Šime Vrsaljko
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Šime Vrsaljko (; born 10 January 1992) is a Croatian 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 le ...
who plays as a full-back for
La Liga The Campeonato Nacional de Liga de Primera División, commonly known simply as Primera División in Spain, and as La Liga in English-speaking countries and officially as LaLiga Santander for sponsorship reasons, stylized as LaLiga, is the men's ...
club
Atlético Madrid Club Atlético de Madrid, Sociedad Anónima Deportiva, S.A.D. (; meaning "Athletic Club of Madrid"), known simply as Atleti in the Spanish-speaking world and commonly referred to at international level as Atlético Madrid, is a Spanish profess ...
and the Croatian national team. Vrsaljko made his debut for Croatia in 2011 and went on to represent his country at the
UEFA European Championship The UEFA European Football Championship, less formally the European Championship and informally the Euro, is the primary association football tournament organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA). The competition is contes ...
in
2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...
,
2016 File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses during the 2016 Nagorno-Karabakh ...
and
2020 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, COVID- ...
, as well as the
FIFA World Cup The FIFA World Cup, often simply called the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of the ' ( FIFA), the sport's global governing body. The tournament ha ...
in
2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...
and
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 ...
, reaching 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 cont ...
of the latter tournament.


Club career


Early career

Vrsaljko started his senior career at Dinamo Zagreb's feeder team, Lokomotiva, where he spent the 2009–10 season on loan. He debuted for Lokomotiva in the Croatian top level in the match against
Rijeka Rijeka ( , , ; also known as Fiume hu, Fiume, it, Fiume ; local Chakavian: ''Reka''; german: Sankt Veit am Flaum; sl, Reka) is the principal seaport and the third-largest city in Croatia (after Zagreb and Split). It is located in Primor ...
on 26 July 2009 at the age of 17. Vrsaljko was in the starting lineup in each of the 17 Lokomotiva's league matches in 2009, being substituted only once.


