Željko Kalac
Encyclopedia
Željko Kalac (ˈʒɛʎkɔ ˈkalats; born 16 December 1972) is a retired Australian football (soccer) goalkeeper. Standing at 2.02m, Kalac is one of the world's tallest professional goalkeepers.
Kalac's preferred playing number (when not the conventional number 1) is 18 and has generally worn this number when playing for Australia. However, when he joined AC Milan in 2005, number 18 was already claimed by Marek Jankulovski
, who joined at the same time, and so he chose number 16. When he transferred to Kavala, number 18 was also taken, so he settled for number 60.
Croatian community, Kalac began his professional playing career rising through the ranks at Sydney United, competing in the Australian National Soccer League
. At the age of 16, he was included in the first team alongside first-choice keeper Tony Franken
, playing the first eleven games of the 1989-90 NSL season in Franken's absence, before returning to the substitute bench - a place occupied throughout the 1990-91 season as a stand-out Franken remained fit and was first choice all season.
In the off-season, Franken transferred to local rivals APIA Leichhardt, but Kalac was now competing for a place with a young Mark Bosnich
(a former rival at Marconi Fairfield), who had returned from an unsuccessful spell at Manchester United
. Kalac would start 21 out of 26 games in the 1991–92 season, the place cemented when Bosnich transferred to Aston Villa
later in the season.
When APIA Leichhardt were dumped out of the NSL for financial troubles at the end of the 91-92 season, Tony Franken returned to Sydney United to resume keeping duties, however selections were not as clear cut as before. Appearances were shared throughout the 1992-93 season and Kalac became first choice throughout the 1993–94 season, helping Sydney United to third place in the table before being eliminated in the semi-finals. He remained as first-choice throughout the 94-95 season, again reaching the semi-final stage of the competition.
. Here he only made three first team appearances, one each in the league and League Cup
, and his final appearance as a substitute in the 1996 Division One playoff final against Crystal Palace
, with the score 1-1. He came on in the final minute of extra-time as Leicester manager Martin O'Neill
believed that due to Kalac's size, he would be able to save penalties during the shootout. But Steve Claridge
scored at the other end with the last kick of the game, 20 seconds after Kalac had come onto the pitch, and the Foxes were promoted to the Premiership without needing a shootout.
With Kevin Poole
remaining as first choice keeper, a transfer deal was agreed for Kalac to go to Wolves
along with fellow Australian Steve Corica
for £1.75m. But after making the move to Wolves he was unable to attain a UK work permit, and amid a long appeal process, the deal fell through and he returned to Sydney United.
The next season in the NSL, he played every match for United helping them to the most successful season in over a decade, comfortably winning the league before being beaten in the grand final.
A move to England was again on the cards in 1997 at Portsmouth
. Terry Venables
, who was also coaching the Australian national side at the time, sought to sign Kalac but he was again denied a work permit and the deal fell through.
side Roda JC who were seeking to fill the gap left by Ruud Hesp
's departure a year earlier. Starting as the clubs No1, he held this position for four years.
After narrowly avoiding relegation in 97/98
, Kalac's arrival helped the side rise to fifth in 98/99
season, earning a UEFA Cup
berth. The 99/00
season was less successful in the league (finishing eighth) but he helped Roda lift the 2000 KNVB Cup
, which Kalac rates as one of his greatest career achievements. A promising 2000/01
season (finishing fourth) earned a UEFA Cup place the following year that would be a memorable campaign. Roda progressed as far as the fourth round, pressing AC Milan to penalties. After a number of saves throughout regular time, Kalac saved two penalties in the shootout from José Mari
and Kakha Kaladze, but it was not enough as Milan went through 3-2.
, quickly cementing his place as first choice, helping them to a place in the Intertoto Cup. The Italian side went on to win their cup final, Kalac not conceding once in the competition. The domestic season
ended in relegation after finishing fourth last and losing a playoff against Fiorentina
.
Kalac stayed with Perugia in Serie B in 2004-05 and played 29 times as Perugia finished third, but were demoted to Serie C1
for financial troubles.
in the summer of 2005 on a free transfer. It wasn't until February 2006 that he made his debut in a Milan shirt, when an ankle injury suffered by incumbent Dida in the first leg of the Champions League
knockout stage against Bayern Munich. As a result, he played his first Serie A match since 2004, keeping clean sheets against Palermo
and Empoli F.C.
He also played in the Coppa Italia
tournament until Milan were eliminated by underdog Palermo on a disappointing 3-1 aggregate.
On 21 November 2006, Kalac made his second UEFA Champions League appearance for Milan as he came off the bench in the final 15 minutes of the group match against AEK Athens
. Dida tore knee ligaments and was predicted to be out for two to three months, which finally gave Kalac a chance to make more competitive appearances for Milan. Kalac's first full game in the 2006-07 season
was on 25 November 2006 in Milan's 1-0 win over Messina in the Serie A.
On 14 January 2007 Kalac suffered an injury against Reggina
and was replaced by a recovering Dida for the following match against Lazio
. These goalkeeper injury concerns prompted manager Carlo Ancelotti
to sign Messina goalkeeper Marco Storari
, who became the third goalkeeper in the Milan first team with veteran Valerio Fiori
being the fourth. Storari replaced Dida and Kalac in Milan's Serie A matches against Livorno
and A.C. Siena in mid-February, when both were out with injuries. Despite this extra competition, Kalac recovered from injury in time to play for Milan in the first leg of the UEFA Champions League round of 16 against Celtic on 20 February. In the next Serie A match against Sampdoria
five days later, Dida was nevertheless able to make his comeback after being out for nearly one month and subsequently remained in goal until suffering a shoulder injury in mid-April, which enabled Kalac to make further two Serie A appearances before Dida returned in goal for the first leg of the UEFA Champions League semifinals against Manchester United
on 24 April. Kalac finished his second season at Milan having made 10 appearances in the Serie A and another 3 in the Champions League.
