had supposedly resolved their differences after Blažević apparently called Misimović to congratulate the birth of his son, but this reconciliation was later denied by Misimović.
Blažević even announced his intent to travel to Wolfsburg
Wolfsburg
Wolfsburg is a town in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is located on the River Aller northeast of Braunschweig , and is mainly notable as the headquarters of Volkswagen AG...
for the Champions League group stage
2009–10 UEFA Champions League group stage
The 2009–10 UEFA Champions League group stage matches took place between 15 September and 9 December 2009. The draw for the eight groups took place on 27 August 2009, at the Grimaldi Forum in Monaco....
match between VfL Wolfsburg and Manchester United in order to visit Misimović personally, but ended up not doing so. Within days Blažević resigned his post with Bosnia, revealing that he took an offer from China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
, and in his parting shot once again singled out Misimović as the reason why Bosnia is not going to the World Cup.
Euro 2012 qualifying
Misimović played his 51st match for the national team against LuxembourgLuxembourg national football team
The Luxembourg national football team is the national football team of Luxembourg, and is controlled by the Luxembourg Football Federation. The team play most of their home matches at the Stade Josy Barthel, in Luxembourg.- History :...
in September 2010, thus equaling Elvir Bolić
Elvir Bolic
Elvir Bolić is a former Bosnian football forward. He is the all-time leading scorer for the Bosnia and Herzegovina national football team....
's record for most caps for Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina national football team
The Bosnia and Herzegovina national football team is the national football team of Bosnia and Herzegovina, governed by the Football Association of Bosnia and Herzegovina...
. Misimović surpassed Bolić in a match against France
France national football team
The France national football team represents the nation of France in international football. It is fielded by the French Football Federation , the governing body of football in France, and competes as a member of UEFA, which encompasses the countries of Europe...
in Sarajevo
Sarajevo
Sarajevo |Bosnia]], surrounded by the Dinaric Alps and situated along the Miljacka River in the heart of Southeastern Europe and the Balkans....
on 7 September making him the most capped player in the history of the national team with 52 matches played.
Club
|-|2000–01||rowspan="3"|Bayern Munich II
FC Bayern Munich II
Bayern Munich II are the second team of German association football club Bayern Munich. In 2010–11 they played in the 3rd Liga, having qualified for its inaugural season in 2008, and have consistently played at the third level of German football — they played in the Regionalliga Süd from...
||rowspan="3"|Regionalliga Süd
Regionalliga Süd
The Regionalliga Süd is currently the fourth tier of the German football league system. Until the introduction of the 3rd Liga in 2008, it was the third tier. It currently is the highest regional league for the southern part of Germany...
||12||1||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||12||1
|-
|2001–02
2001–02 Fußball-Regionalliga
The Fußball-Regionalliga 2001–02 was contested in two divisions as in the previous season. Each division contained 18 teams that played each other twice. Three points were awarded for a win, one for a draw and none for a loss.- Regionalliga Nord :...
||31||14||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||31||14
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|2002–03||28||8||1||0||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||29||8
|-
|2002–03||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....
||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...
||1||0||0||0||0||0||0||0||1||0
|-
|2003–04
2003–04 Fußball-Regionalliga
The 2003–04 Regionalliga season was the tenth since its re-establishment after German reunification and the tenth as a third-level league within the German football league system. It was contested in two geographical divisions with eighteen teams each...
||Bayern Munich II
FC Bayern Munich II
Bayern Munich II are the second team of German association football club Bayern Munich. In 2010–11 they played in the 3rd Liga, having qualified for its inaugural season in 2008, and have consistently played at the third level of German football — they played in the Regionalliga Süd from...
||Regionalliga Süd
Regionalliga Süd
The Regionalliga Süd is currently the fourth tier of the German football league system. Until the introduction of the 3rd Liga in 2008, it was the third tier. It currently is the highest regional league for the southern part of Germany...
||31||21||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||31||21
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|2003–04||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....
||rowspan="2"|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...