Dinamo Zagreb

He rejoined Dinamo Zagreb's squad on 22 December 2009 before the winter break and appeared in his first match for Dinamo Zagreb on 27 February 2010 against
Croatia Sesvete NK Croatia Sesvete was a Croatian football club based in the Sesvete district of the City of Zagreb. Previous club names: NK Sljeme (1957–1988), NK Sesvete (1988–1996), NK Badel Sesvete (1996–1997), NK Sesvete (1997–1998). The club was ...
in the
Prva HNL The Hrvatska nogometna liga () ( en, Croatian football league), also known as HNL or for sponsorship reasons the SuperSport HNL, is the top Croatian professional football league competition, established in 1992. Previously, it was called Prva H ...
. He made nine more appearances by the end of the season for Dinamo, making a total of 27 league appearances throughout the whole season. Vrsaljko also made one appearance in the semi-finals of the 2009–10 Croatian Cup. Vrsaljko missed the opening matches of the
2010–11 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1. I ...
season, as he was called up for international duties with the Croatian under-19 team. He made his first appearance of the season on 31 July in a league match against Rijeka which Dinamo Zagreb lost 2–1. Vrsaljko then made his debut in European competitions, featuring in their defeat to
Sheriff Tiraspol Fotbal Club Sheriff (russian: ФК Шериф Тирасполь), commonly known as Sheriff Tiraspol or simply Sheriff, is a Moldovan professional football club based in Tiraspol, a city located in the unrecognised breakaway state of Transnist ...
in the
third qualifying round Third or 3rd may refer to: Numbers * 3rd, the ordinal form of the cardinal number 3 * , a fraction of one third * 1⁄60 of a ''second'', or 1⁄3600 of a ''minute'' Places * 3rd Street (disambiguation) * Third Avenue (disambiguation) * Hig ...
of the
2010–11 UEFA Champions League The 2010–11 UEFA Champions League was the 56th season of Europe's premier club football tournament organised by UEFA, and the 19th under the UEFA Champions League format. The final was held at Wembley Stadium in London on 28 May 2011, where Bar ...
. In August that year he was linked with a transfer to
Olympique Marseille Olympique de Marseille (, ; oc, Olimpic de Marselha, ), also known simply as Marseille or by the abbreviation OM (, ), is a French professional men's football club based in Marseille, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur. Founded in 1899, the club pl ...
for a fee of €4 million, but executive vice-president of the club
Zdravko Mamić Zdravko Mamić (born 16 July 1959) is a Croatian former football administrator and sports agent. From 2003 to 2016, he was the executive director of Croatian football club GNK Dinamo Zagreb. Mamić also worked as an advisor at NK Lokomotiva a ...
turned down the French club's offer. On 29 August he scored his first league goal for the club in the match against
Cibalia Hrvatski nogometni klub Cibalia, commonly known as Cibalia Vinkovci or simply Cibalia, is a Croatian football club from the town of Vinkovci in eastern Croatia. Cibalia currently play in the Prva NL, Croatia's second tier league. Their stadium ...
which Dinamo Zagreb won 2–0. Due to his impressive performances for Dinamo under the coach
Vahid Halilhodžić Vahid Halilhodžić (; born 15 October 1952) is a Bosnian professional football manager and former player. He is regarded as one of the most controversially successful Bosnian football managers, due to his successful tenure in coaching various na ...
, he was named Croatian Football Hope of the Year for 2010. By the end of the season, he won the double with Dinamo. He started the 2011/2012 season by providing an assist for Ivan Krstanović in UEFA Champions League qualifier 3–0 victory against Neftchi Baku in
Zagreb Zagreb ( , , , ) is the capital (political), capital and List of cities and towns in Croatia#List of cities and towns, largest city of Croatia. It is in the Northern Croatia, northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slop ...
. In August 2011, he was sent off during the away match of 2011–12 UEFA Champions League play-off round against
Malmö FF Malmö Fotbollförening, commonly known as Malmö FF, Malmö, or MFF, is a professional football club and the most successful football club in Sweden in terms of trophies won. Formed in 1910 and affiliated with the Scania Football Association, ...
, as Dinamo managed to qualify for their first UEFA Champions League in 12 years. He was banned with 3 matches absence in Champions League. He made his
2011–12 UEFA Champions League The 2011–12 UEFA Champions League was the 57th season of Europe's premier club football tournament organised by UEFA, and the 20th season in its current Champions League format. As part of a trial that started in the 2009–10 UEFA Europa Lea ...
debut on Matchday 4 against
AFC Ajax Amsterdamsche Football Club Ajax (), also known as AFC Ajax, Ajax Amsterdam, or simply Ajax, is a Dutch professional football club based in Amsterdam, that plays in the , the top tier in Dutch football. Historically, Ajax (named after the l ...
, and made another appearance in the final match against
Olympique Lyonnais Olympique Lyonnais (), commonly referred to as simply Lyon () or OL, is a men and women's French professional football club based in Lyon in Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes. The men play in France's highest football division, Ligue 1. Founded in 1950, th ...
on
Maksimir Stadium Maksimir Stadium ( hr, Stadion Maksimir, ) is a multi-use stadium in Zagreb, Croatia. It takes its name from the surrounding neighbourhood of Maksimir. The venue is primarily the home of Dinamo Zagreb, the top club of the country with 23 league ...
. In domestic league, he made 22 league appearances and provided 5 assists in process, as Dinamo won another double – Prva HNL and Hrvatski kup titles. After his return from Poland, where he was a part of Croatian team at
UEFA Euro 2012 The 2012 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as UEFA Euro 2012 or simply Euro 2012, was the 14th European Championship for men's national football teams organised by UEFA. The final tournament, held between 8 June and 1 ...
, he helped Dinamo to qualify for another UEFA Champions League. He made 4 appearances as right full-back in
2012–13 UEFA Champions League The 2012–13 UEFA Champions League was the 58th season of Europe's premier club football tournament organised by UEFA, and the 21st season since it was renamed from the European Champion Clubs' Cup to the UEFA Champions League. The final was p ...
as Dinamo finished bottom of their group with only one point. He also made 25 league appearances, providing three assists.


