Igor Duljaj

Serbian footballer (born 1979)
Igor Duljaj
Duljaj with Shakhtar Donetsk in 2009
Personal information
Full name Igor Duljaj[1]
Date of birth (1979-11-29) 29 November 1979 (age 44)
Place of birth Topola, SR Serbia, SFR Yugoslavia
Height 1.75 m (5 ft 9 in)
Position(s) Defensive midfielder
Team information
Current team
 Partizan (head coach)
Youth career
1990–1997 Partizan
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1997–2004 Partizan 154 (4)
2004–2010 Shakhtar Donetsk 118 (5)
2010–2014 Sevastopol 82 (3)
Total 354 (12)
International career
2000–2007 FR Yugoslavia
Serbia and Montenegro
Serbia		 47 (0)
Managerial career
2016–2019 Shakhtar Donetsk (assistant)
2019–2022 Partizan (assistant)
2022–2023 Teleoptik
2023– Partizan
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Igor Duljaj (Serbian Cyrillic: Игор Дуљај; born 29 October 1979) is a Serbian former professional footballer who played as a defensive midfielder. He is best remembered for his tenacious playing style and stamina. He is currently the head coach of Serbian SuperLiga club Partizan.

During his footballing career, Duljaj played with only three clubs, namely Partizan, Shakhtar Donetsk and Sevastopol. He won 14 major trophies at club level, including the 2008–09 UEFA Cup.[2]

At international level, Duljaj earned 47 caps for Serbia (and its predecessors). He represented Serbia and Montenegro at the 2006 FIFA World Cup.[3]

Club career

Born in Topola, Duljaj was spotted by Partizan in 1990. He initially traveled to Belgrade to attend training sessions for several years, before permanently relocating to the capital city.[4] Duljaj is probably the best defensive midfielder who came out of the youth academy of Partizan in the 90s as he passed all club selections. In the 1997–98 season, Duljaj was promoted to the main squad, appearing in five league games and scoring once. He became a first-team regular in his third year as a senior, collecting 41 appearances in all competitions while scoring one goal in the league. Over the course of the next three seasons, Duljaj was an irreplaceable member of the team that won one national cup and back-to-back championships in 2002 and 2003. He subsequently helped the side progress to the group stage of the 2003–04 UEFA Champions League, eliminating Newcastle United in the last qualifying round.

In February 2004, Duljaj was transferred to Shakhtar Donetsk.[5] He penned a five-year contract with the club, rejoining his former Partizan teammate Zvonimir Vukić. Over the following seven seasons, Duljaj won four Ukrainian Premier League titles, two Ukrainian Cups, two Ukrainian Super Cups, and one UEFA Cup. He amassed a total of 195 appearances in all competitions and scored six goals.

In July 2010, Duljaj signed with fellow Ukrainian club Sevastopol. He spent four seasons with the side, two in the top flight and two in the second tier, before retiring from the game.

International career

Duljaj was capped for FR Yugoslavia at under-18 and under-21 level. He also represented the country at the Millennium Super Soccer Cup in early 2001. Led by manager Ilija Petković, Duljaj appeared in all five of his team's games and scored two goals, helping the side win the tournament.[6] However, these caps are not officially recognized by FIFA.

Previously, Duljaj made his full international debut for FR Yugoslavia in a 2–1 friendly loss against Romania on 15 November 2000.[7] He went on to represent his country on 47 occasions, being a member of the team at the 2006 FIFA World Cup.

Post-playing career

In the summer of 2016, Duljaj joined the coaching staff at Shakhtar Donetsk, becoming an assistant to manager Paulo Fonseca.

In December 2019, it was announced that Duljaj would be joining Savo Milošević's staff at Partizan.[8]

On 16 August 2022, it was announced that Duljaj became the new manager at Teleoptik.

Personal life

Duljaj has two brothers, Joakim and Nenad. Together they run the Duljaj Football Academy in their hometown of Topola.

