Luka Vušković (born 24 February 2007) 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 lea ...

who plays as a

centre-back In the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield player whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring. Defenders fall into four main categories: centre-backs, full-backs, sweepers ...

for club

Tottenham Hotspur Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, commonly referred to as simply Tottenham (, , , ) or Spurs, is a professional Association football, football club based in Tottenham, North London, England. The club itself has stated that it should always ...

and the Croatia national team.

Club career

Hajduk Split

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 ...

, Vušković progressed through the

academy An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of tertiary education. The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, founded approximately 386 BC at Akademia, a sanctuary of Athena, the go ...

of the local side

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 ...

, becoming the youngest Croatian to play, and to score, in the

UEFA Youth League The UEFA Youth League is an annual club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) since 2013. In its current format, it is contested by the under-19 teams of the clubs competing in the UEFA Champions Le ...

. He made his unofficial debut at 15, playing in a friendly against

Urania Urania ( ; ; modern Greek shortened name ''Ránia''; meaning "heavenly" or "of heaven") was, in Greek mythology, the muse of astronomy and astrology. Urania is the goddess of astronomy and stars, her attributes being the globe and compass. T ...

in September 2022. On 16 December 2022, he scored in a 4–3 friendly victory over the German side

Schalke 04 Fußballclub Gelsenkirchen-Schalke 04 e. V., commonly known as Schalke 04 (), and abbreviated as S04 (), is a professional sports club from the Schalke district of Gelsenkirchen, North Rhine-Westphalia. It is best known for its football team, w ...

. On 26 February 2023, two days after his sixteenth birthday, Vušković made his professional debut, starting and playing 90 minutes in a

league League or The League may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Leagues'' (band), an American rock band * ''The League'', an American sitcom broadcast on FX and FXX about fantasy football * ''League of Legends'', a 2009 multiplayer online battle a ...

derby match against

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 ...

, which ended in a 4–0 loss for his side. In the process, he became the youngest player in the Croatian top flight, together with Marko Dabro; he also became the youngest player to ever feature in an Eternal derby game, surpassing Josip Bašić. On 2 March 2023, Vušković scored the opening goal in Hajduk's 2–1 win over

Osijek Osijek () is the fourth-largest city in Croatia, with a population of 96,848 in 2021. It is the largest city and the economic and cultural centre of the eastern Croatian region of Slavonia, as well as the administrative centre of Osijek-Baranja ...

in the quarter-finals of the

2022–23 Croatian Football Cup The 2022–23 Croatian Football Cup was the 32nd season of Croatia's Association football, football knockout competition. It was sponsored by the betting company ''SuperSport'' and known as the SuperSport Hrvatski nogometni kup for sponsorship purp ...

. Scoring at 16 years and 5 days old, he became the youngest goalscorer in the history of Hajduk Split, in official matches.

Loan to Radomiak

On 31 January 2024, after failing to make an appearance for Hajduk since the start of the 2023–24 season, Vušković joined Polish

Ekstraklasa (; meaning "Extra Class" in Polish), officially known as PKO Bank Polski Ekstraklasa due to its Sponsor (commercial), sponsorship by PKO Bank Polski, is a professional association football league in Poland and the highest level of the Polish foo ...

club

Radomiak Radom Radomiak Spółka Akcyjna (''Radomiak S.A.''), commonly known as Radomiak Radom, is a Polish football club based in Radom, Poland. The club was founded in 1910 and competes in Ekstraklasa, the top level of Polish football. They play their home ma ...

on a six-month loan. He made his first-team – and

– debut on 10 February 2024, coming on as a 64th-minute substitute for Mike Cestor in a 0–6 away loss against Cracovia. Six days later, Vušković received his first start for the club in a 0–4 home loss against

Pogoń Szczecin Pogoń Szczecin Spółka Akcyjna, commonly referred to as Pogoń Szczecin (), is a Polish professional football club based in Szczecin, West Pomeranian Voivodeship, which plays in the Ekstraklasa, the top tier of the national football league s ...

. He returned to Hajduk at the end of the season.

Loan to Westerlo

On 9 July 2024, he was loaned to

Westerlo Westerlo () is a municipality located in the Belgian province of Antwerp. The municipality comprises seven towns: * Westerlo centrum * * Tongerlo * Heultje * Voortkapel * Oosterwijk * In 2021, Westerlo had a total population of 25,288. Th ...

in the

Belgian Pro League The Belgian Pro League (; ; ), officially the Jupiler Pro League () for sponsor Jupiler, is a professional association football league in Belgium and the highest level of the Belgian football league system. Contested by 16 clubs from the 2023 ...

. Even as a center-back, he managed to score 7 league goals throughout the course of the season.