In March 2007, Kalac signed a contract extension with Milan, keeping him at the San Siro until at least 2009. In the 2007-08 season, he made appearances in the Champions League again after Dida was suspended for simulation in a match against Celtic, helping Milan through to the knockout phase. Kalac made a number of appearances in the Serie A, after Dida suffered a combination of injuries and poor form midway through the season. Kalac notably kept a clean sheet away to Fiorentina
on 3 February 2008 as he snuffed out a Fiorentina attack moments before the final whistle, a save that earned praise from media and coach Carlo Ancelotti
. Later in the month he collected another clean sheet at the Emirates Stadium
against Arsenal in a 0-0 draw during the first leg of the UEFA Champions League round of sixteen, producing several good saves in the second half and being named Man of the Match by UEFA. In the second leg of the tie, he conceded two late goals as Milan were eliminated by Arsenal after a 2-0 loss at the San Siro
.
The combination of Christian Abbiati
's return from his loan spell at Atletico Madrid and a poor performance in Milan's 5-0 Russian Railways Cup
thrashing at the hands of Chelsea F.C.
on 4 August 2008 spelled the end of Kalac's brief first-team run. He was consequently demoted to third-choice behind Abbiati and Dida, and did not play for Milan again until appearing in the second half of a friendly against Hannover 96
on 29 January 2009, and one Serie A appearance against Juventus as an injury replacement on 10 May.
Kalac was released by Milan on 11 August, following an agreement reached with the club.
in moving to the club and Fanis Katergiannakis
who won UEFA Euro 2004. He made his Greek Super League debut for in the 2–2 home draw against Panathinaikos on 18 October 2009.
Following the end of the 2009–10 season with Kavala, Kalac announced his retirement from club football.
and later Mark Schwarzer
. He was selected as a member of Australia's 2006 FIFA World Cup
squad, making one appearance.
He was part of the Australian squad for the 1989 FIFA U-16 World Championship
as second-choice keeper behind Schwarzer. He was again a squad member for the 1991 FIFA World Youth Championship again as a second choice, but this time behind Bosnich. His first full international appearance was against Malaysia
on 11 August 1992, as a stand in for Robert Zabica
. Australia lost 1-0, and he was replaced for the next match by club teammate Tony Franken
.
In Australia's final first round match of the 2006 FIFA World Cup
between Croatia and Australia, coach Guus Hiddink
surprisingly selected Kalac over Schwarzer. With Australia needing a draw or better to advance and with the score tied at one apiece in the second half, Kalac fumbled a long range shot from Niko Kovač
and conceded what he later described as a "shit goal." Fortunately for Kalac and the Australians, Harry Kewell
scored later in the half and they advanced to the round of sixteen. After the match, Kalac spoke of his relief: "You're looking at the ground to eat you up. Obviously for me, it's very relieving to get that result."
Kalac announced his international retirement on 4 October 2006. He played his last game against Paraguay
on 7 October, along with fellow international retirees Tony Popovic
, Tony Vidmar
and Stan Lazaridis
, coming off as a substitute in the 90th minute for Schwarzer.
club Sydney FC
.
Roda JC
Perugia
AC Milan
Australia
|-
|1989–90
||rowspan=6|Sydney United||rowspan=6|NSL
||11||0||?||?||rowspan=6 colspan=2| ||rowspan=6 colspan=2| ||?||?
|-
|1990–91
||0||0||?||?||?||?
|-
|1991–92
||21||0||?||?||?||?
|-
|1992–93
||11||0||?||?||?||?
|-
|1993–94
||25||0||?||?||?||?
|-
|1994–95
||24||0||?||?||?||?
|-
|-
|1995–96||Leicester City
||First Division
||1||0||0||0||1||0||colspan=2| ||31||0
|-
|1996–97
||rowspan=2|Sydney United||rowspan=2|NSL||7||0||?||?||rowspan=2 colspan=2| ||rowspan=2 colspan=2| ||?||?
|-
|1997–98
||15||0||?||?||?||?
|-
|-
|1998–99||rowspan=4|Roda JC||rowspan=4|Eredivisie
||33||0||?||?||rowspan=4 colspan=2| ||colspan=2| ||?||?
|-
|1999–2000||30||0||?||?||4||0||?||?
|-
|2000–01
||20||0||?||?||0||0||?||?
|-
|2001–02||32||0||?||?||7||0||?||?
|-
|-
|2002–03||rowspan=3|Perugia
||rowspan=2|Serie A
||22||0||6||0||rowspan=7 colspan=2| ||22||0||30||0
|-
|2003–04||29||0||0||0||113||0||424||0
|-
|2004–05||Serie B
||29||0||3||0||colspan=2| ||32||0
|-
|2005–06||rowspan=4|Milan
||rowspan=4|Serie A||2||0||4||0||1||0||7||0
|-
|2006–07||10||0||3||0||3||0||16||0
|-
|2007–08||25||0||2||0||5||0||32||0
|-
|2008–09||1||0||0||0||0||0||1||0
|-
|-
|2009–10||Kavala||Super League
||9||0||0||0||colspan=4| ||9||0
|-
114||0||?||?||colspan=2| ||rowspan=2 colspan=2| ||?||?
1||0||0||0||1||0||31||0
115||0||?||?||rowspan=3 colspan=2| ||11||0||?||?
118||0||18||0||22||0||160234||0
2||0||0||0||colspan=2| ||2||0
350||0||?||?||1||0||33||0||?||?
