Joško Gvardiol is a soccer player playing for Croatia National Football Team and Manchester City. He is a central defender.
Club Career
Zagreb-born Gvardiol spent most of his junior career at Dinamo Zagreb, making his first-team debut in October 2019. He quickly impressed and became a key member of the side which won Croatia’s Prva HNL in both 2019-20 and 2020-21. Gvardiol was named the Best Prva HNL Under-21 player in 2021 along with being named in the league’s 2021 Team of the Year too.
His talent was quickly spotted by German club RB Leipzig who moved to sign him in September 2020 on a five-year contract worth 16 million euros, with the move to come into effect at the end of the 2020-21 season. The deal was the highest ever fee paid for a Croatian teenager.
| Team |
Manchester City
|
| Position | Defender |
| Height / weight | 1.85 m / |
| Born | 23 Jan 2002 |
| Nationality |
Croatia
|
| Team History | |
|
Man City
|
2023 - present |
Loksche
|
2020 - 2023 |
Dinamo Zagreb
|
2020 - 2021 (loan) |
| GNK Dinamo Zagreb Academy | 2019 - 2020 |
|
Dinamo Zagreb
|
2019 - 2020 |
Gvardiol debuted for Leipzig in the Bundesliga in August 2021 and wasted no time becoming a key part of their starting line-up. He also made his UEFA Champions League debut at Leipzig only months after joining the club, in a 6-3 loss to Manchester City. At Leipzig, Gvardiol helped the club win the DFB-Pokal in both 2021-22 and 2022-23.
Gvardiol became hot property with several top European clubs after exceptional performances for Croatia at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, with his country reaching the semi-finals. In August 2023, English champions Manchester City signed Gvardiol on a five-year deal for a reported 90 million euros. That made him the second most expensive defender in football history.
International Career
Gvardiol played for Croatia at under-age level, before making his senior international debut as a 19-year-old in 2021. He went on to play at Euro 2020, played in 2021, making him the youngest footballer to ever play for Croatia at a major tournament.
Gvardiol was also selected in Croatia’s 2022 World Cup squad where he impressed as they went on a run to the semi-finals. He missed out on the FIFA Young Player Award to Argentina’s Enzo Fernandez.
