Simon Vukčević ( Serbian Cyrillic: Симон Вукчевић, ; born 29 January 1986) is a Montenegrin former footballer who played as an attacking midfielder. After starting his senior career at the age of 17 with

Partizan Partizan may refer to: Sport * JSD Partizan, a sports society from Belgrade, Serbia, which includes the following clubs: ** AK Partizan, athletics **Biciklistički Klub Partizan, cycling **Džudo Klub Partizan, judo ** FK Partizan, association fo ...

, winning two

national championships A national championship(s) is the top achievement for any sport or contest within a league of a particular nation or nation state. The title is usually awarded by contests, ranking systems, stature, ability, etc. This determines the best team, i ...

during his tenure, he went on to play professionally in Russia, Portugal – playing 135 competitive matches while scoring 28 goals for Sporting CP and conquering the 2008 Taça de Portugal – England, Ukraine, Greece and Cyprus. Internationally, Vukčević represented both

Serbia and Montenegro Serbia and Montenegro ( sr, Cрбија и Црна Гора, translit=Srbija i Crna Gora) was a country in Southeast Europe located in the Balkans that existed from 1992 to 2006, following the breakup of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yu ...

and

Montenegro ) , image_map = Europe-Montenegro.svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Podgorica , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , official_languages = ...

Club career

Partizan

Born in Titograd, Socialist Republic of Montenegro,

Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, commonly referred to as SFR Yugoslavia or simply as Yugoslavia, was a country in Central and Southeast Europe. It emerged in 1945, following World War II, and lasted until 1992, with the breakup of Y ...

, Vukčević started playing football at the FK Zabjelo youth academy, signing with

FK Partizan Fudbalski klub Partizan ( sr-Cyrl, Фудбалски клуб Партизан, ; en, Partizan Football Club), sometimes known as Partizan Belgrade in English, is a Serbian professional football club based in Belgrade. It forms a major par ...

at age 13. He was promoted to the first team of the latter ahead of the 2003–04 season. The 18-year-old Vukčević scored a career-best ten goals in the 2004–05 campaign, helping his team win the eighth First League of Serbia and Montenegro in their history and 19th overall. He was eventually awarded the number 1 shirt in recognition of his popularity among supporters but, during 2005–06, faced criticism over his excessive individual play and poor shot selection, as well as overall declining form.

Saturn

In January 2006, Vukčević joined FC Saturn Ramenskoye for a reported fee of €7 million. In late July, however, he was demoted to the reserve squad with coach Vladimír Weiss publicly blasting him in the press for displaying bad attitude in training and having a lack of manners. Subsequently, Vukčević expressed frustration at his manager playing him out of position. He also said that coming to the Russian Premier League club was a mistake, and that he would have preferred a more ambitious project. Vukčević's fate did not change for the better even though Weiss was dismissed early into the 2007 season, being replaced by

Gadzhi Gadzhiev Gadzhi Muslimovich Gadzhiyev (russian: Гаджи Муслимович Гаджиев; born 28 October 1945) is a Russian football manager. He is the president of FC Dynamo Makhachkala. Managerial career He was assistant coach to the Soviet Uni ...

Sporting

On 25 June 2007, Saturn reportedly agreed a €4 million transfer fee with Sporting CP, but the deal stalled when the former also demanded 20% of any subsequent transfer fees involving Vukčević. Three days later, both clubs agreed a €2 million fee in addition to an agreement about splitting his future transfer fee 50–50. He made his Primeira Liga debut on 17 August, playing 71 minutes in a 4–1 home win over Académica de Coimbra. Vukčević also found the net in home fixtures against FC Porto (2–0) and S.L. Benfica (1–1) in his first year. He ranked second in the team in goals scored at seven, only behind Liédson. During the 2008 summer transfer window, Bolton Wanderers and Blackburn Rovers were at the top of the list of clubs reportedly interested in signing Vukčević; nonetheless, Sporting reiterated their desire to keep the player. Shortly after, he got involved in a controversial dispute with manager Paulo Bento over losing his place in the starting XI; after playing 45 minutes as a substitute in the 2–0 home defeat of C.F. Os Belenenses, he declared his intention to leave the '' Estádio José Alvalade''. On 21 November 2008, without any warning, Vukčević missed training to join his national team one day before expected, being fined €5,000 and placed on individual training until further notice. On 29 November, after holding a press conference stating his wish to remain in Sporting and apologising for his behaviour, he was allowed to train with the rest of the team. On 5 December, after coming on for Hélder Postiga in the 75th minute of the league game at

C.F. Estrela da Amadora Club Football Estrela da Amadora (), sometimes just Estrela, is a Portuguese sports club (predominantly football) based in Amadora, northwest of Lisbon. It's the successor of Clube de Futebol Estrela da Amadora, founded in 1932 and extinct in ...

, he scored shortly after in a 3–1 victory. Sporting bought the remaining 50% rights on a future transfer from Saturn in January 2010, for another £2 million.

Blackburn Rovers

Vukčević agreed to a three-year contract with Blackburn Rovers on 26 August 2011, after a successful medical. His maiden Premier League appearance took place on 17 September when he played 25 minutes in a 4–3 home win against

Arsenal An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostly ...

at Ewood Park, and he scored his first goal three days later in a 3–2 victory over Leyton Orient in

the third round ''The Third Round'' (1925) was the second silent film adaptation of the Bulldog Drummond character, starring Jack Buchanan and Betty Faire, adapted by Sidney Morgan from the novel of the same name by H. C. McNeile, and directed by Morgan. Cas ...

of the League Cup, also at home. His first league goal came on 11 December, in a 2–1 loss away to

Sunderland Sunderland () is a port city in Tyne and Wear, England. It is the City of Sunderland's administrative centre and in the Historic counties of England, historic county of County of Durham, Durham. The city is from Newcastle-upon-Tyne and is on t ...