1Include one match at Playoffs
2Include 2 matches at 2002 UEFA Intertoto Cup
3Include 6 matches at 2003 UEFA Intertoto Cup
4Include two matches at Relegation Playoffs
|1992||1||0
|-
|1993||0||0
|-
|1994||5||0
|-
|1995||7||0
|-
|1996||7||0
|-
|1997||6||0
|-
|1998||3||0
|-
|1999||0||0
|-
|2000||9||0
|-
|2001||0||0
|-
|2002||0||0
|-
|2003||1||0
|-
|2004||7||0
|-
|2005||4||0
|-
|2006||4||0
|-
!Total||54||0
|}
Kalac's preferred playing number (when not the conventional number 1) is 18 and has generally worn this number when playing for Australia. However, when he joined AC Milan in 2005, number 18 was already claimed by Marek Jankulovski
Marek Jankulovski
Marek Jankulovski is a Czech footballer who currently plays for Czech club Baník Ostrava. His former club was Milan. He was voted the 2007 Czech Player of the Year....
, who joined at the same time, and so he chose number 16. When he transferred to Kavala, number 18 was also taken, so he settled for number 60.
Early career
Growing up in the SydneySydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
Croatian community, Kalac began his professional playing career rising through the ranks at Sydney United, competing in the Australian National Soccer League
National Soccer League
The National Soccer League is the former national association football competition in Australasia, overseen by Soccer Australia and later the Australian Soccer Association. The NSL spanned 28 seasons from its inception in 1977, until its demise in 2004...
. At the age of 16, he was included in the first team alongside first-choice keeper Tony Franken
Tony Franken
Anthony Franken is a former Australian soccer goalkeeper from Perth, Western Australia. He is widely considered one of Australia's best ever....
, playing the first eleven games of the 1989-90 NSL season in Franken's absence, before returning to the substitute bench - a place occupied throughout the 1990-91 season as a stand-out Franken remained fit and was first choice all season.
In the off-season, Franken transferred to local rivals APIA Leichhardt, but Kalac was now competing for a place with a young Mark Bosnich
Mark Bosnich
Mark Bosnich is a retired Australian football player and football pundit. He represented Australia 17 times and played for English Premier League clubs Aston Villa, Manchester United and Chelsea.-Manchester United :...
(a former rival at Marconi Fairfield), who had returned from an unsuccessful spell at Manchester United
Manchester United F.C.
Manchester United Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, that plays in the Premier League. Founded as Newton Heath LYR Football Club in 1878, the club changed its name to Manchester United in 1902 and moved to Old Trafford in 1910.The 1958...
. Kalac would start 21 out of 26 games in the 1991–92 season, the place cemented when Bosnich transferred to Aston Villa
Aston Villa F.C.
Aston Villa Football Club is an English professional association football club based in Witton, Birmingham. The club was founded in 1874 and have played at their current home ground, Villa Park, since 1897. Aston Villa were founder members of The Football League in 1888. They were also founder...
later in the season.
When APIA Leichhardt were dumped out of the NSL for financial troubles at the end of the 91-92 season, Tony Franken returned to Sydney United to resume keeping duties, however selections were not as clear cut as before. Appearances were shared throughout the 1992-93 season and Kalac became first choice throughout the 1993–94 season, helping Sydney United to third place in the table before being eliminated in the semi-finals. He remained as first-choice throughout the 94-95 season, again reaching the semi-final stage of the competition.
Move to England
In 1995, Kalac followed many Australian players in a move to Europe with English Division One side Leicester CityLeicester City F.C.
Leicester City Football Club , also known as The Foxes, is an English professional football club based at the King Power Stadium in Leicester...
. Here he only made three first team appearances, one each in the league and League Cup
Football League Cup
The Football League Cup, commonly known as the League Cup or, from current sponsorship, the Carling Cup, is an English association football competition. Like the FA Cup, it is played on a knockout basis...
, and his final appearance as a substitute in the 1996 Division One playoff final against Crystal Palace
Crystal Palace F.C.
Crystal Palace Football Club are an English Football league club based in South Norwood, London. The team plays its home matches at Selhurst Park, where they have been based since 1924. The club currently competes in the second tier of English Football, The Championship.Crystal Palace was formed in...
, with the score 1-1. He came on in the final minute of extra-time as Leicester manager Martin O'Neill
Martin O'Neill
Martin Hugh Michael O'Neill, OBE, is a Northern Irish football manager and former player.Until resigning the post on 9 August 2010, he was manager of Aston Villa. Starting his career in his native Northern Ireland, O'Neill moved to England where he spent most of his playing career with Nottingham...
believed that due to Kalac's size, he would be able to save penalties during the shootout. But Steve Claridge
Steve Claridge
Stephen Edward Claridge is an English football player, pundit and coach. He is currently a pundit for BBC Sport football shows including Football Focus and the The Football League Show, whilst also playing as a striker for semi-professional team Gosport Borough.Claridge's career is known for its...
scored at the other end with the last kick of the game, 20 seconds after Kalac had come onto the pitch, and the Foxes were promoted to the Premiership without needing a shootout.
With Kevin Poole
Kevin Poole
Kevin Poole is an English professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Football League Two side Burton Albion, where he is also goalkeeping coach...
remaining as first choice keeper, a transfer deal was agreed for Kalac to go to Wolves
Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C.
Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club is an English professional association football club that represents the city of Wolverhampton in the West Midlands region. They are members of the Premier League, the highest level of English football. The club was founded in 1877 and since 1889 has played at...
along with fellow Australian Steve Corica
Steve Corica
Stephen Christopher Corica is a former Australian football player who last played for Australian A-League team Sydney FC. A technically gifted and skillful player playing primarily as an attacking midfielder, he is very versatile, able to play both centrally or out wide, or even pushed up as a...
for £1.75m. But after making the move to Wolves he was unable to attain a UK work permit, and amid a long appeal process, the deal fell through and he returned to Sydney United.
The next season in the NSL, he played every match for United helping them to the most successful season in over a decade, comfortably winning the league before being beaten in the grand final.
A move to England was again on the cards in 1997 at Portsmouth
Portsmouth F.C.
