Adrian_Segecic

Adrian Segecic

Adrian Segecic

Australian soccer player


Adrian Segecic (born 1 June 2004) is an Australian professional soccer player who plays as a midfielder for Dutch Eerste Divisie club Dordrecht on loan from Sydney FC. [1] Segecic spent most of his youth years with Lidcombe Waratah and Parramatta FC before joining Sydney FC in October 2016. He has represented Australia at youth level since 2019.

Quick Facts Personal information, Date of birth ...

Early life

Born in Westmead and raised in Lidcombe, Adrian Segecic developed a passion for football from a young age, idolising Argentine footballer Lionel Messi who he bases his playing style from.[2] Segecic received his education at Trinity Catholic College, a prominent educational institution located in New South Wales (NSW). His father played a significant role when Adrian played football, watching every game he played and providing help and feedback after each game to aid his development.[2] Segecic is of Croatian descent, through his grandparents who originated from the country.[3]

He trialed for multiple clubs in Europe with the likes of Liverpool, Manchester City, Leeds, Chelsea, Wolves, Ajax, Dinamo Zagreb and Rangers.[4] During his trial with Rangers, a leaked photo showed him walking onto the pitch at Ibrox Stadium while being announced on the big screen.[5] Many fans speculated that he was a new signing, even though the club did not make an official announcement.[6][7][8]

Club career

Sydney FC

After winning the MVP award at a football camp, Segecic made a strong impression on Sydney FC, who subsequently invited him to join the academy squad.[2] In October 2016, he accepted and was officially announced as part of the squad list on 29 January 2016.[9][10] In January 2020, He featured briefly for Sydney FC Youth in the final round of the A-League Youth against Canberra United.[11] He was called up again in August after turning 16 a month before, making his NPL NSW debut against North Shore Mariners.[10][12]

Segecic earned his first call-up to the A-League squad in the Finals series semi final against Adelaide United.[13][14] He was on the bench in the Grand Final against Melbourne City.[15] By the end of the 2020–21 campaign, Segecic won the club's Rising Star Award.[16] On 26 December 2021, Segecic made his professional league debut against Macarthur FC, coming off the bench in the 76th minute in a 3–0 away win.[17][18] He made his AFC Champions League debut in a play-off match against Kaya.[19][20] On 7 April 2022, Sydney FC announced Segecic among the ten youth players registered for the AFC Champions League ahead of the group stage.[21][22] After featuring in a number of games at the age of 17, on 9 May 2022, he was offered his first professional contract that was set to expire in 2025.[23]

Segecic made his first start for Sydney FC in a match against Central Coast Mariners in the Round of 32 of the Australia Cup.[24] In this match, he contributed an assist to Adam Le Fondre for the team's third goal, helping them secure a 3–3 draw and a win in the penalty shoot-out.[25] His performance from last match earnt him a starting place in the next round against Bentleigh Greens, scoring his first senior goal for the club in a 2–1 win by full time.[26][27] He would score again against Oakleigh Cannons, but only a consolation goal as his side lost in a 2–1 upset and getting knocked out of the competition.[28][29][30] Segecic made his Big Blue debut in the opening round of the 2022–23 A-League season playing in front of 21,840 fans as his side lost 3–2 at home.[31][32] On 29 October, Segecic scored his first league goal, being on the receiving end of a cross by Jaiden Kucharski to make it 3–1 against Macarthur.[33] The final score was 3–2 at Campbeltown.[34][35] After an impressive display against Newcastle Jets, Segecic assisted a goal to contribute a 2–0 victory and received Player of the match.[36][37]

Loan to Dordrecht

On 30 August 2023, Segecic joined Dutch club Dordrecht on loan with an option to buy.[38]

International career

Youth

In July 2019, Segecic received his first call-up to the Australia U15 for the 2019 AFF U-15 Championship hosted in Thailand.[39] He would feature in all group matches, scoring a goal in a 3–0 win against Laos.[40]

In September 2022, Segecic was called up to the Australia U20 for the U-20 Costa Cálida Supercup in Spain.[41] He would make his debut in a 3–0 loss against England.[42] Segecic would remain with Australia squad, alongside teammate Jake Girdwood-Reich, to play in the 2023 AFC U-20 Asian Cup in hopes of qualifying to the U-20 World Cup.[43][44] On 4 March 2023, he scored two goals, one being a free-kick, in a 3–2 victory against Iran in their second match of the tournament.[45] Australia progressed to the quarter-finals of the AFC Championship but were knocked out by Uzbekistan in a penalty shoot-out.[46] After the shoout-out led 5–4, Segecic missed the deciding penalty, leading to his team missing out on a place in the U-20 World Cup.[47]

Career statistics

As of 14 May 2023[1]
More information Club, Season ...
  1. 4 appearances in A-League Men
  2. 16 appearances in A-League Men and 1 appearance in A-League Men Finals
  3. 2 appearances in AFC Champions League
  4. Appearance in Sydney Super Cup

References

  1. Adrian Segecic at Soccerway
  2. Frostick, Nancy (21 December 2022). "Adrian Segecic, My Football Journey: 'I love watching Messi ... a lot of people think I play like him'". The Athletic. Archived from the original on 22 December 2022.
  3. Lulham, Amanda (9 December 2019). "Sydney FC young gun Adrian Segecic a world traveller as he hones his football skills". The Daily Telegraph. Parramatta Advertiser. Archived from the original on 27 December 2022.
  4. Radcliffe, Jon (17 September 2020). "Glasgow Rangers: Gers prepare to unveil Adrian Segecic". FootballFanCast.
  5. "U13". Sydney FC. KEEPUP. 29 January 2016.
  6. "Our Academy Success Stories". Sydney FC. KEEPUP. 19 October 2020.
  7. "Young Sky Blues Finish Season In Emphatic Style". Sydney FC. KEEPUP. 26 January 2020.
  8. "Ins & Outs: A-League Semi-Final". Sydney FC. KEEPUP. 18 June 2021.
  9. Petrov, Petar (16 September 2021). "Who will be your club's breakout star of the 2021/22 A-League season?". The Inner Sanctum.
  10. "Players Of The Year 20-21 Awards Revealed". Sydney FC. KEEPUP. 12 August 2021.
  11. "Macarthur FC vs Sydney FC. Round 6, 2021-22". Ultimate A-League. 26 December 2021.
  12. "Match report: Sydney FC vs Kaya FC–Iloilo - 09/03/22". Sydney FC Unofficial (SFCU). 8 March 2022.
  13. "Sydney FC announce Champions League Squad". MA Financial Group. 7 April 2022.
  14. Shilovsky, David (3 August 2022). "What is par for Sydney FC in 2022-23?". The Roar.
  15. "Bentleigh Greens v Sydney FC". Australia Cup. 4 August 2022.
  16. "Oakleigh Cannons v Sydney FC". Australia Cup. 18 August 2022.
  17. "Sydney vs Melbourne Victory". KEEPUP. 8 October 2022.
  18. "Flicker of former glory as A-League Men's returns". Code Sports. 10 October 2022. Archived from the original on 14 May 2023.
  19. "Macarthur vs Sydney". KEEPUP. 29 October 2022.
  20. Gibson, Timothy (30 October 2022). "Sydney serve Macarthur their first defeat of the season". The Football Sack.
  21. "Sydney vs Newcastle Jets". KEEPUP. 29 April 2023.
  22. "FC Dordrecht versterkt zich met Adrian Segecic" [FC Dordrecht strengthens itself with Adrian Segecic] (in Dutch). Dordrecht. 30 August 2023. Retrieved 30 August 2023.


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