Stipe Pletikosa
Stipe Pletikosa as a player of Spartak Moscow
Stipe Pletikosa [ sti ː pɛ plɛtikɔsa ] ( born January 8, 1979 in Split) is a Croatian football player.
Career
Association
Pletikosa was born in the Croatian coastal town of Split and played at the start of his football career as a goalkeeper in his home club Hajduk Split. In his first two seasons as a professional, he was used in each case only once. In the 1998/1999 season, he completed 19 games and was able to prevail as a goalkeeper in Split. Pletikosa secured in 2000 with his team the Croatian Cup and won 2000/ 01 with Hajduk also the Croatian championship titles. In the years 2000, 2001 and 2003 Pletikosa was with split each Croatian runner-up. In Hajduk Split he played a total of 175 games in the Croatian league and in the Cup, scoring five penalty goals. In the European Cup it was used for the Croatian champion of 2001 15 times and scored two penalty goals.
Pletikosa signed in July 2003 a five- year contract with the Ukrainian club Shakhtar Donetsk. With Donetsk 2004 he won the Ukrainian Cup and was in season 2003/ 04 runners-up.
The beginning of 2007 he moved from Donetsk to Spartak Moscow. In summer 2011, he moved to FK Rostov.
National
At the Junior World Cup Nigeria 1999 Pletikosa was goalkeeper of the Croatian national team.
On 10 February 1999, he received his first cap for the Croatian national football team against Denmark. By then 20 years he was substituted at half time for the goalkeeper Marijan Mrmić. The Croat took part in Japan and South Korea at the World Cup 2002. His team was eliminated in the first round, but Pletikosa played all three matches as goalkeeper. Due to its performance in the World Cup, he was elected in Croatia player of the year 2002.
In the eight qualifying matches for Euro 2004 in Portugal, the Croatian national team conceded just four goals, which was also due to the young goalkeeper Pletikosa. Although he was nominated already for the squad for the finals, he could not attend this. He had suffered in training in Lisbon with a back pass a muscle injury. For him, Vladimir Vasilj was re-nominated, his representative as goalkeeper Tomislav Butina was.
In 2006 he took part in his second World Championship. In Germany his team retired again after the preliminary round. This Pletikosa completed all three games.
Also in the 2008 European Championship in Austria and Switzerland, he was goalkeeper of the Croatian national team. After the team was qualified by defeating Austria and Germany already for the quarter-finals, Pletikosa was in the final group game against Poland replaced by Vedran Runje. In the quarter- final against Turkey, he was again in goal. Since he could hold no penalty in the penalty shootout of the Turks, and three of the four Croatian shooters are not transformed, Croatia retired early from the tournament.
On February 6, 2013, made , and Josip Šimunić and Darijo Srna 4-0 victory over South Korea her 100th international game.
Achievements
Title
- Croatian champion: 2001
- Croatian Cup: 2000, 2003
- Ukrainian Champion: 2005
- Ukrainian Cup: 2004
- Ukrainian Supercup: 2005
Awards
- Croatian Footballer of the Year: 2002