Portsmouth Football Club is an English football club based in the city of Portsmouth. The club is nicknamed Pompey. Portsmouth's home matches have been played at Fratton Park since the club's formation in 1898. The team currently play in the Football League Championship after being relegated from...
. Terry Venables
Terry Venables
Terence Frederick "Terry" Venables , often referred to as "El Tel", is a former football player and manager, as well as being a media pundit. During the 1960s and 70s, he played for various clubs including Chelsea, Tottenham Hotspur and Queens Park Rangers, and gained two caps for England...
, who was also coaching the Australian national side at the time, sought to sign Kalac but he was again denied a work permit and the deal fell through.
Roda
In 1998, he signed with EredivisieEredivisie
The Eredivisie is the highest football league in the Netherlands. The league was founded in 1956 two years after the start of professional football in the Netherlands. It is currently ranked the ninth best league in Europe by UEFA....
side Roda JC who were seeking to fill the gap left by Ruud Hesp
Ruud Hesp
Rudolfus 'Ruud' Hubertus Hesp is a retired Dutch footballer, who played as a goalkeeper. After his active career, he started working as a keeper trainer. Currently he works at FC Groningen and for the Dutch national team.-Club career:Hesp started his career in the 1985–86 season at HFC Haarlem...
's departure a year earlier. Starting as the clubs No1, he held this position for four years.
After narrowly avoiding relegation in 97/98
1997-98 in Dutch football
The 1997/1998 season in Dutch football was the 42nd season in the Eredivisie, where Ajax Amsterdam won the double, claiming the title and the Dutch National Cup.-Johan Cruijff-schaal:-Eredivisie:*Champions League : Ajax and PSV...
, Kalac's arrival helped the side rise to fifth in 98/99
1998-99 in Dutch football
The 1998/1999 season in Dutch football was the 43rd season in the Eredivisie, where Feyenoord Rotterdam claimed the title, for the first time since 1993...
season, earning a UEFA Cup
UEFA Cup 1999-00
The UEFA Cup 1999-2000 season was won by Galatasaray of Turkey, who defeated Arsenal of England in the final. The game was scoreless through the first ninety minutes and stayed that way through thirty minutes of extra time. The game went on to penalty kicks in which Gheorghe Popescu, the Romanian...
berth. The 99/00
1999-00 in Dutch football
The 1999/2000 season in Dutch football was the 44th season in the Eredivisie, where PSV Eindhoven claimed the title, while Roda JC won the Dutch National Cup.-Johan Cruijff-schaal:-Eredivisie:*Champions League : PSV Eindhoven and SC Heerenveen...
season was less successful in the league (finishing eighth) but he helped Roda lift the 2000 KNVB Cup
KNVB Cup
The KNVB Cup is a competition in the Netherlands organized by the Royal Dutch Football Association since 1899. It was based on the format of the English FA Cup. Outside of the Netherlands, it is often referred to as the Dutch Cup...
, which Kalac rates as one of his greatest career achievements. A promising 2000/01
2000-01 in Dutch football
The 2000/2001 season in Dutch football was the 45th season in the Eredivisie, where PSV Eindhoven claimed the title, while FC Twente won the Dutch National Cup.-Johan Cruijff-schaal:-Eredivisie:*Champions League : PSV Eindhoven...
season (finishing fourth) earned a UEFA Cup place the following year that would be a memorable campaign. Roda progressed as far as the fourth round, pressing AC Milan to penalties. After a number of saves throughout regular time, Kalac saved two penalties in the shootout from José Mari
José Mari
José María Romero Poyón , aka José Mari, is a Spanish footballer who plays for Xerez CD as a forward or winger.-Club career:...
and Kakha Kaladze, but it was not enough as Milan went through 3-2.
Perugia
In July 2002 he was signed by Serie A club A.C. PerugiaPerugia Calcio
Associazione Calcistica Perugia Calcio is an Italian association football club based in Perugia, Umbria, direct heir of the old Perugia Calcio and A.C. Perugia, excluded from Italian football because of financial troubles....
, quickly cementing his place as first choice, helping them to a place in the Intertoto Cup. The Italian side went on to win their cup final, Kalac not conceding once in the competition. The domestic season
Serie A 2003-04
The 2003-2004 season in Italian Serie A football contained 18 teams for the 16th and last time from the 1988-89 season. With the bottom three being relegated, the 15th placed side would face the 6th highest team from Serie B, with the winner playing in the Serie A in 2004-2005.As usual, the top two...
ended in relegation after finishing fourth last and losing a playoff against Fiorentina
ACF Fiorentina
ACF Fiorentina, commonly referred to as simply Fiorentina, is a professional Italian football club from Florence, Tuscany. Founded by a merger in 1926, Fiorentina have played at the top level of Italian football for the majority of their existence; only four clubs have played in more Serie A...
.
Kalac stayed with Perugia in Serie B in 2004-05 and played 29 times as Perugia finished third, but were demoted to Serie C1
Serie C1
Lega Pro Prima Divisione is the name of the third highest football league in Italy. It consists of 36 teams, divided geographically into two divisions of 18 teams each. Until 2008 it was known as Serie C1....
for financial troubles.
Milan
With Perugia relegated again, Kalac joined A.C. MilanA.C. Milan
Associazione Calcio Milan, commonly referred to as A.C. Milan or simply Milan , is a professional Italian football club based in Milan, Lombardy, that plays in the Serie A. Milan was founded in 1899 by English lace-maker Herbert Kilpin and businessman Alfred Edwards among others...
in the summer of 2005 on a free transfer. It wasn't until February 2006 that he made his debut in a Milan shirt, when an ankle injury suffered by incumbent Dida in the first leg of the Champions League
UEFA Champions League
The UEFA Champions League, known simply the Champions League and originally known as the European Champion Clubs' Cup or European Cup, is an annual international club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations since 1955 for the top football clubs in Europe. It...
knockout stage against Bayern Munich. As a result, he played his first Serie A match since 2004, keeping clean sheets against Palermo
U.S. Città di Palermo
Unione Sportiva Città di Palermo is an Italian football club from Palermo, Sicily which currently plays in Serie A, the top level of Italian football. Formed in 1900 as Anglo Panormitan Athletic and Football Club, the club had various names before assuming its final form in 1987 and is currently...
and Empoli F.C.
