Aleksandar Mitrović

Aleksandar Mitrović (Александар Митровић, ; ; born 16 September 1994) is a Serbian professional footballer who plays as a striker for Saudi Pro League club Al Hilal and the Serbia national team.

A youth product at Partizan, he turned professional after a loan at Teleoptik, and was a regular as they won the Serbian SuperLiga in his first season.

At the age of 18, Mitrović was named among the top 10 talents under the age of 19 in Europe by a selection of UEFA reporters.

He then joined Anderlecht for a club record €5 million, and scored 44 goals in 90 games across all competitions in a two-season spell.

He won the Belgian Pro League in his first campaign at the club, and was the league's top scorer in his second.

Before being promoted to the first team, he made his senior debut with their affiliated side Teleoptik in the 2011–12 season, scoring 7 goals in 25 league matches.

On 27 June 2012, Mitrović signed his first professional contract with Partizan, on a four-year contract.

He made his official debut for the club in a Champions League qualifier against Maltese side Valletta, scoring a goal nine minutes after coming on as a substitute.

On 23 August 2012, Mitrović scored a header against Tromsø in the Europa League play-off round.

Three days later, he scored his first league goal in a home fixture against Jagodina.

On 17 November 2012, Mitrović scored the opening goal in his first ever Eternal derby, which Partizan eventually lost 3–2.

Five days later, he also scored in a 1–1 away draw with Azerbaijani side Neftchi Baku during the Europa League group stage.

By the end of his debut season, Mitrović was Partizan's top scorer in all competitions with 15 goals in 36 appearances even though he was one of the youngest players of the team.

Due to his displays, he earned a place in Jelen SuperLiga's Team of the Season selection.

Additionally, Serbian sports portal Mozzart Sport rated Mitrović third out of the 25 best players in the national league for that season.

Mitrović helped Serbia win the 2013 European Under-19 Championship, being voted the best player of the tournament.

On 12 August 2013, after much speculation, it was announced that Mitrović was sold to Anderlecht and that he would join the Belgian club on 30 August at the request of the player and his family.

The transfer fee was €5 million, which is Anderlecht's record signing fee.

On 1 September, Mitrović provided two assists on his debut for the club after coming on as a substitute at the beginning of the second half in a league match against Zulte Waregem.

On 10 December 2013, in the last round of the Champions League Group C against Olympiacos, Mitrović replaced goalkeeper Silvio Proto who had been sent off, but failed to save a penalty from Alejandro Domínguez.

Mitrović began the 2014–15 season by scoring in Anderlecht's 2–1 Super Cup defeat of K.S.C. Lokeren.

On 5 November 2014, in the Champions League Group D against Arsenal, he scored the equaliser in the 90th minute, completing Anderlecht's comeback from 3–0 to 3–3.

Overall, he scored 20 goals in the Pro League, making him the competition's top scorer, and 28 in all competitions.

In 2015, he moved to Newcastle United for £13 million.

On 22 March 2015, he scored the team's only goal in the 2–1 Belgian Cup Final loss to Club Brugge in Brussels.

On 21 July 2015, Mitrović joined Newcastle United on a five-year contract for a reported £13 million, saying he hoped to be able to play like club legend Alan Shearer.

He made his debut on 9 August as Newcastle began the season with a 2–2 draw against Southampton at St James' Park, playing the final 15 minutes in place of Papiss Cissé.

He was booked 22 seconds into his debut for a foul on Matt Targett.

Twenty days later, he was sent off in the 15th minute of a 1–0 home defeat to Arsenal for a foul on Francis Coquelin.

On 3 October, Mitrović scored his first Newcastle goal away to Manchester City, opening the scoring in a 6–1 loss.

Mitrović ended his debut season in Belgium with 16 league goals as Anderlecht won their 33rd league title.

On 20 March 2016, he headed the equaliser in a 1–1 draw against arch-rivals Sunderland in the Tyne–Wear derby.

Mitrović was booked for taking off his shirt in celebration, and a fan who ran onto the pitch to celebrate with him was given a banning order.

On 2 April, Mitrović scored two goals, one from a penalty, in a 3–2 defeat to Norwich City.

On the final day of the season, and with Newcastle United already relegated, Mitrović scored the second goal in a 5–1 win over third-place Tottenham Hotspur, but was also sent off for a shin-high challenge on Kyle Walker.

He became the sixth player in Premier League history to score a goal, assist a goal and get sent off in the same match.

In 2018, he was loaned to Fulham, and joined them permanently after helping them achieve promotion to the Premier League.

That same year, he played his first game for the senior national team and has since earned over 80 caps, representing Serbia at the 2018 and 2022 FIFA World Cup.

He is Serbia's all-time record goalscorer.

Born in Smederevo, Mitrović came to Partizan and went through the youth system of the club.