Career statistics

Club

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League Cup Continental Other Total
Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Partizan 1997–98 5 1 2 0 0 0 — 7 1
1998–99 15 0 5 0 2 0 — 22 0
1999–2000 32 1 2 0 7 0 — 41 1
2000–01 28 1 5 0 4 0 — 37 1
2001–02 29 1 1 1 4 0 — 34 2
2002–03 31 0 3 0 7 0 — 41 0
2003–04 14 0 1 0 10 0 — 25 0
Total 154 4 19 1 34 0 — 207 5
Shakhtar Donetsk 2003–04 9 0 2 0 0 0 — 11 0
2004–05 24 2 7 0 13 0 0 0 44 2
2005–06 24 0 1 0 10 0 1 0 36 0
2006–07 20 1 4 0 7 0 1 0 32 1
2007–08 14 1 7 1 6 0 1 0 28 2
2008–09 13 1 2 0 10 0 1 0 26 1
2009–10 14 0 2 0 2 0 — 18 0
Total 118 5 25 1 48 0 4 0 195 6
Sevastopol 2010–11 23 0 1 0 — — 24 0
2011–12 28 2 2 0 — — 30 2
2012–13 22 1 5 0 — — 27 1
2013–14 9 0 1 0 — — 10 0
Total 82 3 9 0 — — 91 3
Career total 354 12 53 2 82 0 4 0 493 14

International

Appearances and goals by national team and year
National team Year Apps Goals
FR Yugoslavia 2000 2 0
2001 2 0
2002 7 0
Serbia and Montenegro 2003 6 0
2004 5 0
2005 8 0
2006 5 0
Serbia 2006 6 0
2007 6 0
Total 47 0

Managerial statistics

As of 24 April 2024

Managerial record by team and tenure
Team Nat From To Record
G W D L Win %
Teleoptik Serbia 6 June 2022 28 February 2023 15 7 4 4 046.67
Partizan Serbia 28 February 2023 Present 53 30 9 14 056.60
Career totals 68 37 13 18 054.41

Honours

Partizan

Shakhtar Donetsk

Sevastopol

Individual

References

  1. ^ "2006 FIFA World Cup Germany: List of Players" (PDF). FIFA. 21 March 2014. p. 24. Archived from the original (PDF) on 10 June 2019.
  2. ^ "S Donetsk 2-1 W Bremen (aet)". bbc.co.uk. 20 May 2009. Retrieved 28 May 2018.
  3. ^ "Igor DULJAJ". sporting-heroes.net. Retrieved 8 December 2018.
  4. ^ "Umesto hleba, prodavao je finte sa loptom!" (in Serbian). mondo.rs. 2 June 2016. Retrieved 28 May 2018.
  5. ^ "Igor Duljaj potpisao za ukrajinski Šahtjor!" (in Serbian). partizan.rs. 17 February 2004. Retrieved 28 May 2018.[permanent dead link]
  6. ^ "Mirna Bosna" (in Serbian). glas-javnosti.rs. 25 January 2001. Retrieved 28 May 2018.
  7. ^ "Poraz po meri" (in Serbian). glas-javnosti.rs. 15 November 2000. Retrieved 28 May 2018.
  8. ^ "Duljaj se vratio u Partizan da bude deo Miloševićevog stručnog štaba" (in Serbian). rts.rs. 20 December 2019. Retrieved 26 April 2020.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Igor Duljaj.
  • Duljaj Football Academy
  • Igor Duljaj at Reprezentacija.rs (in Serbian)
  • Igor Duljaj – FIFA competition record (archived)
  • Igor Duljaj – UEFA competition record (archive)
  • Igor Duljaj at National-Football-Teams.com
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FK Partizan – current squad
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Managerial positions
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FK Partizan – managers
(c) = caretaker manager
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Serbia and Montenegro squad – 2006 FIFA World Cup
Serbia and Montenegro