Genoa

On 12 July 2013 Vrsaljko joined
Serie A The Serie A (), also called Serie A TIM for national sponsorship with TIM, is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of the Italian football league system and the winner is awarded the Scudetto and the Coppa ...
side
Genoa Genoa ( ; it, Genova ; lij, Zêna ). is the capital of the Italian region of Liguria and the List of cities in Italy, sixth-largest city in Italy. In 2015, 594,733 people lived within the city's administrative limits. As of the 2011 Italian ce ...
for €4.6 million. In his first season in the Italian top flight, Vrsaljko was a frequent member of the starting XI, playing in various roles on the right flank – including right-back and right wing. He made 22 appearances in total, missing rounds 24–33 through injury.


Sassuolo

On 22 July 2014 Vrsaljko signed for
Serie A The Serie A (), also called Serie A TIM for national sponsorship with TIM, is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of the Italian football league system and the winner is awarded the Scudetto and the Coppa ...
side
Sassuolo Sassuolo (; egl, label=Modenese dialect, Modenese, Sasól ) is an Italian town, ''comune'', and industrial centre of the Province of Modena in Emilia-Romagna. Standing on the right bank of the river Secchia some southwest of Modena, the town ...
for €3.5 million plus bonuses of €2 million. He became a key part of Sassuolo's defence under manager
Eusebio Di Francesco Eusebio Di Francesco (; born 8 September 1969) is an Italian manager, and former professional footballer who played as a midfielder. Club career Di Francesco started his career with Tuscan teams Empoli and Lucchese. In 1995, he joined Piacenza ...
, and eventually helped the team to achieving their first ever Europa League qualification after finishing 6th in
Serie A The Serie A (), also called Serie A TIM for national sponsorship with TIM, is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of the Italian football league system and the winner is awarded the Scudetto and the Coppa ...
courtesy of a
Juventus Juventus Football Club (from la, iuventūs, 'youth'; ), colloquially known as Juve (), is a professional Association football, football club based in Turin, Piedmont, Italy, that competes in the Serie A, the top tier of the Italian football leagu ...
Coppa Italia The ("Italy Cup") is an annual knockout cup competition in Italian football organized by the FIGC until the 2009–10 season and the Lega Serie A ever since. History The beginning of the tournament was turbulent, due to the complexity of ...
win over
Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...
as Milan would have gone to Europe instead if they had won the final.


Atlético Madrid

Vrsaljko signed for
La Liga The Campeonato Nacional de Liga de Primera División, commonly known simply as Primera División in Spain, and as La Liga in English-speaking countries and officially as LaLiga Santander for sponsorship reasons, stylized as LaLiga, is the men's ...
club
Atlético Madrid Club Atlético de Madrid, Sociedad Anónima Deportiva, S.A.D. (; meaning "Athletic Club of Madrid"), known simply as Atleti in the Spanish-speaking world and commonly referred to at international level as Atlético Madrid, is a Spanish profess ...
in 2016 on a five-year deal. On 16 May 2018 Vrsaljko started the Europa League final as Atlético won the title.


Loan to Inter Milan

On 31 July 2018, Vrsaljko joined Italian side
Inter Milan Football Club Internazionale Milano, commonly referred to as Internazionale () or simply Inter, and colloquially known as Inter Milan in English-speaking countries, is an Football in Italy, Italian professional Association football, football ...
on an initial one-year loan with the option to buy. On 27 January 2019 Vrsaljko was ruled out for at least six months, due to left
knee In humans and other primates, the knee joins the thigh with the leg and consists of two joints: one between the femur and tibia (tibiofemoral joint), and one between the femur and patella (patellofemoral joint). It is the largest joint in the hu ...
ligament A ligament is the fibrous connective tissue that connects bones to other bones. It is also known as ''articular ligament'', ''articular larua'', ''fibrous ligament'', or ''true ligament''. Other ligaments in the body include the: * Peritoneal li ...
s surgery.