||2||0||1||0||0||0||0||0||3||0
|-
|2004–05||rowspan="3"|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:...
||31||3||2||1||1||0||2||0||36||4
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|2005–06||2. Bundesliga
2. 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...
||31||11||2||1||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||33||12
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|2006–07||rowspan="5"|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...
||30||7||2||1||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||32||8
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|2007–08||1. FC Nuremberg||28||10||2||3||1||0||6||1||37||14
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|2008–09||rowspan="3"|VfL Wolfsburg
VfL Wolfsburg
VfL Wolfsburg is a professional German association football club based in Wolfsburg, Lower Saxony, who play in the Bundesliga football competition. Wolfsburg have won the Bundesliga once in their history, in the 2008–09 season, and were DFB-Pokal runners-up in 1995. The current head coach is Felix...
||33||7||4||0||colspan="2"|—||8||4||45||11
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|2009–10
2009–10 Fußball-Bundesliga
The 2009–10 Fußball-Bundesliga was the 47th season of the Fußball-Bundesliga, Germany's premier football league. The season commenced on 7 August 2009 with the traditional season opening match involving the defending champions VfL Wolfsburg and VfB Stuttgart. The last games were played on 8 May 2010...
||31||10||2||2||colspan="2"|—||6||1||39||13
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|2010–11
2010–11 Fußball-Bundesliga
The 2010–11 Fußball-Bundesliga was the 48th season of the Fußball-Bundesliga, Germany's premier football league. The season started on the weekend of 21 August 2010 with the traditional season opening match involving the defending champions and ended with the last games on 14 May 2011. The winter...
||1||0||1||0||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||2||0
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|2010–11
2010–11 Süper Lig
The 2010–11 Süper Lig is the 53rd season since its establishment. Bursaspor are defending champions having won their first Turkish championship last season. The season began on 14 August 2010 and concluded on 22 May 2011...
||Galatasaray
Galatasaray S.K. (football team)
Galatasaray Anonim Şirketi is a Turkish football club, part of the Galatasaray S.K. multi-sport club of Istanbul. Galatasaray is a major sports club in Turkey, holding 17 Turkish Super League titles and the highest number of Turkish Cups....
||Süper Lig||9||0||0||0||colspan="2"|—||0||0||9||0
|-
|2011–12
2011–12 Russian Premier League
The 2011–12 Russian Premier League is the 20th season of the Russian football championship since the dissolution of the Soviet Union and 10th under the current Russian Premier League name. The season began on 12 March 2011. The last matches will be played in spring 2012, as the league will switch...
||Dynamo Moscow
FC Dynamo Moscow
Dynamo Moscow is a Russian football club based in Moscow, currently playing in the Russian Premier League. Dynamo's traditional kit colours are blue and white...
||Russian Premier League
Russian Premier League
The Russian Premier League , currently called SOGAZ Russian Football Championship due to sponsorship reasons, is the top division of Russian football. There are 16 teams in the competition...
