Benjamin Verbič (born 27 November 1993) is a Slovenian professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby ...

who plays as a

left winger A midfielder is an outfield position in association football. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As central midfielders often go across boundarie ...

for

Super League Greece The Super League Greece 1 ( el, Ελληνική Σούπερ Λιγκ 1), or Super League 1, is the highest professional association football league in Greece. The league was formed on 16 July 2006 and replaced ''Alpha Ethniki'' at the top of ...

club

Panathinaikos Panathinaikos Athlitikos Omilos ( el, Παναθηναϊκός Αθλητικός Όμιλος, literally in English: "Panathenaic Athletic Club" or Panathinaikos A.C.), also known simply as Panathinaikós , is a major Greek multi-sport club ba ...

and the Slovenia national team. Verbič began his senior career with his hometown club

Celje ) , pushpin_map = Slovenia , pushpin_label_position = left , pushpin_map_caption = Location of the city of Celje in Slovenia , coordinates = , subdivision_type = Cou ...

, where he made a total of 126 appearances and scored 35 goals in all competitions. With Celje, he was the runner-up of the

Slovenian PrvaLiga The Slovenian PrvaLiga ( sl, Prva slovenska nogometna liga, ), currently named Prva liga Telemach due to sponsorship reasons, also known by the abbreviation 1. SNL, is the top level of the Slovenian football league system. Contested by ten club ...

in 2014–15, and a three-time runner-up of the

Slovenian Football Cup The Slovenian Football Cup ( sl, Pokal Nogometne zveze Slovenije, ) is the top knockout tournament of Slovenian football and the second most important football competition in Slovenia after the Slovenian PrvaLiga championship. The cup was establ ...

. In 2015 Verbič transferred to

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( or .; da, København ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a proper population of around 815.000 in the last quarter of 2022; and some 1.370,000 in the urban area; and the wider Copenhagen metropolitan ar ...

, where he won a

double A double is a look-alike or doppelgänger; one person or being that resembles another. Double, The Double or Dubble may also refer to: Film and television * Double (filmmaking), someone who substitutes for the credited actor of a character * Th ...

Danish Superliga The Danish Superliga ( da, Superligaen, ) is the current Danish football championship tournament, and administered by the Danish Football Association. It is the highest football league in Denmark and is currently contested by 12 teams each y ...

and

Danish Cup The Danish Cup ( da, Landspokalturneringen; often referred to as Pokalen) is the official " knockout" cup competition in Danish football, run by the Danish Football Association. The cup has been contested annually since 1955. The winner will qu ...

in both of his full seasons. In January 2018, he signed for

Dynamo Kyiv Football Club Dynamo Kyiv (, ) is a Ukrainian professional football club based in Kyiv. Founded in 1927 as a Kyivan football team of republican branch of the bigger Soviet Dynamo Sports Society, the club as a separate business entity was offic ...

, with whom he won a league and two cup titles, before temporarily moving to Polish club

Legia Warsaw Legia Warszawa (), commonly referred to as Legia Warsaw or simply Legia, is a professional football club based in Warsaw, Poland. Legia is the most successful Polish football club in history, winning record 15 Ekstraklasa champions titles, a ...

when the war in Ukraine broke out. Having represented Slovenia at various youth levels, Verbič made his senior debut in March 2015 against

Qatar Qatar (, ; ar, قطر, Qaṭar ; local vernacular pronunciation: ), officially the State of Qatar,) is a country in Western Asia. It occupies the Qatar Peninsula on the northeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in the Middle East; it ...

Club career

Celje

Born in

Celje ) , pushpin_map = Slovenia , pushpin_label_position = left , pushpin_map_caption = Location of the city of Celje in Slovenia , coordinates = , subdivision_type = Cou ...

, Verbič made his

debut for hometown club

Celje ) , pushpin_map = Slovenia , pushpin_label_position = left , pushpin_map_caption = Location of the city of Celje in Slovenia , coordinates = , subdivision_type = Cou ...

on 29 May 2011 in a 3–2 home defeat to Primorje, replacing Iztok Močivnik for the last 24 minutes in his only appearance of the season. He made twelve league appearances the following season (eight starts), contributing a first career goal on 3 April 2012, a consolation goal in a 2–1 home defeat against Olimpija Ljubljana. On 23 May 2012, in the

2011–12 Slovenian Football Cup The 2011–12 Slovenian Football Cup was the 21st season of the Slovenian Football Cup, Slovenia's football knockout competition. Domžale were the defending champions, having won their first Slovenian Cup the previous season. Maribor won their ...

final against already-crowned league winners

Maribor Maribor ( , , , ; also known by other historical names) is the second-largest city in Slovenia and the largest city of the traditional region of Lower Styria. It is also the seat of the City Municipality of Maribor, the seat of the Drava stati ...

, Verbič scored in extra time in a 2–2 draw but missed the first penalty as his team lost in a

shoot-out A shootout, also called a firefight or gunfight, is a fight between armed combatants using firearms. The term can be used to describe any such fight, though it is typically used to describe those that do not involve military forces or only inv ...