Return from loan

On 26 January 2020, he started his first game after being a year out against
Leganés Leganés () is a city in the Community of Madrid, Spain. Considered part of the Madrid metropolitan area, it is located about 11 km southwest of the centre of Madrid. , it has a population of 188,425, making it the region's fifth most popul ...
that ended up as a goalless draw. He was subbed off for
Ivan Šaponjić Ivan Šaponjić (Serbian Cyrillic alphabet, Serbian Cyrillic: Иван Шапоњић; born 2 August 1997) is a Serbian professional Association football, footballer who plays as a Forward (association football)#Striker, striker for ŠK Slovan B ...
in 88th minute. On 18 February, he started the home leg of the Champions League round-of-16 fixture against ruling champions
Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...
that ended up as a 1–0 victory. On 10 August, Atlético announced that Vrsaljko and teammate
Ángel Correa Ángel Martín Correa (; born 9 March 1995) is an Argentine professional footballer who plays as a forward and winger for La Liga club Atlético Madrid and the Argentina national team. Correa began his professional career at the age of 18 wi ...
were both positive for
COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was COVID-19 pandemic in Hubei, identified in Wuhan, China, in December ...
, ruling them out of the team's quarter-final fixture against
RB Leipzig RasenBallsport Leipzig e.V. (), commonly known as RB Leipzig, and colloquially referred to as Red Bull Leipzig, is a German professional football club based in Leipzig, Saxony. The club was founded in 2009 by the initiative of the company Red Bu ...
. After undergoing another knee surgery during summer, Vrsaljko finally returned to the pitch on 16 December, when he scored in a
Copa del Rey The Campeonato de España–Copa de Su Majestad el Rey, commonly known as Copa del Rey or simply La Copa and formerly known as Copa del Presidente de la República (1932–36) and Copa del Generalísimo (1939–76), is an annual knockout footbal ...
3–0 victory over Cardassar.


International career

He received his first call-up to the
Croatia national football team The Croatia national football team ( hr, Hrvatska nogometna reprezentacija) represents Croatia in international Association football, football matches. It is governed by the Croatian Football Federation (HNS), the governing body for football ...
on 2 November 2010 for the
Euro 2012 qualifier The euro (symbol: €; code: EUR) is the official currency of 19 out of the member states of the European Union (EU). This group of states is known as the eurozone or, officially, the euro area, and includes about 340 million citizens . Th ...
against
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 ...
. He made his national team debut on 9 February 2011 in a friendly match versus the
Czech Republic The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. The ...
. He made 3 more appearance before May 2012, when he was named in Croatia 26 players preliminary squad for
UEFA Euro 2012 The 2012 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as UEFA Euro 2012 or simply Euro 2012, was the 14th European Championship for men's national football teams organised by UEFA. The final tournament, held between 8 June and 1 ...
. After the friendly match against
Estonia Estonia, formally the Republic of Estonia, is a country by the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, a ...
in May 2012, Croatia manager
Slaven Bilić Slaven Bilić (; born 11 September 1968) is a Croatian professional football manager and former player. He is the current manager of EFL Championship side Watford. Bilić, who played as a defender, began his career in 1988 with his hometown cl ...
withdrew him from the final list for UEFA Euro 2012. However, just a week after being withdrawn from the final list, he was called up again due to injury of
Hamburger SV Hamburger Sport-Verein e.V. (), commonly known as Hamburger SV () or Hamburg (), is a German sports club based in Hamburg, with its largest branch being its football section. Though the current HSV was founded in June 1919 from a merger of three ...
player
Ivo Iličević Ivo Iličević (born 14 November 1986) is a retired Association football, footballer. Born in Germany, he represented Croatia national football team, Croatia at international level. Club career Early days Iličević was born in Aschaffenburg, ...
. He was an unused substitute in all three Croatia matches at the tournament. During the
