Ivan Strinić (; born 17 July 1987) is a Croatian former 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 lea ...

who played as a

left-back In the sport of association football, a defender is an Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield player whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring. Defenders fall into four main categ ...

. Strinić spent his professional career playing in a number of clubs from Croatian, Ukrainian and Italian top flight, including

Hajduk Split Hrvatski Nogometni klub Hajduk Split, commonly referred to as Hajduk Split (), is a Croatian professional football club based in Split, that competes in the Croatian First League, the top tier in Croatian football. Since 1979, the club's home ...

Napoli Naples ( ; ; ) is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 908,082 within the city's administrative limits as of 2025, while its province-level municipality is the thir ...

and

Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk Football Club Dnipro (, ) was a Ukrainian football club based in Dnipro. The club played its last season in the 2018–19 Ukrainian Amateur League. The club was owned by Ukrainian businessman Ihor Kolomoyskyi. In 2018, FC Dnipro was forced i ...

Club career

Early career

Born in

Split Split(s) or The Split may refer to: Places * Split, Croatia, the largest coastal city in Croatia * Split Island, Canada, an island in the Hudson Bay * Split Island, Falkland Islands * Split Island, Fiji, better known as Hạfliua Arts, enter ...

, Strinić started his youth career with

, where he stayed until 2006, then he moved to France to play for Le Mans B. Following his return to

Croatia Croatia, officially the Republic of Croatia, is a country in Central Europe, Central and Southeast Europe, on the coast of the Adriatic Sea. It borders Slovenia to the northwest, Hungary to the northeast, Serbia to the east, Bosnia and Herze ...

he played for NK Hrvatski Dragovoljac where he was spotted by his native club

Hajduk Split

Even though he was close to finishing a deal with

Dinamo Zagreb Građanski nogometni klub Dinamo Zagreb (), commonly referred to as simply Dinamo Zagreb (), is a Croatian professional football club based in Zagreb. Dinamo play their home matches at Stadion Maksimir. They are the most successful club in Cr ...

, Strinić decided to sign for his youth club

. His first competitive match for Hajduk came on the opening of the 2008–09 season against

NK Zadar Nogometni klub Zadar (), commonly referred to as NK Zadar or simply Zadar, was a Croatian football club based in Zadar, a city on the Adriatic coast, best known for playing in the top flight of Croatian football for almost twenty years. Histor ...

Poljud Stadium Gradski stadion u Poljudu (), better known as Stadion Poljud () or simply Poljud, is a multi-use stadium in Split, Croatia, which has been the home ground of Hajduk Split football club since 1979. The stadium is located in the neighbourhood of ...

, ending in 1–0 win for Hajduk. During his first season with Hajduk he appeared in 17 domestic league games, playing in the position of left-back. In the 2009–10 season he proved himself as the first team regular starter, earning his first call-up for national team as well. He managed to score four goals in the league, including one in the eternal derby against Dinamo Zagreb in a 2–1 win. In the 2010–11 season, Strinić played in all of Hajduk's matches in

2010–11 UEFA Europa League The 2010–11 UEFA Europa League was the second season of the UEFA Europa League, Europe's secondary club football tournament organised by UEFA, and the 40th edition overall including its predecessor, the UEFA Cup. It began on 1 July 2010, with ...

campaign against

RSC Anderlecht Royal Sporting Club Anderlecht, commonly abbreviated to RSC Anderlecht (, , ) or RSCA (, , ), is a Belgian professional association football, football club based in Anderlecht, Brussels Capital-Region. Anderlecht plays in the Belgian First Div ...

AEK A.E.K. (; Athlitikí Énosis Konstantinoupόleos, ''Athletic Union of Constantinople'') is a major Greek multi-sport club based in Nea Filadelfeia, Attica. The club is more commonly known in European competitions as A.E.K. Athens. Established ...

and Zenit St. Petersburg. He also became the starting left-back in the national side, playing in eight out of nine qualifiers for Euro 2012. He left Hajduk in January 2011 after amassing 77 appearances in all competitions for the Split-based side, scoring five goals.

FC Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk

On 27 January 2011, Strinić signed with

for reported fee of 4 million euro. Strinić made his debut for Dnipro in a league match against

Tavriya Simferopol Sports Club Tavriya () was a Ukrainian football club from Simferopol. Tavriya was a member of the Ukrainian Premier League from its founding and won the first Ukrainian Premier League 1992, Ukrainian Premier League making them one of three team ...

in a 2–2 draw with the left back scoring a stunning goal. He made five other appearances that season in a slow start to his Dnipro career. The 2011–12 season was far better for Strinić as he made 27 appearances in all competitions and played all three games in Croatia's Euro 2012 campaign. The 2012–13 season was similarly successful for Strinić as he maintained his starting places with both the national side and his club side, amassing 35 appearances for Dnipro in all competitions. In December 2014, Strinić announced that he would not be renewing his contract with the club with his contract expiring at the end of that month.

Napoli

The player subsequently signed with

S.S.C. Napoli Società Sportiva Calcio Napoli (), commonly known as SSC Napoli or simply Napoli, is an Italian professional football club based in Naples, Campania that currently competes in the Serie A, the highest league of Italian football. Napoli are am ...