Empoli F.C.
Empoli Football Club is an Italian association football club located in Empoli, Tuscany, founded in 1920 and played its first official match in 1921.In recent years, the club has all too often been bouncing between Italy's two top divisions...
He also played in the Coppa Italia
Coppa Italia
The Coppa Italia is an Italian football annual cup competition. Its first edition was held in 1922, but the second champions were not crowned until 1936. Roma and Juventus lead the way with nine wins. Roma has contested more finals, 16, while Torino and Juventus follow with 13...
tournament until Milan were eliminated by underdog Palermo on a disappointing 3-1 aggregate.
On 21 November 2006, Kalac made his second UEFA Champions League appearance for Milan as he came off the bench in the final 15 minutes of the group match against AEK Athens
AEK Athens FC
AEK Athens F.C. , the Athletic Union of Constantinople, is a Greek association football club based in the city of Athens, Greece. Outside Greece, the club is also known as AEK Athens, however, the word Athens is not part of the club's official title.Established in Athens in 1924 by Greek refugees...
. Dida tore knee ligaments and was predicted to be out for two to three months, which finally gave Kalac a chance to make more competitive appearances for Milan. Kalac's first full game in the 2006-07 season
Serie A 2006-07
The Serie A 2006–2007 season began September 10, 2006. It was scheduled to begin on August 26 and 27, but was then postponed due to the Serie A scandal of 2006. It is the 104th Italian championship ever held, the first without the presence of Juventus, and the 75th Serie A league, the first...
was on 25 November 2006 in Milan's 1-0 win over Messina in the Serie A.
On 14 January 2007 Kalac suffered an injury against Reggina
Reggina Calcio
Reggina Calcio are an Italian association football club, the main club of the city of Reggio Calabria. Founded in 1914, they currently play in the Italian Serie B, and play their home matches at the 27,763 seater Stadio Oreste Granillo...
and was replaced by a recovering Dida for the following match against Lazio
S.S. Lazio
Società Sportiva Lazio, commonly referred to as Lazio, is a professional Italian football club based in Rome. The team, founded in 1900, play in the Serie A and have spent most of their history in the top tier of Italian football...
. These goalkeeper injury concerns prompted manager Carlo Ancelotti
Carlo Ancelotti
Carlo Ancelotti is an Italian football manager, Nicknamed Carletto, Ancelotti played as a midfielder and had a successful career with Roma – captaining the team – with whom he won one Scudetto and 4 Coppa Italia and was part of the legendary late 80's Milan team, with whom he won two Scudetti and...
to sign Messina goalkeeper Marco Storari
Marco Storari
Marco Storari is an Italian professional footballer who plays for Juventus F.C. as a goalkeeper.After a lengthy spell in Italy's lower leagues, he arrived in Serie A aged 27. Steady performances for Messina prompted his signing by country giants A.C...
, who became the third goalkeeper in the Milan first team with veteran Valerio Fiori
Valerio Fiori
Valerio Fiori is an Italian former professional footballer, who played as a goalkeeper. He is currently a goalkeeping coach at Serie A club Milan.-Career:...
being the fourth. Storari replaced Dida and Kalac in Milan's Serie A matches against Livorno
A.S. Livorno Calcio
Associazione Sportiva Livorno Calcio is an Italian football club based in Livorno, Tuscany. The club was formed in 1915 and currently plays in Italian Serie B. The team's colors are dark red or maroon...
and A.C. Siena in mid-February, when both were out with injuries. Despite this extra competition, Kalac recovered from injury in time to play for Milan in the first leg of the UEFA Champions League round of 16 against Celtic on 20 February. In the next Serie A match against Sampdoria
U.C. Sampdoria
Unione Calcio Sampdoria is an Italian association football club based in Genoa. The club was formed in 1946 from the merger of two existing sports clubs whose roots can be traced back to the 1890s, Sampierdarenese and Andrea Doria...
five days later, Dida was nevertheless able to make his comeback after being out for nearly one month and subsequently remained in goal until suffering a shoulder injury in mid-April, which enabled Kalac to make further two Serie A appearances before Dida returned in goal for the first leg of the UEFA Champions League semifinals against Manchester United
Manchester United F.C.
Manchester United Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, that plays in the Premier League. Founded as Newton Heath LYR Football Club in 1878, the club changed its name to Manchester United in 1902 and moved to Old Trafford in 1910.The 1958...
on 24 April. Kalac finished his second season at Milan having made 10 appearances in the Serie A and another 3 in the Champions League.
In March 2007, Kalac signed a contract extension with Milan, keeping him at the San Siro until at least 2009. In the 2007-08 season, he made appearances in the Champions League again after Dida was suspended for simulation in a match against Celtic, helping Milan through to the knockout phase. Kalac made a number of appearances in the Serie A, after Dida suffered a combination of injuries and poor form midway through the season. Kalac notably kept a clean sheet away to Fiorentina
ACF Fiorentina
ACF Fiorentina, commonly referred to as simply Fiorentina, is a professional Italian football club from Florence, Tuscany. Founded by a merger in 1926, Fiorentina have played at the top level of Italian football for the majority of their existence; only four clubs have played in more Serie A...
on 3 February 2008 as he snuffed out a Fiorentina attack moments before the final whistle, a save that earned praise from media and coach Carlo Ancelotti
Carlo Ancelotti
Carlo Ancelotti is an Italian football manager, Nicknamed Carletto, Ancelotti played as a midfielder and had a successful career with Roma – captaining the team – with whom he won one Scudetto and 4 Coppa Italia and was part of the legendary late 80's Milan team, with whom he won two Scudetti and...