2014 FIFA World Cup qualifying The 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification was a series of tournaments organised by the six FIFA confederations. The 2014 FIFA World Cup featured 32 teams, with one place reserved for the host nation, Brazil. The remaining 31 places were determined by ...
phase he made only one appearance, in the match against
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 th ...
in Zagreb. In May 2014 he was named in Croatia 23-man squad for the
2014 FIFA World Cup The 2014 FIFA World Cup was the 20th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for men's national football teams organised by FIFA. It took place in Brazil from 12 June to 13 July 2014, after the country was awarded the hosting ri ...
in Brazil. Due to injuries of in Croatian squad just before the opening match against
Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...
, Vrsaljko filled in at the left-back position instead of injured
Danijel Pranjić Danijel Pranjić (born 2 December 1981) is a Croatian professional Association football, football Manager (association football), manager and former player. Being a versatile left-footed player, he could play all across the left Defender (footbal ...
. He reprised his role as a left back in the decider against
Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...
, that ended as a 3–1 defeat and saw Croatia eliminated. On 12 November 2014, at the age of 22, he was the captain of the national team in a 2–1 loss against
Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...
, playing for the entire game. He became one of the youngest captains in the history of the national team, with
Darijo Srna Darijo Srna (; born 1 May 1982) is a Croatian former professional footballer and current director of football of Ukrainian Premier League club Shakhtar Donetsk. During most of his career he played as a right wing-back. He began his career at Haj ...
being rested for the game against
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 re ...
. In May 2018, he was named in Croatia's squad for the
2018 FIFA World Cup The 2018 FIFA World Cup was the 21st FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for men's national Association football, football teams organized by FIFA. It took place in Russia from 14 June to 15 July 2018, after the country was awa ...
in Russia. He started in six of the seven matches in the team's runners-up finish. He also took part in three of the four matches in the inaugural edition of the Nations League, missing the home fixture against
England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
, that ended up as a goalless draw, due to a knee injury. In September 2020, Vrsaljko came back to the national team after almost two years of absence due to knee surgery. He was named in coach
Zlatko Dalić Zlatko Dalić (; born 26 October 1966) is a Croatian professional football manager and former player. He is the manager of the Croatia national team since 2017 and led them to a runners-up finish at the 2018 FIFA World Cup and third place at the ...
's Nations League fixtures against
Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...
and
France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
. However, Vrsaljko did not play a single minute until a 2022 World Cup qualifier against
Slovenia Slovenia ( ; sl, Slovenija ), officially the Republic of Slovenia (Slovene: , abbr.: ''RS''), is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the southeast, an ...
on 24 March 2021, which Croatia lost 1–0. The defeat was his first game for the national team in 28 months. However, his underwhelming performances caused Dalić to drop him from the starting XI in favour of
Josip Juranović Josip Juranović (; born 16 August 1995) is a Croatian professional footballer who plays as a right-back or right wing-back for Bundesliga club Union Berlin and the Croatia national team. Club career Born in Zagreb, Croatia, Juranović went ...
ahead of Croatia's
Euro 2020 The 2020 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as UEFA Euro 2020 (stylised as UEFA EURO 2020) or simply Euro 2020, was the 16th UEFA European Championship, the quadrennial international men's football championship of Europe ...
match against
Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...
, and drop him from the team completely ahead of Croatia's September World Cup qualifiers against
Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...
,
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 s ...
and Slovenia.


