- Ned Zelic
Football player infobox
playername= Ned Zelic
fullname = Nedjeljko Zelić
dateofbirth = birth date and age|df=yes|1971|7|4
cityofbirth =Sydney
countryofbirth =Australia
height = height|m=1.86
currentclub =FC Dinamo Tbilisi
clubnumber = 24|
position = Centre Back
youthyears = 1987
1988
youthclubs = Canberra Deakin
AIS
years = 1988-1991
1991-1992
1992-1995
1995
1996
1996-1997
1997-2001
2002
2002-2003
2004-2005
2005-2006
2006
2007-present
clubs =Sydney Croatia Sydney Olympic Borussia Dortmund
QPR
Eintracht Frankfurt AJ Auxerre TSV 1860 München Kyoto Purple Sanga Urawa Reds FC Wacker Tirol Newcastle Jets Helmond Sport
Dinamo Tbilisi
caps(goals) = 036 (0)
016 (1)
041 (1)
004 (0)
017 (1)
012 (0)
102 (3)
001 (0)
023 (2)
022 (0)
021 (1)
007 (0)
nationalyears = 1989
1992
1991-1997
nationalteam = flagicon|Australia Australia U-20
flagicon|Australia Australia U-23
flagicon|Australia Australia
nationalcaps(goals) =
034 (3)
pcupdate = 8 January 2007
ntupdate = 24 August 2007Nedjeljko Zelić, short form Ned Zelić [IPA|ˈzɛːlitɕ] (born on 4 July 1971 in
Sydney ), is aCroatian Australian football (soccer) player who plays forFC Dinamo Tbilisi .Club career
Zelic started his career in the old Australian
National Soccer League where he played with clubsSydney Croatia andSydney Olympic .Zelic spent most of the 1990s playing in Europe, most notably for
Borussia Dortmund of Germany. He had a small stint atQPR , moving for £1.3 million, which was beset by injury. He did little to endear himself toQPR fans, blaming the hard English ground for his ailments. TheLondon club soon cut their losses and he returned to Germany after playing just fourPremier League games in 1995-96. QPR were relegated that season and have yet to return to the top flight.Newcastle Jets
In 2005, Ned Zelic agreed terms to a two year deal to captain the
Newcastle Jets in theHyundai A-League where he played out the whole season from central defence. The Jets finished fourth on the league table and lost to the Central Coast Mariners 2-1 on aggregate over two legs in the Minor Semi-Final.In June 2006 he was released from his contract with the Newcastle Jets due to his wife being pregnant in germany. He was almost immediately replaced by
Paul Okon , who will likely also take his direct spot in central defence in the team.Back Overseas
After being granted a work permit, he signed a one-year deal with the Dutch second division side
Helmond Sport in August 2006. In Helmond he worked again with his former1860 Munich team mateGerald Vanenburg , who was trainer there. He left Helmond however after only 3 months due to physical problems.On the 15th of March 2007, Zelic joined Georgian club
FC Dinamo Tbilisi on a free transfer.He announced his retirement from football on 12 August 2008, following the outbreak of war between Georgia and Russia. http://www.tribalfootball.com/article.php?id=106611
International career
He has played for the Australian team but made himself unavailable after disagreements with coach
Frank Farina . Zelic was a member of the Australian team that competed at the1992 Summer Olympics inBarcelona .With discussion in "
The Age " newspaper that Zelic was up for a recall to the Australian national side around October 2005, Zelic did not make a return to the side and took up a career in the media. He first appeared as a football analyst on Australian television channel SBS during the World Cup Qualifier against Uruguay, and continued this role (alongsideAndrew Orsatti ) during the2006 FIFA World Cup .Trivia
Before getting into football Zelic used to be a truck driver.He still drives a truck in the off season with his pet ferret chuck.Fact|date=February 2008
Honours
With
Borussia Dortmund :
* Bundesliga: 1995 With Australia:
*FIFA Confederations Cup : 1997 (Runners-Up)With
Urawa Reds :
*J. League Cup : 2003External links
* [http://www.ozfootball.net/ark/Players/Z/Z.html Oz Football profile]
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