Tottenham Hotspur

On 25 September 2023, Vušković reached an agreement with

about joining the

Premier League The Premier League is a professional association football league in England and the highest level of the English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Football Lea ...

club in 2025, in a deal which will run until 2030. The deal was reported to be worth around £12 million.

International career

Vušković represented Croatia at youth international level, On 9 June 2025, he debuted for the senior national team in a World Cup qualifying match against the

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, also known as Czechia, and historically known as Bohemia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the south ...

that ended in a 5–1 victory for the Croats, replacing

Duje Ćaleta-Car Duje Ćaleta-Car (; born 17 September 1996) is a Croatian professional Association football, footballer who plays as a Defender (association football)#centre-back, centre-back for club Olympique Lyonnais, Lyon and the Croatia national football ...

in the 88th minute.

Personal life

Hailing from a footballing family, Vušković's father,

Danijel Danijel is masculine given name of Slovene, Croatian, and Serbian origin. Notable people with the name include: * Danijel Aleksić (born 1991), Serbian footballer * Danijel Alibabić (born 1988), Montenegrin singer and songwriter * Danijel Brezi� ...

, formerly played for Hajduk Split, and now serves as a coach for the youth team. His grandfather,

Mario Mario (; ) is a Character (arts), character created by the Japanese game designer Shigeru Miyamoto. He is the star of the ''Mario (franchise), Mario'' franchise, a recurring character in the ''Donkey Kong'' franchise, and the mascot of the Ja ...

, played for the youth teams of Hajduk Split during the tenure of

Tomislav Ivić Tomislav Ivić (; 30 June 1933 – 24 June 2011) was a Croatian professional football player and manager. Often described as a brilliant strategist, Ivić is credited with helping develop the modern style of the game. In April 2007, Italian spor ...

, and went on to forge a footballing career in the Netherlands. His great-grandfather, Marko, also played for Hajduk Split during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, and went on to work as a club executive. More recently, his brother, also named

, left Hajduk Split for Germany, where he joined

Hamburger SV Hamburger Sport-Verein e.V. (), commonly known as Hamburger SV () or Hamburg (), or HSV (), is a German sports club based in Hamburg, with its largest branch being its Association football, football department. Though the current HSV was founde ...

. His cousins,

Moreno Moreno may refer to: Places Argentina * Moreno (Buenos Aires Metro), a station on Line C of the Buenos Aires Metro *Moreno, Buenos Aires, a city in Buenos Aires Province, Argentina * Moreno Department, a depatnent of Santiago del Estero Province, ...

and Vito, are also footballers, as was their father, Ronald.

Style of play

Standing at , Vušković holds an advantage among young players due to his height. He is notable for his positioning and ability to contemplate the opposition's plans and act accordingly. His heading abilities are also characteristic, making him a danger to the opposition during set pieces. For this reason, he is among the top scorers among young players, even though he plays as a centre-back. His imposing physique also gives him an advantage as a defender, while his quick thinking and ball distribution help facilitate attacks. Jacek Kulig, a scouting expert, stated that Vušković has no significant weaknesses. Vušković's style of play has been compared to that of the Spanish international

Gerard Piqué Gerard Piqué Bernabeu (born 2 February 1987) is a Spanish former professional footballer who played as a centre-back. He is considered to be one of the best defenders of his generation. Initially a talented student athlete at Barcelona's La ...

, while Vušković himself named

Joško Gvardiol Joško Gvardiol (; born 23 January 2002) is a Croatian professional footballer who plays as a left-back or centre-back for club Manchester City and the Croatia national football team, Croatia national team. A product of GNK Dinamo Zagreb, Dina ...

as his football role model.

Career statistics

Club

Honours

Individual *

Belgian Golden Shoe In association football, the Belgian Golden Shoe (, , German: ''Goldener Schuh'') is an award given in Belgium at the beginning of each civil year to the best footballer of the Belgian Pro League for the past year. The trophy is sponsored by the B ...

Goal of the Season: 2024

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Vušković, Luka 2007 births Living people Footballers from Split, Croatia Croatian men's footballers 21st-century Croatian sportsmen Men's association football central defenders HNK Hajduk Split players Radomiak Radom players K.V.C. Westerlo players Tottenham Hotspur F.C. players Croatian Football League players Ekstraklasa players Belgian Pro League players Croatia men's youth international footballers Croatia men's under-21 international footballers Croatia men's international footballers Croatian expatriate men's footballers Croatian expatriate sportspeople in Poland Croatian expatriate sportspeople in Belgium Croatian expatriate sportspeople in England Expatriate men's footballers in Poland Expatriate men's footballers in Belgium Expatriate men's footballers in England