Personal life

Vrsaljko's great-grandfather was killed by the
Yugoslav Partisans The Yugoslav Partisans,Serbo-Croatian, Macedonian, Slovene: , or the National Liberation Army, sh-Latn-Cyrl, Narodnooslobodilačka vojska (NOV), Народноослободилачка војска (НОВ); mk, Народноослобод ...
in
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
when his paternal grandfather, whom Vrsaljko was named after, was only several months old. When his grandfather died, he was buried with Vrsaljko's Croatia national team jersey. Vrsaljko's father Mladen was also a footballer who played for
NK Zadar Nogometni klub Zadar ( en, Football Club 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 almo ...
from 1992 to 1995, and his paternal uncle Svemir is a former deputy mayor of
Benkovac Benkovac () is a town in the interior of Zadar County, Croatia. Geography Benkovac is located where the plain of Ravni Kotari and the karstic plateau of Bukovica meet, 20 km from the town of Biograd na Moru and 30 km from Zadar. The ...
, who served as a commander of special unit force "Poskoci" ('' Long-Nosed Vipers'') during the
Croatian War of Independence The Croatian War of Independence was fought from 1991 to 1995 between Croat forces loyal to the Government of Croatia—which had declared independence from the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (SFRY)—and the Serb-controlled Yugosl ...
. Vrsaljko was born in 1992 in exile in
Rijeka Rijeka ( , , ; also known as Fiume hu, Fiume, it, Fiume ; local Chakavian: ''Reka''; german: Sankt Veit am Flaum; sl, Reka) is the principal seaport and the third-largest city in Croatia (after Zagreb and Split). It is located in Primor ...
due to
bombing A bomb is an explosive weapon that uses the exothermic reaction of an explosive material to provide an extremely sudden and violent release of energy. Detonations inflict damage principally through ground- and atmosphere-transmitted mechanica ...
of his hometown of
Zadar Zadar ( , ; historically known as Zara (from Venetian and Italian: ); see also other names), is the oldest continuously inhabited Croatian city. It is situated on the Adriatic Sea, at the northwestern part of Ravni Kotari region. Zadar serv ...
. His family returned to Zadar and nearby
Nadin Nadin is a Croatian village in the Zadar County, located between Benkovac and Škabrnja. The population is 406 (census 2011). The village was inhabited since the time of the Liburnians when it was named '. It was conquered by Ottoman Empire in ...
, where his father hails from, upon the end of the war. His mother Branka () hails from Dračevac Ninski near Poličnik. In June 2017, Vrsaljko married his high school love Matea Kedžo. On 6 June 2018, the young couple got their first child, son Bruno. In January 2019, a photograph of Vrsaljko lying on a
Croatian flag The national flag of Croatia ( hr, Zastava Hrvatske) or The Tricolour () is one of the state symbols of Croatia. It consists of three equal size, horizontal stripes in colours red, white and blue. In the middle is the coat of arms of Croatia. H ...
on the field of the
Luzhniki Stadium Luzhniki Stadium ( rus, стадион «Лужники», p=stədʲɪˈon lʊʐnʲɪˈkʲi, ''Stadion Luzhniki'') is the national stadium of Russia, located in its capital city, Moscow. The full name of the stadium is Grand Sports Arena of the ...
after the 2018 World Cup semi-final match against
England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
, taken by Drago Sopta, was chosen as the fourth most beautiful one in the world by
AIPS AIPS may refer to: * Académie Internationale de Philosophie des Sciences * Australian Institute of Public Safety * Astronomical Image Processing System * (International Sports Press Association) * Advanced IP Softswitch * Ante Up Intercontine ...
. Croatian media dubbed the photograph as "legendary". When asked about its background, Vrsaljko has said:
I was more like tired and exhausted from everything so I felt like lying down a bit and taking a rest.


Career statistics


Club


International


Honours

Dinamo Zagreb *
Prva HNL The Hrvatska nogometna liga () ( en, Croatian football league), also known as HNL or for sponsorship reasons the SuperSport HNL, is the top Croatian professional football league competition, established in 1992. Previously, it was called Prva H ...
: 2009–10,
2010–11 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1. I ...
, 2011–12,
2012–13 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1. I ...
*
Croatian Cup Croatian Cup may refer to: *Croatian Football Cup *Croatian Football Super Cup * Croatian Women's Football Cup *Croatian Basketball Cup, also known as Krešimir Ćosić Cup *Croatian Handball Cup *Croatian Water Polo Cup *Croatian Minute Movie Cup ...
:
2010–11 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1. I ...
, 2011–12 Atlético Madrid *
La Liga The Campeonato Nacional de Liga de Primera División, commonly known simply as Primera División in Spain, and as La Liga in English-speaking countries and officially as LaLiga Santander for sponsorship reasons, stylized as LaLiga, is the men's ...
:
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 b ...
*
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. It ...
: 2017–18 Croatia *
FIFA World Cup The FIFA World Cup, often simply called the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of the ' ( FIFA), the sport's global governing body. The tournament ha ...
runner-up:
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 ...
Individual * Croatian Football Hope of the Year: 2010 * FIFA FIFPro World XI 5th team: 2018 Orders *
Order of Duke Branimir The Order of Duke Branimir ( hr, Red kneza Branimira) 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. I ...
with Ribbon: 2018


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Vrsaljko, Sime 1992 births Living people Sportspeople from Zadar Croatian footballers Croatia under-21 international footballers Croatia international footballers Croatian expatriate footballers Croatian expatriate sportspeople in Spain Croatian First Football League players Expatriate footballers in Spain Serie A players GNK Dinamo Zagreb players NK Lokomotiva players Genoa C.F.C. players U.S. Sassuolo Calcio players La Liga players Atlético Madrid footballers Inter Milan players Croatian expatriate sportspeople in Italy Expatriate footballers in Italy Association football fullbacks UEFA Euro 2012 players 2014 FIFA World Cup players UEFA Euro 2016 players 2018 FIFA World Cup players UEFA Euro 2020 players