. Verbič made 26 league appearances for Celje in the 2012–13 season, scoring 3 goals. On 24 August he was loaned to Šampion of the

Slovenian Second League The Slovenian Second Football League ( sl, Druga slovenska nogometna liga or commonly 2. SNL) is the second highest football league in Slovenia. The league was formed in 1991 and is operated by the Football Association of Slovenia. Format and ru ...

, where he made three appearances, two as a starter. Celje again reached the cup final, losing 1–0 to Maribor at

Bonifika Stadium Bonifika Stadium ( sl, Stadion Bonifika) is a multi-purpose stadium in Koper, Slovenia. It is used mostly for football matches and is the home ground of FC Koper. The stadium is part of Bonifika sports complex, together with a smaller athletics ...

Koper Koper (; it, Capodistria, hr, Kopar) is the fifth largest city in Slovenia. Located in the Istrian region in the southwestern part of the country, approximately five kilometres () south of the border with Italy and 20 kilometres () from Triest ...

on 29 May 2013, with Verbič playing the entire match. In the quarter-final first leg on 24 October 2012, he scored both of the team's goals to defeat

Dravinja The Dravinja (german: Drann, ) is the largest tributary of the Drava River in Slovenia. It is long. Its source is on the Pohorje Massif southwest of Mount Rogla about 1,150 m above sea level. The river passes Zreče, the town of Slovenske Konji ...

, netting in the second minute and in added time. On 25 October 2014, Verbič scored a first career

hat-trick A hat-trick or hat trick is the achievement of a generally positive feat three times in a match, or another achievement based on the number three. Origin The term first appeared in 1858 in cricket, to describe H. H. Stephenson taking three wi ...

in a 5–0 home win against

Radomlje Radomlje (; german: Radomle''Leksikon občin kraljestev in dežel zastopanih v državnem zboru,'' vol. 6: ''Kranjsko''. 1906. Vienna: C. Kr. Dvorna in Državna Tiskarna, p. 28.) is a settlement on the left bank of the Kamnik Bistrica River north o ...

Copenhagen

On 27 April 2015, Verbič signed a four-year contract with

, to join at the end of the season. He scored two minutes into his debut on 16 July, a 2–0 home win over

Newtown Newtown may refer to: Places Australia *Newtown, New South Wales *Newtown, Queensland (Ipswich) *Newtown, Queensland (Toowoomba) *Newtown, Victoria, a suburb of Geelong *Newtown, Victoria (Golden Plains Shire), a locality near Ballarat Canada * ...

of Wales in the

UEFA Europa League The UEFA Europa League (abbreviated as UEL, or sometimes, UEFA EL), formerly the UEFA Cup, is an annual football club competition organised since 1971 by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European football clubs. ...

second qualifying round. His

debut came ten days later, playing the entirety of a 3–1 win at

Esbjerg Esbjerg (, ) is a seaport town and seat of Esbjerg Municipality on the west coast of the Jutland peninsula in southwest Denmark. By road, it is west of Kolding and southwest of Aarhus. With an urban population of 71,698 (1 January 2022)

on the first day of the season, and his first league goal on 16 September, opening their 3–0 home win over

Randers Randers () is a city in Randers Municipality, Central Denmark Region on the Jutland peninsula. It is Denmark's sixth-largest city, with a population of 62,802 (as of 1 January 2022).Danish Cup The Danish Cup ( da, Landspokalturneringen; often referred to as Pokalen) is the official " knockout" cup competition in Danish football, run by the Danish Football Association. The cup has been contested annually since 1955. The winner will qu ...

double in both of Verbič's full seasons. On 17 April 2017, he scored the only goal in a

Copenhagen Derby The Copenhagen Derby is a Danish football rivalry between Brøndby and Copenhagen. Matches ''As of 28 October 2021'' Abbreviations *DSL – Danish Superliga *DC – Danish Cup *RL – Royal League Total This gives a total of: Other stat ...

win against

Brøndby IF Brøndbyernes Idrætsforening (, usually abbreviated to Brøndby IF (), is a professional association football club based in Brøndbyvester, Capital Region of Denmark. The club was founded in 1964 as a merger between two local clubs and was pr ...

Dynamo Kyiv

On 23 December 2017, Verbič signed a five-year contract with the

Ukrainian Premier League The Ukrainian Premier League ( uk, "Українська Прем'єр-ліга", ''Ukrayinska Premier Liha'') or UPL is the highest division of Ukrainian annual football championship. As the Vyshcha Liha ( uk, Вища ліга, ''Top League' ...

side

. In 2018 he was recognized as the player of the month in the Ukrainian Premier League on three occasions, in May, July, and August 2018. On 8 July 2020, Verbič scored the equalizing goal in the

final Final, Finals or The Final may refer to: * Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event ** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of con ...

of the

Ukrainian Cup The Ukrainian Cup ( uk, Кубок України) is an association football national knockout cup competition run by the Ukrainian Association of Football. The competition is conducted almost exclusively among professional clubs. Since the 2003� ...