. Later in the month he collected another clean sheet at the Emirates Stadium
Emirates Stadium
Ashburton Grove, currently known as the Emirates Stadium, is a UEFA elite football stadium which is home to Arsenal FC, where they moved from Highbury in 2006. It has an current capacity of 60,361, and there have been rumours of an expansion...
against Arsenal in a 0-0 draw during the first leg of the UEFA Champions League round of sixteen, producing several good saves in the second half and being named Man of the Match by UEFA. In the second leg of the tie, he conceded two late goals as Milan were eliminated by Arsenal after a 2-0 loss at the San Siro
San Siro
The Stadio Giuseppe Meazza, originally and commonly referred to as the San Siro because of its location, officially given its current name on 3 March 1980, is a football stadium located in the San Siro district in Milan, Italy. It is the home of both A.C. Milan and F.C. Internazionale Milano...
.
The combination of Christian Abbiati
Christian Abbiati
Christian Abbiati is an Italian footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Serie A club Milan.-Milan:His debut in Serie A came on January 17, 1999 as a 92nd-minute substitute for Sebastiano Rossi...
's return from his loan spell at Atletico Madrid and a poor performance in Milan's 5-0 Russian Railways Cup
Russian Railways Cup
Russian Railways Cup is an annual pre-season football tournament, held in Moscow and hosted by FC Lokomotiv Moscow.The first edition of the tournament took place in 2007. Dutch club PSV Eindhoven won the title after beating Real Madrid 2-1 in the final...
thrashing at the hands of Chelsea F.C.
Chelsea F.C.
Chelsea Football Club are an English football club based in West London. Founded in 1905, they play in the Premier League and have spent most of their history in the top tier of English football. Chelsea have been English champions four times, FA Cup winners six times and League Cup winners four...
on 4 August 2008 spelled the end of Kalac's brief first-team run. He was consequently demoted to third-choice behind Abbiati and Dida, and did not play for Milan again until appearing in the second half of a friendly against 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:...
on 29 January 2009, and one Serie A appearance against Juventus as an injury replacement on 10 May.
Kalac was released by Milan on 11 August, following an agreement reached with the club.
Kavala
On 1 September 2009, Kalac signed a two-year deal with Greek Super League side Kavala F.C.. joining fellow goalkeeper Charles ItandjeCharles Itandje
Charles-Hubert Itandje is a footballer who plays for Atromitos as a goalkeeper.-RC Lens :Born in Bobigny, Paris of Cameroonian descent, Itandje began his professional career at French club RC Lens in 2001, for whom he made 170 league appearances and 21 appearances in European games...
in moving to the club and Fanis Katergiannakis
Fanis Katergiannakis
Theofanis "Fanis" Katergiannakis is a football player who plays as a goalkeeper.-Ethnikos Pylaias:...
who won UEFA Euro 2004. He made his Greek Super League debut for in the 2–2 home draw against Panathinaikos on 18 October 2009.
Following the end of the 2009–10 season with Kavala, Kalac announced his retirement from club football.
International career
Kalac was an Australian international for more than fourteen years, but has spent many years as understudy to first Mark BosnichMark Bosnich
Mark Bosnich is a retired Australian football player and football pundit. He represented Australia 17 times and played for English Premier League clubs Aston Villa, Manchester United and Chelsea.-Manchester United :...
and later Mark Schwarzer
Mark Schwarzer
Mark Schwarzer OAM is an Australian association football player who plays as a goalkeeper. He currently plays for Premier League club Fulham. He rose to prominence during his time at North-East England football club Middlesbrough...
. He was selected as a member of Australia's 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...
squad, making one appearance.
He was part of the Australian squad for the 1989 FIFA U-16 World Championship
1989 FIFA U-16 World Championship
The FIFA U-16 World Championship 1989 was held in the Scottish cities of Glasgow, Edinburgh, Motherwell, Aberdeen, and Dundee between 10 June and 24 June 1989...
as second-choice keeper behind Schwarzer. He was again a squad member for the 1991 FIFA World Youth Championship again as a second choice, but this time behind Bosnich. His first full international appearance was against Malaysia
Malaysia national football team
The Malaysian national football team nicknamed Harimau Malaya, as the Malayan Tiger, is the national team of Malaysia and is controlled by the Football Association of Malaysia...
on 11 August 1992, as a stand in for Robert Zabica
Robert Zabica
Robert Zabica is an Australian former football player of Croatian descent. Zabica played as a goalkeeper...
. Australia lost 1-0, and he was replaced for the next match by club teammate Tony Franken
Tony Franken
Anthony Franken is a former Australian soccer goalkeeper from Perth, Western Australia. He is widely considered one of Australia's best ever....
.
In Australia's final first round match of 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...
between Croatia and Australia, coach Guus Hiddink
Guus Hiddink
Guus Hiddink is a Dutch football manager and former player. He was the most recently manager of the Turkish national football team. He is considered to be one of the best managers of his generation and was the best-paid coach in international football in 2009...
surprisingly selected Kalac over Schwarzer. With Australia needing a draw or better to advance and with the score tied at one apiece in the second half, Kalac fumbled a long range shot from Niko Kovač
Niko Kovac
Niko Kovač is a former Croatian footballer who last played as a midfielder for Red Bull Salzburg. He was the long-standing captain of Croatia before retiring from international football in January 2009...
and conceded what he later described as a "shit goal." Fortunately for Kalac and the Australians, Harry Kewell
Harry Kewell
Harold "Harry" Kewell is an Australian professional football midfielder who plays for Melbourne Victory in the A-League. Internationally he has received 55 caps, and scored 16 goals, while playing for the Australian national team...
scored later in the half and they advanced to the round of sixteen. After the match, Kalac spoke of his relief: "You're looking at the ground to eat you up. Obviously for me, it's very relieving to get that result."
