Mark Viduka

Mark Viduka

File:Mark Viduka.jpg
Personal information
Full name	Mark Anthony Viduka
Height	1.87 m (6 ft 2 in)
Position(s)	Striker
Team information
Current team	Middlesbrough
Number	9
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of June 262006

Mark Anthony Viduka [ˈmaː(r)k ˈʋiduka] (born October 9, 1975 in Melbourne) is an Australian football (soccer) striker of Croatian and Ukrainian descent. He currently plays for Middlesbrough in the English Premier League, and has also played for Croatia Zagreb, Celtic and Leeds United.

Club football career

Viduka started his career in Australia (where he is affectionately known as 'Big Dukes') with Melbourne Knights in 1993, and became an Australian international in June of the following year. In his two seasons with the Melbourne Knights he was top goal scorer in the National Soccer League and was twice awarded the Johnny Warren Medal for NSL Player of the Year.

In 1995 he moved to Croatia to play with Croatia Zagreb, where he stayed for three years and made an appearance in the UEFA Cup.

Celtic bought him in December 1998 for £3.5 million. He was voted Scottish Premier League Player of the Year after scoring 27 goals in his first full season at Celtic Park. He was regarded as a skilled player, able to hold the ball up well and bring other players into the game.

However, Viduka's often lackadaisical attitude infuriated supporters, and a widely-reported quote where he announced that he was "playing to only about 70 per cent of my capacity up here Scotland" did not endear him to either the fans or his fellow team-mates. Moreover, he exhibited a tendency to play anonymously in big games, and scored only one goal in his six Old Firm derbies.

The Leeds United manager David O'Leary swooped for Viduka just before the 2000/2001 season after tracking the big Aussie striker for some time. Leeds paid Celtic £6 million. O'Leary was happy with the outlay however, having been quoted that he believed that the signing was better value for money than any other in the Premiership at the time. It had been apparent for some time that Viduka wanted to leave the club - he ended the 1999/2000 SPL season by failing to score any goals in his final seven appearances of the campaign. Celtic's newly-installed manager, Martin O'Neill, immediately sold him to the Yorkshire club and spent the fee on Chris Sutton.

At Leeds he was expected to line up in a three-pronged attack alongside fellow Aussie Harry Kewell and Michael Bridges, but injuries to those two saw him form a partnership with Alan Smith in Leeds UEFA Champions League matches, while Robbie Keane also benefited in their Premiership matches together. In his first Elland Road season, Viduka scored 22 goals, including all four in a memorable 4-3 win over Liverpool at Elland Road. He signed a new five-year deal in the summer of 2001.

In the 2002/03 campaign Viduka scored another 22 goals, forming a good partnership with Smith and feeding off a rich supply line provided by Kewell.

However, Leeds' off-pitch financial troubles prompted the club to sell key players, including Kewell (sold to Liverpool) and Keane (sold to Spurs). This prompted speculation that Viduka would join the Leeds exodus with Barcelona (Spanish Primera Liga) confirming their interest in the Australian international along with Premiership clubs Liverpool and Manchester United.

With the relegation of Leeds United to the Football League Championship, the sale of Viduka's contract during the summer of 2004 became all but inevitable. On 8 July, 2004, Viduka's transfer to Middlesbrough was completed.

Viduka's debut season at Middlesbrough was initially impressive albeit frustrated by injuries. The season (05-06) however, Mark Viduka was in sensational form in all competitions for Middlesbrough FC getting into double figures early on in the season. Viduka also played an important part in spearheading Middlesbrough FC's campaign in the UEFA Cup where they twice had to score four goals in a game to proceed. Middlesbrough FC eventually lost in the final to Sevilla FC of Spain on 10th May 2006.

Newly appointed Middlesbourgh FC manager Gareth Southgate has expressed his interest in keeping Viduka as he thinks he will be a key player for the team. In August 2006, Viduka was awarded the number 9 shirt at Middlesbrough, his preferred number at all his previous clubs, following the departure of Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink.

International football career

He has captained the Australian national team since September 2005, in place of the injured Craig Moore, the regular captain. Viduka thrived under Guus Hiddink's tenure as coach of the national squad and led Australia as it qualified for the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany over a two-leg qualifier against Uruguay, the first time in 32 years that Australia qualified to participate in the event. On May 21, 2006 he was named as the Australian captain for the World Cup.

He also led Australia's national team to their first World Cup Finals victory with a 3-1 win over Japan in June 2006, as well as guiding them through an encounter with Brazil, losing 2-0, and a controversial bout with Croatia, ending with a 2-2 draw. He then led Australia into the second round, where they lost their round of 16 match to Italy by a controversial penalty kick in the 95th minute.

Viduka considered retiring from international competition after the 2006 World Cup, citing increasing family commitments as the primary reason. However, in September 2006 he confirmed that he would continue playing for Australia and intended to compete in the 2007 Asian Cup.

Trivia

Mark and his wife, Ivana, have two sons; Joseph, nicknamed 'Joey' (born 2002), and Lucas (born September 2006).

External links

• Statistics at footballdatabase.com