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290||92||17||8||2||0||22||6||331||106
9||0||0||0||0||0||0||0||9||0
21||3||1||0||0||0||0||0||22||3
320||95||17||8||2||0||22||6||361||109
International goals
Note: Misimović has NOW scored 20 goals. On the Bosnian and Herzegovinian football association page it says 21 goals but that information is incorrect. For the game Bosnia vs Turkey during qualifiers for UEFA EURO 2008, the website shows that Misimović scored a goal, but in fact it was his team mate Muslimovic who scored, as Misimović was not a scorer in that game. He has also played one extra game due to a duplication error on the website of the same match. As at 15 November 2011, the correct information is 64 games played, 20 goals scored.| Goal | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | 21 March 2004 | Luxembourg Luxembourg Luxembourg , officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg , is a landlocked country in western Europe, bordered by Belgium, France, and Germany. It has two principal regions: the Oesling in the North as part of the Ardennes massif, and the Gutland in the south... |
1–0 | 2–1 | Friendly match | |
| 2. | 28 April 2004 | Bilino Polje, Zenica Zenica Zenica is an industrial city in Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is the capital of the Zenica-Doboj Canton of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina entity... |
1–0 | 1–0 | Friendly match | |
| 3. | 30 March 2005 | Lithuania Lithuania Lithuania , officially the Republic of Lithuania is a country in Northern Europe, the biggest of the three Baltic states. It is situated along the southeastern shore of the Baltic Sea, whereby to the west lie Sweden and Denmark... |
1-1 | 1–1 | 2006 FIFA World Cup qualification 2006 FIFA World Cup qualification A total of 197 teams entered the qualification process for the 2006 FIFA World Cup, competing for a total of 32 spots in the final tournament. Germany, as the host, qualified automatically, leaving 31 spots open for competition... |
|
| 4. | 8 June 2005 | Valencia | 1–0 | 1–1 | 2006 FIFA World Cup qualification 2006 FIFA World Cup qualification A total of 197 teams entered the qualification process for the 2006 FIFA World Cup, competing for a total of 32 spots in the final tournament. Germany, as the host, qualified automatically, leaving 31 spots open for competition... |
|
| 5. | 28 February 2006 | Dortmund Dortmund Dortmund is a city in Germany. It is located in the Bundesland of North Rhine-Westphalia, in the Ruhr area. Its population of 585,045 makes it the 7th largest city in Germany and the 34th largest in the European Union.... |
1–1 | 2–2 | Friendly match | |
| 6. | 31 May 2006 | Teheran | 1–0 | 2–5 | Friendly match | |
| 7. | 6 September 2006 | Bilino Polje, Zenica Zenica Zenica is an industrial city in Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is the capital of the Zenica-Doboj Canton of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina entity... |
1-3 | 1–3 | UEFA Euro 2008 qualification | |
| 8. | 7 October 2006 | Kisnjev | 1–2 | 2–2 | UEFA Euro 2008 qualification | |
| 9. | 24 March 2007 | Ullevaal Stadion Ullevaal Stadion Ullevaal Stadion is an all-seater football stadium located in Oslo, Norway. It is the home ground of Vålerenga IF and the Norway national football team, and the site of the Norwegian Cup Final. From its opening in 1926 to 2009 it was the home ground of FK Lyn. With a capacity of 25,572, it is the... , Oslo Oslo Oslo is a municipality, as well as the capital and most populous city in Norway. As a municipality , it was established on 1 January 1838. Founded around 1048 by King Harald III of Norway, the city was largely destroyed by fire in 1624. The city was moved under the reign of Denmark–Norway's King... |
1–0 | 2–1 | UEFA Euro 2008 qualification | |
| 10. | 19 November 2008 | Maribor Maribor Maribor is the second largest city in Slovenia with 157,947 inhabitants . Maribor is also the largest and the capital city of Slovenian region Lower Styria and the seat of the Municipality of Maribor.... |
2–1 | 4–3 | Friendly match | |
| 11. | 10 September 2008 | Bilino Polje, Zenica Zenica Zenica is an industrial city in Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is the capital of the Zenica-Doboj Canton of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina entity... |
1–0 | 7–0 | 2010 World Cup qualification | |
| 12. | 10 September 2008 | Bilino Polje, Zenica Zenica Zenica is an industrial city in Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is the capital of the Zenica-Doboj Canton of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina entity... |
2–0 | 7–0 | 2010 World Cup qualification | |
| 13. | 10 September 2008 | Bilino Polje, Zenica Zenica Zenica is an industrial city in Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is the capital of the Zenica-Doboj Canton of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina entity... |
3-0 | 7–0 | 2010 World Cup qualification | |
