Dragan Žilić

Dragan Žilić
Personal information
Full name Dragan Žilić
Date of birth (1974-12-14) 14 December 1974
Place of birth Kikinda, SFR Yugoslavia
Height 1.97 m (6 ft 6 in)
Playing position Goalkeeper
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1992–1996 Kikinda 70 (0)
1996–2000 Vojvodina 49 (0)
2000–2001 CSKA Sofia 1 (0)
2001–2005 Sartid Smederevo 112 (0)
2005–2009 Rijeka 78 (1)
2009–2010 Gorica 19 (0)
National team
1998–2003 Serbia and Montenegro 8 (0)

* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only.


Dragan Žilić (Serbian Cyrillic: Драган Жилић; born 14 December 1974) is a former Serbian football goalkeeper.

Playing career

Born in Kikinda, Žilić started his career at local OFK Kikinda from where he transferred to FK Vojvodina in 1996. In 2000, he moved to Bulgarian side CSKA Sofia. However, after only one season there, Žilić returned to his country with Sartid Smederevo.

During the summer of 2005, Žilić's transfer from FK Smederevo to HNK Rijeka caused a minor sensation as it marked the first occasion in a very long time that a player of Serb ethnicity moved to a Croatian club. Already 30 years of age at this time, Žilić earned a place in the first team right away, helping his new club with a series of confident goalkeeping displays. Simultaneously off the pitch and sometimes even on it, he was the victim of constant verbal abuse from the nationalist elements of Rijeka fans. They threw flares at him, threatened him with violence and displayed match day banners that read: "Žilić, out of Rijeka, and out of Croatia".

Over time the abuse toned down and the fans mostly managed to tolerate his presence on their team. His standing in fan eyes improved as he played well during Rijeka's 2005–06 run in the Croatian Cup that ended with the club lifting the trophy. On 29 November 2006, Žilić scored a 92nd-minute header versus NK Konavljanin that got Rijeka into the 2006–07 Croatian Cup semifinals.[1]

By fall 2008, Žilić's role in the club got marginalized as he lost his first team spot and got demoted to as low as training with juniors.[2] During the 2008–09 winter transfer window he moved to Slovenian club ND Gorica.

Post-playing career

In December 2012, Žilić became the president of OFK Kikinda. Today he lives in Deux-Ponts in Germany.

Career statistics

Club Season League
AppsGoals
Smederevo 2001–02 330
2002–03 330
2003–04 270
2004–05 190
Total 1120

Honours

Sartid Smederevo
Rijeka

References

  1. ↑ "Konavljanin - Rijeka: Žilić spasio Rijeku od sramote" (in Croatian). hrsport.net. 29 November 2006. Retrieved 29 January 2011.
  2. ↑ "Ćutim i čekam kraj ugovora s Rijekom" (in Serbian). blic.rs. 12 October 2008. Retrieved 5 September 2010.
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