Kalac announced his international retirement on 4 October 2006. He played his last game against Paraguay
Paraguay national football team
The Paraguay national football team is controlled by the Paraguayan Football Association and represents Paraguay in men's international football competitions. The team has reached the second round of the World Cup on four occasions . The 2010 trip also featured their first appearance in the...
on 7 October, along with fellow international retirees Tony Popovic
Tony Popovic
Anthony Popovic is a Croatian Australian former football player. He last played for Sydney FC. He is currently the First Team Coach of Crystal Palace. Popovic grew up in Fairfield, New South Wales.-Early career:...
, Tony Vidmar
Tony Vidmar
Anthony "Tony" Vidmar is an Australian former professional football player of Slovenian origin. He was a member of the Australian national team, competed at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona for his native country, and is currently Australia's third highest capped player...
and Stan Lazaridis
Stan Lazaridis
Stanley "Stan" Lazaridis is a former football player. He was predominantly a left winger though he had been known to perform at left-back...
, coming off as a substitute in the 90th minute for Schwarzer.
Coaching career
On 9 August 2011 it was announced he had signed a contract to be Goalkeeping Coach at A-LeagueA-League
The A-League is the top Australasian professional football league. Run by Australian governing body Football Federation Australia , it was founded in 2004 following the folding of the National Soccer League and staged its inaugural season in 2005–06. It is sponsored by Hyundai Motor Company...
club Sydney FC
Sydney FC
Sydney FC is a professional football club based in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia and competes in the country's premier football competition, the A-League...
.
Honours
Leicester City- First Division play-offsFootball League Championship play-offsThe Football League Championship play-offs are a series of playoff matches contested by the teams finishing from 3rd to 6th in the Football League Championship table. The semi-finals are played over two legs, with 6th playing 3rd and 5th playing 4th, with the return fixtures following...
: 1996
Roda JC
- KNVB CupKNVB CupThe KNVB Cup is a competition in the Netherlands organized by the Royal Dutch Football Association since 1899. It was based on the format of the English FA Cup. Outside of the Netherlands, it is often referred to as the Dutch Cup...
: 2000
Perugia
- UEFA Intertoto CupUEFA Intertoto CupThe UEFA Intertoto Cup, also abbreviated as UI Cup and originally called the International Football Cup, was a summer football competition for European clubs that had not qualified for one of the two major UEFA competitions, the Champions League and the UEFA Cup. The competition was discontinued...
: 2003
AC Milan
- UEFA Champions LeagueUEFA Champions LeagueThe UEFA Champions League, known simply the Champions League and originally known as the European Champion Clubs' Cup or European Cup, is an annual international club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations since 1955 for the top football clubs in Europe. It...
: 2006-07UEFA Champions League 2006-07The 2006–07 UEFA Champions League was the 15th season of UEFA's premier European club football tournament, the UEFA Champions League, since it was rebranded from the European Cup, and the 52nd season overall. The final was contested by Milan and Liverpool on 23 May 2007... - UEFA Super Cup: 20072007 UEFA Super CupThe 2007 UEFA Super Cup was the 32nd UEFA Super Cup, an annual football match between the winners of the previous season's UEFA Champions League and UEFA Cup competitions. The match was held at the Stade Louis II in Monaco on 31 August 2007 and contested by Milan and Sevilla...
- FIFA Club World CupFIFA Club World CupThe FIFA Club World Cup is a football competition between the champion clubs from all six continental confederations.The first FIFA Club World Championship took place in Brazil in January 2000...
: 20072007 FIFA Club World CupThe 2007 FIFA Club World Cup was a football tournament played in Japan from 7 December to 16 December 2007. It was the fourth FIFA Club World Cup, a tournament organised by FIFA for the winners of each confederation's top continental club tournament....
Australia
- OFC Nations CupOFC Nations CupThe OFC Nations Cup is an international association football tournament held among the Oceania Football Confederation member nations. It was held every two years from 1996 to 2004; before 1996 there were two other tournaments held at irregular intervals, under the name Oceania Nations Cup...
: 1996, 2000, 2004
Club
As of 1 September 2009|-
|1989–90
National Soccer League 1989-90
-Overview:It was performed in 14 teams, and Sydney Olympic won the championship.-Regular season:-Elimination final:*Sydney Olympic 2-1 Adelaide City*Melbourne Croatia 2-1 South Melbourne-Minor semifinal:*Sydney Olympic 1-0 South Melbourne-Major semifinal:...
||rowspan=6|Sydney United||rowspan=6|NSL
National Soccer League
The National Soccer League is the former national association football competition in Australasia, overseen by Soccer Australia and later the Australian Soccer Association. The NSL spanned 28 seasons from its inception in 1977, until its demise in 2004...
||11||0||?||?||rowspan=6 colspan=2| ||rowspan=6 colspan=2| ||?||?
|-
|1990–91
National Soccer League 1990-91
-Overview:It was performed in 14 teams, and South Melbourne won the championship.-Regular season:-Major semifinal:*Melbourne Croatia 1-0 South Melbourne-Grand final:*South Melbourne 1-1 Melbourne Croatia-Individual awards:...
||0||0||?||?||?||?
|-
|1991–92
National Soccer League 1991-92
-Overview:The 1991/92 National Soccer League season saw fourteen teams compete with Adelaide City winning the championship after defeating Melbourne Croatia in the grand final on a penalty shootout 4-2 after the scores were locked at 0-0 after full time and extra time at Olympic Park, Melbourne in...
||21||0||?||?||?||?
|-
|1992–93
National Soccer League 1992-93
-Overview:It was performed in 14 teams, and Marconi Fairfield won the championship.-Regular season:-Championship playoff:*Wollongong Wolves 3-0 : 1-2 Parramatta Eagles*South Melbourne 0-1 : 0-7 Marconi Fairfield*West Adelaide 1-0 : 1-2 Adelaide City...
||11||0||?||?||?||?
|-
|1993–94
National Soccer League 1993-94
-Regular season:-Elimination semi final:*Adelaide City 0-1 : 2-0 Sydney United*Sydney Olympic 2-1 : 1-3 Marconi Fairfield-References:*...
||25||0||?||?||?||?
|-
|1994–95
National Soccer League 1994-95
-Regular season:-Elimination semi final:*Morwell Falcons 0-1 : 1-5 South Melbourne*West Adelaide 1-1 : 0-1 Sydney United-References:*...
||24||0||?||?||?||?
|-
|-
|1995–96||Leicester City
Leicester City F.C.
