Mirsad Bešlija

Mirsad Bešlija

Personal information
Date of birth	July 6, 1979 (1979-07-06) (age 32)
Place of birth	Živinice, SFR Yugoslavia
Height	1.83 m (6 ft 0 in)
Playing position	Right winger
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps†	(Gls)†
1995–1997	Slaven Živinice
1997–2000	NK Bosna Visoko
2000–2001	FK Željezničar
2001–2006	Racing Genk	134	(17)
2006–2008	Heart of Midlothian	9	(0)
2007–2008	→ Sint-Truidense (loan)	11	(2)
2009–	FK Željezničar	25	(4)
National team
2001–2006	Bosnia and Herzegovina	37	(4)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of July 2009. † Appearances (Goals).

Mirsad Bešlija (born July 6, 1979) is a Bosnian football winger who is currently playing for Bosnian side, FK Željezničar. He has also played for the Bosnia and Herzegovina national team.

Bešlija started his career with hometown side Slaven Živinice. Although he was among the youngest players in their squad, he became an important part of the first team. He was spotted there and signed by Bosna Visoko, a first division team at that time, in 1997. He spent two seasons in Visoko, during which he was selected for the national U21 team. His rapid footballing ascent attracted the interest of FK Željezničar and he signed for them in 2000, becoming a fans' favourite during his single season in the capital.

Bešlija joined Racing Genk in July 2001, where he stayed for five years, and made over 130 league appearances, and he won the Belgian League with them in 2003-04. He moved to Heart of Midlothian during January 2006 in a deal worth £850,000 (€1.22 million), a record fee paid by the Tynecastle side.^[1] A dispute developed about whether the overall transfer fee should include agents percentages or not, leading Hearts to suspend payment after the first installment.^[1] When further dialogue brought no resolution, Genk petitioned UEFA to impose a transfer embargo upon Hearts,^[2] however, agreement was finally reached in December 2006, with Hearts paying the entire outstanding balance.^[3]

Beslija suffered serious injury problems with Hearts and he failed to win a regular first team place. He was loaned out to Belgian club Sint-Truidense for the 2007–08 season, and he was released by Hearts in October 2008 after they reached a severance agreement.^[4]

On the international level, Bešlija has not played for Bosnia since 2006 mainly due to several injuries and loss of form at club level. He retired from international football in 2007.

References

1. ^ ^{a b} Genk threaten Hearts over Beslija, BBC Sport, 16 June 2006.
2. ^ Genk urge signing ban for Hearts , BBC Sport, 26 October 2006.
3. ^ Hearts pay Belgians for Beslija, BBC Sport, 22 December 2006.
4. ^ Johnstone, Darren. Record buy Beslija leaves Hearts after costing £122,000 a start, The Scotsman, 15 October 2008.

External links

• Mirsad Beslija career stats at Soccerbase
• Hearts Appearances at londonhearts.com
• National Football Teams

Persondata
Name	Beslija, Mirsad
Alternative names
Short description	Bosnia-Herzegovina footballer
Date of birth	July 6, 1979
Place of birth	Zivinice, SFR Yugoslavia
Date of death
Place of death