Nebojša Jelenković ( sr-Cyrl, Небојша Јеленковић; born 26 May 1978) is a former
Serbia
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, image_coat = Coat of arms of Serbia.svg
, national_anthem = ()
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, map_caption = Location of Serbia (gree ...
n 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
defensive midfielder
In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. ...
.
He has played more than 290 domestic games with
Litex Lovech and holds the record for the second most domestic games played by a foreigner in the
Bulgarian A Group. He is also the first foreigner to become a captain of a Bulgarian team. In 2004, he obtained a Bulgarian passport. His son,
Veljko is also a footballer.
Career
In Serbia
Jelenković began his career at hometown club
Novi Sad
Novi Sad ( sr-Cyrl, Нови Сад, ; #Name, see below for other names) is the List of cities in Serbia, second largest city in Serbia and the capital of the autonomous province of Vojvodina. It is located in the southern portion of the Pannoni ...
. In the summer of 1998, he signed with FR Yugoslavia
champions Obilić.
Litex Lovech
In 1999 Jelenković moved to
Litex Lovech. He made his first appearance for Litex in a
Champions League qualification match against
Widzew Łódź
RTS Widzew Łódź () is a Polish football (soccer), football club based in Łódź. The club was founded in 1910. Its official colours are red and white, hence their nicknames ''Czerwona Armia'' (Red Army) and ''Czerwono-biało-czerwoni'' (Red-wh ...
, on 28 July 1999. His league debut came on 8 August, in a 1–0 loss against
Slavia Sofia
PFC Slavia Sofia 1913 () is a Bulgarian professional association football club based in Sofia, which currently competes in the top tier of the Bulgarian football league system, the First League. Slavia's home ground is the Stadion Aleksandar Sh ...
on the opening day of the 1999–00 season. On 20 November 1999, Nebojša scored his first goals, scoring twice in a 3–1 away win over
Velbazhd Kyustendil. He scored his final goal of the season in a 6–0 win at home over
Volov Shumen on 1 April 2000.
On 29 August 2002, Jelenković scored his first-ever European goal in a 3–1 away win over Lithuanian
Atlantas Klaipėda in their
2002–03 UEFA Cup qualifying round second leg tie. Three weeks later, he scored an own goal in a 1–0 home loss against
Panathinaikos in the first round of the tournament.
In 2006, Jelenković was on the radar of then Bulgarian manager
Hristo Stoichkov
Hristo Stoichkov Stoichkov (; born 8 February 1966) is a Bulgarian former professional Association football, footballer and current football commentator for TUDN. A prolific Forward (association football), forward, he is widely regarded as the g ...
as a prospective candidate for the
national team
A national sports team (commonly known as a national team or a national side) is a team that represents a nation, rather than a particular club or region, in an international sport.
The term is most commonly associated with team sports, for exa ...
, but eventually did not meet the eligibility criteria because of having appeared in matches for the
FR Yugoslavia U-21. In the same year
CSKA Sofia
CSKA Sofia () is a Bulgarian professional association football club based in Sofia and currently competing in the country's premier football competition, the First League. ''CSKA'' is an abbreviation for ''Central Sports Club of the Army'' ...
attempted to secure the services of the Serbian midfielder.
On 30 August 2007,
Kuban Krasnodar confirmed Jelenković has joined on loan for three months. He spent most of his time with Kuban on the bench, making only three
Russian Premier League
The Russian Premier League (RPL; , ''Rossiyskaya premyer-liga''; РПЛ), also written as Russian Premier Liga, is a professional association football league in Russia and the highest level of the Russian football league system. It was establis ...
appearances. In December Jelenković returned to Litex and earned 12 appearances in the
Bulgarian A PFG, scoring one goal to the end of the season.
Spartak Trnava
At the end of 2007–08 season his contract expired and Jelenković signed with
Spartak Trnava
FC Spartak Trnava () is a professional football club based in Trnava, Slovakia. The club competes in Slovak First Football League, the top flight in the Slovak league system, having participated in more seasons than any other club.
Founded in ...
on a one-year contract for the 2008–09 season. He earned 27 appearances playing in the
Corgoň liga, scored one goal and the team finished in third place.
Return to Litex Lovech
On 12 June 2009, Jelenković again came back to
Litex Lovech on a long-term contract. On 12 March 2011, he made his 250th appearance for Litex in the
Bulgarian A PFG, in a 2–1 win over
Pirin Blagoevgrad. Jelenković announced his retirement at the end of the
2012–13 season. He has featured on 293 occasions in the
A PFG
The First Professional Football League (), commonly known as Parva Liga or Bulgarian First League (currently known as the efbet League for sponsorship reasons), is a professional association football league in Bulgaria and the highest level of t ...
and is currently second on the all-time appearance list among foreign players in the top flight of Bulgarian football (after
Macedonian Vančo Trajanov).
Career statistics
Awards
;Litex Lovech
**
Bulgarian A PFG 2009–10, 2010–11
***
Bulgarian Supercup 2010
**3 times
Bulgarian Cup
The Bulgarian Cup () is a Bulgarian annual football competition. It is the country's main cup competition and all officially registered Bulgarian football teams take part in it.
The tournament's format is ''single-elimination'', with all matche ...
winner: 2001, 2004 and 2008
References
External links
FK Obilić Team Profile*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jelenkovic, Nebojsa
1978 births
Living people
Footballers from Novi Sad
Men's association football midfielders
Serbia and Montenegro men's footballers
Serbia and Montenegro men's under-21 international footballers
Serbian men's footballers
RFK Novi Sad 1921 players
FK Obilić players
FC Lovech players
FC Kuban Krasnodar players
FC Spartak Trnava players
First League of Serbia and Montenegro players
First Professional Football League (Bulgaria) players
Russian Premier League players
Slovak First Football League players
Serbia and Montenegro expatriate men's footballers
Serbian expatriate men's footballers
Expatriate men's footballers in Bulgaria
Serbia and Montenegro expatriate sportspeople in Bulgaria
Serbian expatriate sportspeople in Bulgaria
Expatriate men's footballers in Russia
Serbian expatriate sportspeople in Russia
Expatriate men's footballers in Slovakia
Serbian expatriate sportspeople in Slovakia