; he made little impact during his first season, and his team was relegated. With the Rovers back in the Championship, Vukčević made his first start of the campaign on 28 August 2012, playing the full 90 minutes in a 1–2 defeat against Milton Keynes Dons in the second round of the League Cup. It seemed likely that he would be allowed to leave on loan with a view to a permanent deal, but in the first match under new coach Henning Berg, on 3 November against Crystal Palace, he took the field after replacing

Marcus Olsson Marcus Jonas Munuhe Olsson (born 17 May 1988) is a Swedish professional footballer who plays as a midfielder and a left-back for Halmstad. Club career Halmstads BK Born in Gävle, Sweden, Olsson started his career at Högaborgs BK. In 2008, he ...

. Over the next few months, Vukčević made more first-team appearances and was even chosen by new manager Michael Appleton. On 31 January 2013, however, his contract was terminated with immediate effect by mutual consent, with the player having played 21 games across all competitions. Shortly before this happened, there were reports he would move to APOEL FC of the Cypriot First Division, but no deal was reached.

Karpaty Lviv

On 28 February 2013, Vukčević signed a contract with Ukrainian Premier League club FC Karpaty Lviv until 30 June with the option to extend. His first appearance occurred three days later, when he played eight minutes in a 2–0 away win over

SC Tavriya Simferopol Sports Club Tavriya ( uk, Спортивний клуб "Таврія") 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 making t ...

. Vukčević left in April 2013 by mutual consent, citing personal reasons.

Later years

On 10 August 2013, Vukčević joined

Serbian SuperLiga The Serbian Super League ( sr, Супер лига Србије / Super liga Srbije), referred to as the Mozzart Bet Super League ( sr, Моцарт Бет Супер лига / Mozzart Bet Super liga) for sponsorship reasons, is a Serbian profes ...

's FK Vojvodina. In the following years he failed to settle at any club or country, representing Levadiakos FC (

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 ...

), Enosis Neon Paralimni FC (Cypriot top level) and

G.D. Chaves Grupo Desportivo de Chaves, commonly known as Chaves (), is a Portuguese football club from Chaves currently playing in the Primeira Liga. They were founded in 1949 and currently play at Estádio Municipal de Chaves. Their home kit is red-and-bl ...

(Portuguese top tier). On 30 March 2018, 32-year-old Vukčević announced his retirement.

International career

Youth

Vukčević was part of the FR Yugoslavia under-17 squad at the 2002 UEFA European Championship. At age 18, he was selected by head coach Vladimir Petrović to be part of the Serbia and Montenegro under-21 team at the 2004 European Championships, scoring for the eventual runners-up in a 1–2 group stage loss to

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

and also converting his penalty shootout attempt in the semi-finals against

Sweden Sweden, ; fi, Ruotsi; fit, Ruotti; se, Ruoŧŧa; smj, Svierik; sje, Sverji; sju, Sverje; sma, Sveerje or ; yi, שוועדן, Shvedn; rmu, Svedikko; rmf, Sveittiko. formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic cou ...

. He participated in the

Summer Olympic Games The Summer Olympic Games (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques d'été), also known as the Games of the Olympiad, and often referred to as the Summer Olympics, is a major international multi-sport event normally held once every four years. The inau ...

also that year, and was subsequently honoured with the Golden Badge Award for the Best Young Athlete of the Year in Serbia and Montenegro by DSL Sport. Vukčević also played for the under-21 side in the 2006 European Championship. After a 0–1 defeat against

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG),, is a country in Central Europe. It is the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany lies between the Baltic and North Sea to the north and the Alps to the sou ...

in the group phase opener, manager

Dragan Okuka Dragomir "Dragan" Okuka (; born 2 April 1954) is a Serbian football coach and former player. As a player, he was predominantly associated with his time with Velež Mostar where he won the 1981 Yugoslav Cup before joining Swedish club Örebro SK, ...

dropped him from the first team. Simon Vukčević free kick at Serbia and Montenegro vs

Senior

Vukčević began earning call-ups to the Serbia and Montenegro senior team from Ilija Petković. His debut came on 11 July 2004 against

Slovakia Slovakia (; sk, Slovensko ), officially the Slovak Republic ( sk, Slovenská republika, links=no ), is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the ...

at the age of 18, when he replaced Saša Ilić late into the 2–0 win for the Kirin Cup. On 4 June 2005, Vukčević was given his competitive debut, when he came in for Ognjen Koroman for the last eight minutes of the 0–0 home draw to

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to ...

for the 2006 FIFA World Cup qualifiers. His last appearance for Serbia and Montenegro occurred four days later, when he featured the entire 1–1

friendly Friendly may refer to: Places * Friendly, West Yorkshire, a settlement in Calderdale, West Yorkshire, England * Friendly, Maryland, an unincorporated community in the United States * Friendly, Eugene, Oregon, a neighborhood in the United States * ...

draw with

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most pop ...

's Rogers Centre. After Montenegro seceded from

in June 2006, Vukčević chose to represent the newly created nation. He won his first cap on 24 March 2007, in a 2–1 friendly defeat of

Hungary Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croa ...

. He scored the first of two international goals on 20 August of the following year, helping to a 3–3 draw against the same opposition in another exhibition game. Vukčević played a total of 45 internationals.

Personal life

Vukčević's father, Ilija, worked as director of football at FK Zeta.

Career statistics

Club

International goals

Honours

Partizan * First League of Serbia and Montenegro: 2002–03, 2004–05 Sporting * Taça de Portugal: 2007–08 Vojvodina * Serbian Cup: 2013–14

References

External links