| 14. | 28 March 2009 | Cristal Arena Cristal Arena The Cristal Arena is a multi-purpose stadium in Genk, Belgium. It is currently used mostly for football matches and is the home ground of Racing Genk. The stadium holds 25,000 and was built in 1999. Heusden-Zolder used to play at this stadium for their single season at the top level in 2003-04... , Genk Genk Genk is a city and municipality located in the Belgian province of Limburg near Hasselt. The municipality only comprises the city of Genk itself... |
4–1 | 4–2 | 2010 World Cup qualification | |
| 15. | 14 October 2009 | Bilino Polje, Zenica Zenica Zenica is an industrial city in Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is the capital of the Zenica-Doboj Canton of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina entity... |
2-5 | 2–5 | 2010 World Cup qualification | |
| 16. | 10 December 2010 | Mardan Sports Complex Mardan Sports Complex Mardan Sports Complex is a multi-purpose stadium in Aksu, Antalya, Turkey. It is currently used mostly for football matches and hosted matches during the 2008 UEFA European Under-17 Football Championship, including the final. The stadium has a seating capacity of 7,428.-External links:*... , Antalya Antalya Antalya is a city on the Mediterranean coast of southwestern Turkey. With a population 1,001,318 as of 2010. It is the eighth most populous city in Turkey and country's biggest international sea resort.- History :... |
2-2 | 2–2 | Friendly match | |
| 17. | 6 September 2011 | Bilino Polje, Zenica Zenica Zenica is an industrial city in Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is the capital of the Zenica-Doboj Canton of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina entity... |
1-0 | 1–0 | UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying The qualifying competition for UEFA Euro 2012 is a series of parallel association football competitions held over 2010 and 2011 to decide the qualifiers for UEFA Euro 2012, to be held in Poland and Ukraine... |
|
| 18. | 7 October 2011 | Bilino Polje Bilino Polje Bilino Polje is the home football stadium of Bosnian Premier League football club NK Čelik from the city of Zenica in Bosnia and Herzegovina and one of two stadiums of the national football team of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is also sometimes used for the Bosnia and Herzegovina national rugby union... , Zenica Zenica Zenica is an industrial city in Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is the capital of the Zenica-Doboj Canton of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina entity... |
2–0 | 5–0 | UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying The qualifying competition for UEFA Euro 2012 is a series of parallel association football competitions held over 2010 and 2011 to decide the qualifiers for UEFA Euro 2012, to be held in Poland and Ukraine... |
|
| 19. | 7 October 2011 | Bilino Polje Bilino Polje Bilino Polje is the home football stadium of Bosnian Premier League football club NK Čelik from the city of Zenica in Bosnia and Herzegovina and one of two stadiums of the national football team of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is also sometimes used for the Bosnia and Herzegovina national rugby union... , Zenica Zenica Zenica is an industrial city in Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is the capital of the Zenica-Doboj Canton of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina entity... |
3–0 | 5–0 | UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying The qualifying competition for UEFA Euro 2012 is a series of parallel association football competitions held over 2010 and 2011 to decide the qualifiers for UEFA Euro 2012, to be held in Poland and Ukraine... |
|
| 20. | 15 November 2011 | Estádio da Luz, Lisbon Lisbon Lisbon is the capital city and largest city of Portugal with a population of 545,245 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Lisbon extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of 3 million on an area of , making it the 9th most populous urban... |
1–2 | 2–6 | UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying The qualifying competition for UEFA Euro 2012 is a series of parallel association football competitions held over 2010 and 2011 to decide the qualifiers for UEFA Euro 2012, to be held in Poland and Ukraine... |
Personal
His wife, Stefanija, is from StrumicaStrumica
Strumica is the largest city in eastern Macedonia, near the Novo Selo-Petrich border crossing with Bulgaria. About 100,000 people live in the region surrounding the city. The city is named after the Strumica River which runs through it...
, Macedonia
Republic of Macedonia
Macedonia , officially the Republic of Macedonia , is a country located in the central Balkan peninsula in Southeast Europe. It is one of the successor states of the former Yugoslavia, from which it declared independence in 1991...
and they have two sons together; Luka, born in 2004, and Niko, born in 2009.
Honours
- BundesligaFußball-BundesligaThe 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...
: 2003, 2009 - DFB-PokalDFB-PokalThe 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...
: 2003 - Regionalliga Süd: 2004
- 2. 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...
: 2006