Ivica Krizanac: fame for thirty

In the history of football there are many cases when a football player, unknown at home, manifests himself in foreign teams. After this, proposals are received from other clubs and, as an apotheosis, - an invitation to the national team of the country. It is to such athletes that our hero belongs.

Croatian beginning

April 13, 1979 Ivica Krizanac was born - a footballer whose biography begins in Zagreb. Croatian clubs do not have a high level of play, because many of them serve as a springboard for outflow of pretty good athletes to more "football" countries. But they provide a good practice for the younger generation of players. One of these young players was Ivica Krizanac, who started his professional career at the age of eighteen.

With an increase of 189 centimeters and weight of almost 80 kilograms, he staked out the place of the central defender. Despite the metropolitan origin, his first team was "Sibenik" from the city of the same name. Having played for this team only seven matches, the next season Ivica started in the team "Slaven Belupo" from Koprivnica. But here it did not work out either - only eight matches. However, in 1999 he was expected to move to Vartex from Varaždin. Again, only five matches in the 1999/2000 season.

The birth of a football player

Not having achieved success in the vastness of his native Croatia, Ivica Krizanac changed the "Vartex" to the Czech "Jablonec 97". Having played for this club only one match, he almost instantly became part of the long-term leader of the Czech championship - the Prague "Sparta". For two years, the football player played for the main team only two matches, while he managed to become the champion of the Czech Republic. But in the capital of the Czech Republic he managed to work with quite good specialists - Ivan Gasek and Yaroslav Grzhebik, so staying here was quite useful.

The next country for Ivica was Poland, and the team - Zabrze "Gurnik", where the football player moved in early 2002. Here he was already registered in the basis, until the end of the season, playing in thirteen games and having managed to score one goal. Therefore, it is no surprise that the next club of Ivica was another Polish club - "Diskobolia" from Grodzinsk. In this team Ivica Krizanac spent three part-time years, becoming one of the leaders of the team and deserving a captain's armband. In the UEFA Cup 2003/04 this modest Polish club outplayed well-known rivals Germany's Hertha and English Manchester City. In the same year the Polish club won silver medals of the championship. Here Ivitsu and noticed the breeders of St. Petersburg "Zenith.

In the "Zenith" and at the zenith

But the transition to the club from St. Petersburg was carried out in 2005.

For six years in the "Zenith" only in the Russian championship Ivica Krizanac spent exactly one hundred matches. In all, the speeches for the Russian club in Croatia are one hundred and forty-seven. In the composition of the Petersburg "Zenith" Ivica Krizanac won his main trophies. Twice he was the champion of Russia, once - a bronze medalist. He won the Cup and Super Cup of Russia, won the Cup and the UEFA Super Cup. At the same time, he was a full-fledged player of the club's main structure from St. Petersburg. It's the excellent performances for Zenit that Ivica Krizanac is due to the fact that his talent was discerned in the coaching staff of the Croatian national team and invited to speak for the team of his country. Matches for the team he played a little - only eleven, scoring with one goal. But he was noticed quite late, almost at the age of thirty.

Completion of career

Having combined gold medals in the Cup of Russia in 2010, Ivica Krizanac started the next season with the player "Hajduk" from his native Split. In the first year the team won bronze medals in the Croatian championship. Ivica Krizanac became the new captain of the Split team. Photo of an athlete close-up - below.

As part of this Croatian club player played for three years, until he decided in 2014 to complete his active football career.