Jozo Simunovic
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50%Born
1994 (30 years old)
Birth Place
Zagreb, CroatiaPosition
Defender
Status
Free Agent
Ethnicity
White
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Height
1.91 m (6 ft 3 in)
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Kit
Side
Agent
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SoccerTeam
_Free Agent Soccer
2nd Team
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Jozo Šimunović (born 4 August 1994) is a Croatian professional footballer who most recently played as a centre back for Celtic. He is currently a free agent.
Club career
Early career
He started playing football at age of 7 in his village, Gornja Lomnica. At the age of 12 he joined Dinamo Zagreb from Hrvatski Dragovoljac.
Dinamo Zagreb
He made his debut for Dinamo Zagreb on 16 March 2013 against Istra 1961, coming as a 90th-minute substitute. On 30 March 2013, he scored his first goal for Dinamo against Zadar. He played the whole game in Dinamo's 4–2 win on penalty kicks over RNK Split in the 2015 Croatian Cup Final on 20 May 2015.
Celtic
On 1 September 2015, Šimunović joined Scottish Premiership side Celtic for an undisclosed fee. He made his debut on 17 September, playing in Celtic's 2–2 draw away against Ajax in the Europa League, and had a good game. A ankle injury shortly afterwards and the team's erratic form, however, hindered Šimunović's attempts to make much impact at his new club. On 15 January 2016, Šimunović scored his first goal for Celtic in a 4–1 victory over Dundee United, but suffered knee ligament damage just a week later and was ruled out for six weeks; however, it was announced on 26 March that, following a knee operation, he would in fact be out for the rest of the season. The player also revealed that, prior to the operation, he had been playing with a fractured right knee for six weeks: "I know it seems weird that I could play with this injury. But everything was down to psychology - and the atmosphere on the pitch was phenomenal. When you play for a great club like Celtic you can play even with a fractured bone."
On 13 and 14 July, Šimunović stated on his Twitter account that he had spent the last nine weeks in Belgrade recovering from his injury, and would be returning to Glasgow later that week, and denied media speculation that he would be leaving Celtic to join Torino. On 30 August 2016, contrary to his prior announcement, Šimunović travelled to Turin to have a medical with Torino. Despite passing his medical, it was announced the following day that the move was off as the two clubs could not agree a fee. Šimunović stated afterwards on Twitter that he was "completely healthy and fit" and was entirely focused on the challenge ahead with Celtic. On 18 September 2016, he made his long-awaited return to action as a substitute in Celtic's 2–2 draw with Inverness.
Šimunović re-established himself in the team, and formed a solid partnership in central defence alongside Erik Sviatchenko which saw Celtic go on a run of nine clean sheets.. During this time he also played in Celtic's 3–0 win over Aberdeen in the 2016 Scottish League Cup Final in November, and played the pass in to Tom Rogic for Celtic's opening goal. After the cup final win, he told Croatian newspaper Sportske novosti that, "It was really phenomenal. The atmosphere is normally great in our games, but this time it was extra special, because it was the 100th trophy of the club." In March 2017, Šimunović scored Celtic's first goal in a 2–1 win away at Dundee, extending the club's lead in the league to 25 points ahead of second-placed Aberdeen as they closed in on their 48th league championship.
On 11 September 2017, he signed new four-year contract, expiring June 2021.
International career
Šimunović has represented Croatia on all youth levels. He was captain of the Croatian under-17, under-19 and the under-21 teams.
In September 2015, he received a first call-up for the senior national team, for the last UEFA Euro 2016 qualifying matches, against Bulgaria and Malta, as a substitute for injured Dejan Lovren, but suffered an injury days later, which didn't allow him to play.
In July 2017, Šimunović chose to represent Bosnia and Herzegovina. He is eligible as his entire family hails from Jajce. Šimunović had become frustrated by the lack of opportunities to play for Croatia.
Career Honours
Career Milestones
Former Youth Teams
Former Senior Teams
2013-2015 |
2015-2020 |
Former Club Staff
Contracts
|
2017-2021 |
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