World Cup GK Profile: Vladimir Stojkovic (Serbia)

Vladimir Stojkovic

Squad: Serbia
Squad No: 1
Position: Goalkeeper
Age: 26
Birth Date: Jul 29, 1983
Birth Place: Loznica, Yugoslavia
Height: 6' 5" (1.95m)
Weight: 187 lbs (85 kg)
Club: Wigan Athletic (England)
International Caps: 33

Club History
Wigan Athletic (ENG): 2010-
Getafe CF (SPA): 2009-2010
Sporting CP (POR): 2007-2009
Vitesse (HOL): 2007
Nantes (FRA): 2006-2007
Red Star Belgrade (SER): 2005-2006
FK Zemun (SER): 2003-2005
FK Leotar (BOS): 2003



from Wikipedia (full wiki)
Uncapped, Stojkovic was named as member of the senior squad for the 2006 FIFA World Cup, and served as backup again, now to Dragoslav Jevric.

After the arrival of Javier Clemente as head coach in summer 2006, Stojkovic became first-choice for the newly independent Serbia. He made his debut against The Czech Republic on 16 August 2006. During the Euro 2008 qualifying campaign, he played well, displaying confidence between the posts as exemplified in a home qualifier versus Portugal with a string of spectacular saves, preserving a point for Serbia.

Following the failure to qualify for the finals, Clemente was replaced by Miroslav Ðukic, and the player continued to start regularly.

In July 2008, Stojkovic was named on the Olympic team for Beijing 2008. He continued to start regularly for the main squad under new head coach Radomir Antic, even though he was still in the wilderness at Sporting Lisbon. He eventually went on to play in the most qualifiers for the World Cup 2010, helping Serbia to reach the final stage of that tournament.


from ESPN SoccerNet
Serbian international goalkeeper Stojkovic joined Wigan on loan in January 2010 in a bid to improve his chances of playing regularly before the World Cup.

He began his career at Red Star Belgrade at the age of seventeen, but his chances were limited and he joined Bosnia-Herzegovnian side FK Leotar on loan, before moving to FK Zemun.

Stojkovic returned to Red Star in 2005 and immediately impressed as the club won the league and cup double. His good form earned him a €3 million move to Nantes in the summer of 2006, but it did not continue in France and he was shipped off to Vitesse Arnhem on a six-month loan in January 2007.

He made a permanent move to Portugal in July and signed a five-year contract with Portuguese giants Sporting Clube de Portugal for a €1.5 million transfer fee.

Once again, he began well, but lost his place to youngster Rui Patrício and then clashed with manager Paulo Bento. He left a trial with Everton after only an hour without explanation and returned to Sporting, where he did not play in 2008-09.

Another short loan move, this time to Getafe, followed, but it took until January 2010 for him to seal a move away from Sporting to Wigan on a six-month deal.

An excellent-shot-stopper, Stojkovic was an automatic pick for Serbia throughout the 2010 World Cup qualifiers, but has not enjoyed regular first-team football at club level for several years.

Since leaving Red Star Belgrade in 2006, he has generally been on the outside looking in, on the bench at Nantes in France, Sporting Lisbon, Getafe in Spain and now Wigan, where he pitched up last December. However, first team chances have been few and far between in England, as he is very much second pick for the Latics.

Stojkovic is a former captain of the Serbia Under-21s, notably leading the side to the semi-finals of the 2006 European Championships in Portugal. He was an unused back-up at that year's World Cup in Germany and won his first full cap in a friendly against Czech Republic in August 2006.

He was born into a sporting family. His father was a soccer goalkeeper, while his mother was a fine handball player. Back in 2002, he was shown the door by Red Star because of poor discipline and bad behaviour.

from FIFA.com
Regular first-team football at club level may have eluded Vladimir Stojkovic since 2006, but that has not preventing him becoming an automatic between the Serbia sticks. Indeed, the 1.95m goalkeeper played in all but two of their South Africa 2010 preliminaries – he missed their opener through injury and final outing, when he was rested with qualification already secured – keeping four clean sheets in the process.

Stojkovic was born in Loznica, western Serbia in 1983, into a sporting family: his father was a professional goalkeeper, while his mother played handball. He swiftly developed a love for football and joined Crvena Zvezda as a 17-year-old in 2000.

Stojkovic struggled for first-team action initially, but following loan spells with Leotar and Zemun, he was promoted into the Belgrade giants’ starting XI for the 2005/06 campaign. One season is all he needed to attract the attention of a handful of clubs from France and Germany, and it was Nantes who the battle for his signature.

When Les Canaris tempted Fabian Barthez out of retirement during the winter break, Stojkovic became surplus to requirements at La Beaujoire and duly joined Vitesse on loan. He failed to command a consistent starting berth in the Netherlands, however, and made a permanent transfer to Portuguese heavyweights Sporting in July 2007.

Stojkovic found himself in a familiar position in Lisbon: warming the bench. He therefore spent the latter half of the 2008/09 campaign on loan to Getafe, and joined Wigan Athletic on a similar deal in January 2010.

Stojkovic was a non-playing member of Serbia and Montenegro’s squad at Germany 2006, and represented his country at the Men’s Olympic Football Tournament Beijing 2008.

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