Teddy LuÄić
Teddy Lucic Mark Sime (born 15 April 1973 in Biskopsgården, Gothenburg ) is a former Swedish football player Croatian- Finnish descent. The defender, who once won the Swedish championship title with IFK Gothenburg, began with the Swedish national team in three World Cup and two European Championship finals in part.
Career
Career start in Sweden
Lucic began playing football at Lundby IF. After he had gone through the various youth teams of the club he made his debut in 1991 for the then viertklassig antretenden Club in the men's team. In Division 3 Mellersta Götaland he distinguished himself as offensively strong internal and external defense and scored in his two years for the Gothenburg club ten goals. He made higher class attention to himself and left after the season 1992, in which he had missed with the team as a table runner just move up to the third league, the club towards Allsvenskan.
Lucic remained in his hometown Gothenburg and signed a contract with Västra Frölunda IF. On the side of Hans Blomqvist, Niklas Skoog and Milan Kuzeljevic he ran on in the Premier League for the club from the south west of the city. After the team with the seventh place in the standings achieved the best result to date in their history in the season in 1993, she found herself in the following years in a relegation battle again.
Due to its good performance to Lucic had secured a regular place in the Swedish U-21 team. When, shortly before the opening game of the Swedish senior national master strength January Eriksson had to leave due to a knee injury in the 1994 World Cup, coach Tommy Svensson nominated him despite the lack of A- National team experience as a substitute. During the tournament, he remained without using minutes, contributing to reach the semi-finals against eventual champions Brazil and winning the game for third place with a 4-0 success at best morally in the Bulgarian national team. Nevertheless, he was one of the final round to the Svenska Dagbladet Gold Medal - award winners.
Until his international debut Lucic had to wait until the following summer. On June 4, 1995 Svensson put him in the 0-1 defeat with a goal by Edmundo in the defensive line alongside Pontus Kåmark, Joachim Björklund and Germany Legionnaire Roger Ljung one. As a result, he established himself as a regular force in the defensive line of the Swedish national selection. At club basis, the year was very successful. The team Västra Frölunda IF had been backed up in the previous year in the relegation matches against Umeå FC in the league, they rose at the end of the season in 1995 as Table Last Mitabstieger behind Hammarby IF in the second division from.
Lucic then left the club and moved to Gothenburg within Erstligarivalen IFK Gothenburg. On the side of players like Niclas Alexandersson, Magnus Erling Mark, Mats Lily Berg and Martin Ulander he won with the team in the 1996 with ten points ahead of runners-up Malmo FF the von Rosen's Cup for the Swedish championship title. This took the club to qualifying for UEFA Champions League 1997/98, in part, in which the collection was achieved in the group stage after a 3-0 home win and a 1-1 draw against Glasgow Rangers. There failed the team bringing up the rear behind FC Bayern Munich, Beşiktaş JK and Paris SG, where Lucic in the 1-3 home defeat succeeded against the German representative of the consolation goal for his club. After he had missed in the league with the team as a table runner behind Halmstad BK defending his title, he appeared with her in the qualification for the UEFA Cup in 1998/99. Although the Gothenburg club failed there on away goals at Fenerbahçe SK, he had attracted international attention through appearances in European competition and not least as a player selection of the Swedish national team and moved to Italy.
Years abroad
New employer Lučićs was from January 1999, the Serie A An incoming FC Bologna, already had two compatriots under contract with the with Kennet Andersson and Klas Ingesson. In the back line to Giovanni Bia, Massimo Tarantino and Pierre Wome he came hardly to train and denied by the end of the season 1998/99 eight league games. After he had come in the first half of the following season, only in the 0:4 away defeat at AC Milan for use, he returned in January 2000 to Sweden.
Lucic hired the traditional club AIK, where he was the most expensive signing with a transfer fee of € 7 million Swedish crowns before the three other new entries Andreas Alm, Sharbel Touma and Mattias Thylander. Right away he established himself in the starting line- of clubs from Solna and wore in the 2000 with three goals in 22 games to reach the Intertoto Cup in third place in the Allsvenskan. In the summer he reached with the team to the playoffs the Svenska Cupen that were lost against Örgryte IS. In addition, he took with him the national team that had qualified for the first time again for a major tournament since 1994, participated in the Euro 2000 in Belgium and the Netherlands. In supervised by the coaching duo Tommy Söderberg and Lars Lagerback selection he came in the tournament two appearances, but resigned with the team as a group Last in the preliminary round of.