. He would also convert his penalty kick in the shoot-out, after the match finished 1–1 after extra time, with Dynamo prevailing 8–7 over

Vorskla Poltava FC Vorskla Poltava ( uk, ФК «Во́рскла» Полта́ва ) is a Ukrainian professional football club based in Poltava that competes in the Ukrainian Premier League, the top flight of Ukrainian football. History Kolos Poltava The clu ...

Legia Warsaw

In March 2022, Verbič left Kyiv because of the

Russian invasion of Ukraine On 24 February 2022, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, which began in 2014. The invasion has resulted in tens of thousands of deaths on both sides. It has caused Europe's largest refugee crisis since World War II. ...

. His contract with Dynamo was suspended under new FIFA rules, which allowed players to sign with clubs outside Ukraine until 30 June 2022. Therefore, he joined

Ekstraklasa Poland Ekstraklasa (), meaning "Extra Class" in Polish, named PKO Ekstraklasa since the 2019–20 season due to its sponsorship by PKO Bank Polski, is the top Polish professional league for men's association football teams. Contested by 18 ...

side

for the remainder of the 2021–22 season. On 31 May 2022, he left the club following the expiration of his contract.

Panathinaikos

On 29 July 2022, Verbič signed a three-year deal with

club

International career

On 30 March 2015, Verbič made his debut for the Slovenia national team, starting in an eventual 1–0 friendly defeat to

at the Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium in

Doha Doha ( ar, الدوحة, ad-Dawḥa or ''ad-Dōḥa'') is the capital city and main financial hub of Qatar. Located on the Persian Gulf coast in the east of the country, north of Al Wakrah and south of Al Khor, it is home to most of the c ...

. He scored his first international goal on 11 November 2016 in an away win over

Malta Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Italy and Libya, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies ...

in the

2018 FIFA World Cup qualification The 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification process was a series of tournaments organised by the six FIFA confederations to decide 31 of the 32 teams which would play in the 2018 FIFA World Cup, with Russia qualifying automatically as hosts. All 210 ...

. On 20 November 2023, Verbič scored the winning goal for Slovenia in the 86th minute in a 2–1 victory over

Kazakhstan Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country located mainly in Central Asia and partly in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental coun ...

, which qualified his country for

UEFA Euro 2024 The 2024 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as UEFA Euro 2024 (stylised as UEFA EURO 2024) or simply Euro 2024, will be the 17th edition of the UEFA European Championship, the quadrennial international men's football cha ...

, their first European Championship appearance since

2000 File:2000 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Protests against Bush v. Gore after the 2000 United States presidential election; Heads of state meet for the Millennium Summit; The International Space Station in its infant form as seen from ...

and their first major tournament since the

2010 World Cup , image = 2010 FIFA World Cup.svg , size = 200px , caption = ''Ke Nako. (Tswana and Sotho for "It's time") Celebrate Africa's Humanity'It's time. Celebrate Africa's Humanity'' (English)''Dis tyd. Vier Afrika se mensd ...

Career statistics

Club

International

:''Scores and results list Slovenia's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Verbič goal.''

Honours

Copenhagen *

: 2015–16, 2016–17 *

: 2015–16, 2016–17 Dynamo Kyiv *

2020–21 The dash is a punctuation mark consisting of a long horizontal line. It is similar in appearance to the hyphen but is longer and sometimes higher from the baseline. The most common versions are the endash , generally longer than the hyphen ...

: 2019–20,

Ukrainian Super Cup The Ukrainian Super Cup ( uk , Суперкубок України) is an association football game of the Ukrainian Premier League in traditional super cup format that acts as the grand-opening for every new football competition season in Ukrain ...

2018 File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...

2019 File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...

2020 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global social and economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, worldwide lockdowns and the largest economic recession since the Great Depression in ...

References

External links

Benjamin Verbič
at

NZS NZS may refer to: * Football Association of Slovenia * Independent Students Union (Poland) *New Zealand Standard and "joint Australian/New Zealand Standard" (AS/NZS) by Standards Australia and Standards New Zealand * New Zealand Steel *New Zealand ...

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Verbic, Benjamin 1993 births Living people Footballers from Celje Slovenian men's footballers Men's association football wingers NK Celje players NK Šampion players F.C. Copenhagen players FC Dynamo Kyiv players Legia Warsaw players Panathinaikos F.C. players Slovenian PrvaLiga players Slovenian Second League players Danish Superliga players Ukrainian Premier League players Ekstraklasa players Super League Greece players Slovenia men's youth international footballers Slovenia men's under-21 international footballers Slovenia men's international footballers Slovenian expatriate men's footballers Expatriate men's footballers in Denmark Expatriate men's footballers in Ukraine Expatriate men's footballers in Poland Expatriate men's footballers in Greece Slovenian expatriate sportspeople in Denmark Slovenian expatriate sportspeople in Ukraine Slovenian expatriate sportspeople in Poland Slovenian expatriate sportspeople in Greece