Vedran Ćorluka

In his only Champions League appearance for the club, Ćorluka provided the cross for Michal Kadlec's leveler in the 52nd minute in a 3–1 loss to Barcelona.

On 25 February, the defender provided an assist for the first of Lars Bender's Brace in the 2–0 win over 1. FC Köln.

Vedran Ćorluka (born 5 February 1986) is a Croatian football coach and former player who played as a centre-back or right-back.

He is an assistant to Zlatko Dalić in the Croatia national team.

Due to the Bosnian War, in 1992 the family moved to Zagreb, where his father still works as an engineer in addition to being Ćorluka's manager.

His mother is a judge.

Vedran has one brother.

Ćorluka began playing football in Dinamo Zagreb's youth teams when he was eight years old, impressing many scouts from the youth academy.

Ćorluka graduated from the Dinamo Zagreb Youth Academy, before making his professional debut for the senior team in 2003.

His professional career began in 2003, but during that season he made no appearance for the first team.

He was sent on a one-year loan to Inter Zaprešić, helping the team place second in the league, before returning to Dinamo in 2005.

After establishing himself as a key player for Dinamo, he helped the club win the Croatian First League title three seasons in a row from 2005–06.

He represented Croatia at various youth levels before making his senior debut in August 2006, in a friendly match against Italy.

He also played a dominant part in his side capturing the Croatian Cup in the 2006 season.

In 2007, he made a £8 million move to Premier League club Manchester City, and after a season moved on to Tottenham Hotspur.

He spent four seasons there before joining Lokomotiv Moscow, where he eventually retired in 2021.

As a Croatia international, Ćorluka has earned 103 caps for the country, making him one of the nation's most capped players.

After consistently strong performances, Ćorluka was signed by English Premier League side Manchester City on 2 August 2007.

City did not reveal the fee, though Croatian media reports suggested the deal was worth around £8 million, with the 21-year-old penning a five-year deal.

As usual, Ćorluka consistently found a starting spot for his side in the Premier League.

Despite a nightmare blunder during his side's shocking 6–0 defeat to Chelsea at Stamford Bridge, he remained strong during his first season in England as his side finished ninth in the league and gained entry to a UEFA Cup qualifying round via the UEFA fair play ranking.

On few rare occasions, he was also used as a defensive midfielder during the season, proving to be a factor for opposing attackers.

He was part of the country's squad at the UEFA European Championships in 2008, 2012, 2016 and at the FIFA World Cups in 2014 and 2018.

Ćorluka scored his first goal in the 4–2 loss at Aston Villa on the opening weekend of the 2008–09 season.

In the UEFA Cup second qualifying round match second leg, Ćorluka scored the decisive spot kick in the dramatic 4–2 penalty shoot-out victory over Danish minnows Midtjylland after the tie had ended 1–1 on aggregate.

He played his last match for City against Sunderland on 31 August 2008, throwing his shirt into the crowd at the end of the match.

On 1 September 2008, it was announced that Ćorluka had signed for Tottenham Hotspur for a fee of £8.5 million on a six-year contract, joining his fellow Croatian international and best friend Luka Modrić at the club.

During the match against Stoke City on 19 October, Ćorluka was severely injured; kneed under his chin by teammate Heurelho Gomes, he was immediately knocked unconscious.

After ten minutes of on-field treatment, he was rushed to hospital where it was announced no serious damage was evident.

In the League Cup final on 1 March 2009, Ćorluka scored his and Tottenham's only penalty in the shootout loss to Manchester United, receiving a runners up medal for his efforts.

Ćorluka scored his first Premier League goal for Spurs during a 2–2 draw against Bolton Wanderers on 3 October 2009.

On 2 February 2011, he started and played the full 90 minutes at right-back ahead of the injured Alan Hutton in the 1–0 victory over Blackburn Rovers at Ewood Park.

In the January 2012 transfer window, Ćorluka signed on loan for German Bundesliga club Bayer Leverkusen for the remainder of the 2011–12 season on 31 January, with the option to buy out his contract in the summer transfer window.

Ćorluka made his debut for the club in a 2–2 home draw against VfB Stuttgart at the BayArena on 4 February, playing the full 90 minutes.

On 27 June 2012, Lokomotiv Moscow announced the signing of Ćorluka from Tottenham for £5.5 million.

The signing came in light of recent naming of former Croatia national team Slaven Bilić as the manager of Lokomotiv.

Ćorluka signed a three-year contract following the successful completion of his medical examination.

In August 2018, Ćorluka confirmed his retirement from international football.

Ćorluka was born in Derventa, SR Bosnia and Herzegovina, SFR Yugoslavia.

His parents, Jozo and Anđa, come from Modran, a village near Derventa.