In summer 2001, Lucic went with AIK again the cup final, this time losing the team against IF Elfsborg in the penalty shootout. After another third place in the Allsvenskan again reported foreign clubs interested in signing the defender. In an international match during the qualification for the 2002 World Cup against the English national team, he was Terry Venables, the coach of Leeds United on. After he was running in the 2002 in 16 games for AIK in the Allsvenskan, he moved following the World Championships tournament in Asia, where he played in all four finals games, the end of August on loan in the Premier League.
In England Lucic played for so far triple champion at the side of Dominic Matteo, Ian Harte, Gary Kelly and during the winter break Real Madrid's Raul Bravo committed in the defensive line. At the start of the season Lucic was largely to the root formation. The season of the short time before being beaten in the Champions League clubs was disappointing, so that Venables was replaced by Peter Reid in March. Under his leadership Lucic could not sit down and moved into second place. By the end of March, he had completed 17 top-flight appearances for the club and scored in the 2:3 Niederlagege against Chelsea on 28 January 2003 his only hit on the island.
At the end of the season Lucic left after the expiry of the loan period the table Fifteenth. He subsequently transferred to the German Bundesliga Bayer 04 Leverkusen, where he signed a two -year contract. In the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup in 1988, he could not establish himself in the starting line- up and remained behind the defense formation around Placente Diego, Juan, Hanno Balitsch and Lúcio mainly substitute. After eleven league games in which he had four times in the starting lineup, he nevertheless was the only Bundesliga Legionnaire in the Swedish squad in the squad of the national team for the European Championship 2004., Where he was in contrast to the club set as starting player, but came to a rib injury in the opening match against Bulgaria only to use one. Following the tournament, his substitute role manifested at Bayer, so he remained until the winter break without use, and at times no longer part of the squad on match days. Therefore, parted in December 2004, the way of Lucic and Bayer 04 Leverkusen.
Return to Sweden
Lucic returned to the Allsvenskan season 2005 back to Sweden. In his hometown of Gothenburg, he signed a contract with Erstligaaufsteiger BK Hacken. On the side of the newly committed Danish midfielder Stig Tøfting he should help the club in the fight to avoid relegation. This was the first year with an eighth place in the following season, however, he came to the club in acute danger of relegation.
However, Lucic was in the 2006 World Cup in Germany as well as in the previous finals tournaments the National team squad at. Olof Mellberg Together with he formed the central defense of the country selection, conceding only a 2-2 draw against England in the group stage goals. As a group, second the selection team met in the second round to Germany and was eliminated after a 0-2 defeat, was referred to the Lucic after a second yellow card in the first half of the field, two goals from Lukas Podolski from the tournament. After he returns from suspension at the next competitive match as part of the qualification for Euro 2008 in a 1-0 away win against the Latvian national team, he played his 86th international game in the 3-1 win over Liechtenstein national team with goals of the two -goal Marcus Allbäck and Markus Rosenberg with a goal from Mario Frick. This was also his last appearance in the National Jersey.
At the end of the season despite Lucic took six scored goal of the season with the team just before the relegation place Östers IF and local rivals Örgryte IS. There, the club failed to IF Brommapojkarna from Stockholm and had to descend into the Superettan. Nevertheless, he decided in February 2007 to extend the contract at relegated. In the subsequent second division season 2007 he still belonged to the permanent employees of the Gothenburg club and ran in 24 of the 30 season games. After he had missed with the club as a table fourth behind IFK Norrkoping, Ljungskile SK and GIF Sundsvall direct resurgence, he decided to change clubs.
In early January IF Elfsborg were on a press conference to announce the commitment Lučićs that a contract signed with the club from Borås with a two-year term plus option on one-year extension. With his new club, he received the back number "15". In the team around players like Stefan Ishizaki, Daniel Mobaeck and Anders Svensson, he established himself at once as a regular player. After he had contributed in the first year in 29 of the 30 Erstligapartien for runners, he ran on in 25 league games in the season 2009. In the following season he was increasingly hampered by injuries, ultimately were eleven inserts to book. Shortly before the end of the season he announced in October 2010 to his retirement from active football end of the season.