, after 112 games over four years with the Italian club.

Sampdoria

On 31 August 2017, Strinić joined

Sampdoria Unione Calcio Sampdoria, commonly referred to as Sampdoria (), is an Italian professional football club based in Genoa, Liguria. Sampdoria was formed in 1946 from the merger of two existing sports clubs whose roots can be traced back to the ...

for a reported fee of €2 million, signing a one-year deal.

AC Milan

In March 2018, Strinić signed a pre-contract with

AC Milan (), commonly referred to as Milan or AC Milan () mainly outside of Italy, is an Italian professional Football club (association football), football club based in Milan, Lombardy. Founded in 1899, the club competes in the Serie A, the top tie ...

. The deal was officialized on 2 July 2018 while he was in Russia playing for the national team at the

World Cup A world cup is a global sporting competition in which the participant entities – usually international teams or individuals representing their countries – compete for the title of world champion. The event most associated with the name is ...

. On 18 August 2018, a heart condition which was found meant the temporary withdrawal from football training sessions. He became available again for selection into matchday squads since 12 January 2019 and was on the team's bench 10 times before the end of season. In July 2019, he made his unofficial debut for Milan, starting in a friendly against

Bayern Munich Fußball-Club Bayern München e. V. (FCB, ), commonly known as Bayern Munich (), FC Bayern () or simply Bayern, is a German professional sports club based in Munich, Bavaria. They are most known for their men's professional football team, ...

as a center back. On 26 August 2019, Strinić and the club's management mutually agreed to the terms of contract termination, ending the deal two years in advance.

International career

Strinić received his first call-up for

Croatia national football team The Croatia national football team () represents Croatia in men's international Association football, football matches. It is governed by the Croatian Football Federation (HNS), the governing body for football in Croatia. It is a member of UEF ...

under manager

Slaven Bilić Slaven Bilić (; born 11 September 1968) is a Croatian professional football manager and former player. Bilić, who played as a defender, began his career in 1988 with his hometown club Hajduk Split, later having successful spells with Karls ...

for a friendly match against

Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...

on 19 May 2010. Since then he has been regular starter for Croatia and the first choice for their left-back position. He was a part of the

UEFA Euro 2012 The 2012 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as UEFA Euro 2012 or simply Euro 2012, was the 14th UEFA European Championship, European Championship for List of men's national association football teams#UEFA (Europe), men's ...

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

, where he played all three games in group stage. He provided an assist for

Mario Mandžukić Mario Mandžukić (; born 21 May 1986) is a Croatian association football, football coach and a former player who was most recently an assistant coach for the Croatia national football team, Croatia national team. As a player, he played as a for ...

in the match against

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

, to equalize the result on 1–1. Although he was the first choice left back during the qualification matches, he missed out on the 2014 World Cup finals in Brazil due to a hamstring injury. In May 2018, Strinić was named in Croatia's squad for the

2018 World Cup The 2018 FIFA World Cup was the 21st FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for national football teams organized by FIFA. It took place in Russia from 14 June to 15 July 2018, after the country was awarded the hosting rights in l ...

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

. He started in six of the seven matches in the team's runners-up finish, including the

final Final, Finals or The Final may refer to: *Final examination or finals, a test given at the end of a course of study or training *Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which d ...

. However, due to a diagnosed heart condition, Strinić was forced to withdraw from football. When he recovered, he was out of shape and has never been called up again. He earned a total of 49 caps, scoring no goals.

Career statistics

International

Honours

Hajduk Split *

Croatian Football Cup The Croatian Football Cup (), is an annually held football tournament for Croatian football clubs and is the second most important competition in Croatian football after the HNL championship. It is governed by the Croatian Football Federation (HNS ...

: 2009–10 Croatia *

FIFA World Cup The FIFA World Cup, often called the World Cup, is an international association football competition among the senior List of men's national association football teams, men's national teams of the members of the FIFA, Fédération Internatio ...

runner-up:

2018 Events January * January 1 – Bulgaria takes over the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, after the Estonian presidency. * January 4 – SPLM-IO rebels loyal to Chan Garang Lual start a raid against Juba, capital of ...

Orders *

Order of Duke Branimir The Order of Duke Branimir () is the 7th most important medal given by the Republic of Croatia. The order was founded on April 1, 1995. The medal is awarded for excellence in promoting Croatia in international relations. It is named after duke Br ...

: 2018

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Strinic, Ivan 1987 births Living people Footballers from Split, Croatia Men's association football defenders Croatian men's footballers 21st-century Croatian sportsmen Croatia men's youth international footballers Croatia men's under-21 international footballers Croatia men's international footballers UEFA Euro 2012 players UEFA Euro 2016 players 2018 FIFA World Cup players NK Hrvatski Dragovoljac players HNK Hajduk Split players FC Dnipro players SSC Napoli players UC Sampdoria players AC Milan players Croatian Football League players Ukrainian Premier League players Serie A players Croatian expatriate men's footballers Expatriate men's footballers in France Croatian expatriate sportspeople in France Expatriate men's footballers in Italy Croatian expatriate sportspeople in Italy Expatriate men's footballers in Ukraine Croatian expatriate sportspeople in Ukraine