Leicester City Football Club , also known as The Foxes, is an English professional football club based at the King Power Stadium in Leicester...
||First Division
Football League First Division
The First Division was a division of The Football League between 1888 and 2004 and the highest division in English football until the creation of the Premier League in 1992. The secondary tier in English football has since become known as the Championship....
||1||0||0||0||1||0||colspan=2| ||31||0
|-
|1996–97
National Soccer League 1996-97
-Regular season:-Championship playoff:*Marconi Fairfield 3-0 : 0-4 Adelaide City*Melbourne Knights 1-4 : 0-3 South Melbourne*South Melbourne 1-0 Adelaide City*Brisbane Strikers 1-0 : 1-2 Sydney United*Sydney United 1-0 South Melbourne...
||rowspan=2|Sydney United||rowspan=2|NSL||7||0||?||?||rowspan=2 colspan=2| ||rowspan=2 colspan=2| ||?||?
|-
|1997–98
National Soccer League 1997-98
-Overview:It was performed in 14 teams, and South Melbourne won the championship.-Regular season:-Championship playoff:*Marconi Fairfield 1-0 : 0-1 Sydney United*Wollongong Wolves 3-0 : 2-2 Adelaide City*Marconi Fairfield 2-1 Wollongong Wolves...
||15||0||?||?||?||?
|-
|-
|1998–99||rowspan=4|Roda JC||rowspan=4|Eredivisie
Eredivisie
The Eredivisie is the highest football league in the Netherlands. The league was founded in 1956 two years after the start of professional football in the Netherlands. It is currently ranked the ninth best league in Europe by UEFA....
||33||0||?||?||rowspan=4 colspan=2| ||colspan=2| ||?||?
|-
|1999–2000||30||0||?||?||4||0||?||?
|-
|2000–01
Eredivisie 2000-01
The Dutch Eredivisie in the 2000/2001 season was contested by 18 teams. PSV won the championship.-League standings:1 Winners KNVB Cup. 2 Fortuna Sittard and Sparta both remained in the eredivisie after winning their promotion/relegation play-offs....
||20||0||?||?||0||0||?||?
|-
|2001–02||32||0||?||?||7||0||?||?
|-
|-
|2002–03||rowspan=3|Perugia
Perugia Calcio
Associazione Calcistica Perugia Calcio is an Italian association football club based in Perugia, Umbria, direct heir of the old Perugia Calcio and A.C. Perugia, excluded from Italian football because of financial troubles....
||rowspan=2|Serie A
Serie A
Serie A , now called Serie A TIM due to sponsorship by Telecom Italia, is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of the Italian football league system and has been operating for over eighty years since 1929. It had been organized by Lega Calcio until 2010, but a new...
||22||0||6||0||rowspan=7 colspan=2| ||22||0||30||0
|-
|2003–04||29||0||0||0||113||0||424||0
|-
|2004–05||Serie B
Serie B
Serie B, currently named Serie bwin due to sponsorship reasons, is the second-highest division in the Italian football league system after the Serie A. It is contested by 22 teams and organized by the Lega Serie B since July 2010, after the split of Lega Calcio that previously took care of both the...
||29||0||3||0||colspan=2| ||32||0
|-
|2005–06||rowspan=4|Milan
A.C. Milan
Associazione Calcio Milan, commonly referred to as A.C. Milan or simply Milan , is a professional Italian football club based in Milan, Lombardy, that plays in the Serie A. Milan was founded in 1899 by English lace-maker Herbert Kilpin and businessman Alfred Edwards among others...
||rowspan=4|Serie A||2||0||4||0||1||0||7||0
|-
|2006–07||10||0||3||0||3||0||16||0
|-
|2007–08||25||0||2||0||5||0||32||0
|-
|2008–09||1||0||0||0||0||0||1||0
|-
|-
|2009–10||Kavala||Super League
Super League Greece
The Superleague Greece is the highest professional football league in Greece. It was formed on July 16, 2006 and replaced Alpha Ethniki at the top of the Greek football league system. The league consists of 16 teams and runs from August to May, with teams playing 30 games each...
||9||0||0||0||colspan=4| ||9||0
|-
114||0||?||?||colspan=2| ||rowspan=2 colspan=2| ||?||?
1||0||0||0||1||0||31||0
115||0||?||?||rowspan=3 colspan=2| ||11||0||?||?
118||0||18||0||22||0||160234||0
2||0||0||0||colspan=2| ||2||0
350||0||?||?||1||0||33||0||?||?
1Include one match at Playoffs
2Include 2 matches at 2002 UEFA Intertoto Cup
3Include 6 matches at 2003 UEFA Intertoto Cup
4Include two matches at Relegation Playoffs
National team
|-|1992||1||0
|-
|1993||0||0
|-
|1994||5||0
|-
|1995||7||0
|-
|1996||7||0
|-
|1997||6||0
|-
|1998||3||0
|-
|1999||0||0
|-
|2000||9||0
|-
|2001||0||0
|-
|2002||0||0
|-
|2003||1||0
|-
|2004||7||0
|-
|2005||4||0
|-
|2006||4||0
|-
!Total||54||0
|}