Ajdin Hrustic (born 5 July 1996) is an Australian professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder for Bundesliga club Eintracht Frankfurt and the Australia national team.
 Hrustic with Eintracht Frankfurt in 2022 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Ajdin Hrustic[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 5 July 1996[1] | ||
| Place of birth | Dandenong, Victoria, Australia | ||
| Height | 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in)[1] | ||
| Position(s) | Attacking midfielder | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Eintracht Frankfurt | ||
| Number | 7 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2004–2007 | Heatherton United | ||
| 2007–2009 | South Melbourne | ||
| 2009–2010 | Sandringham | ||
| 2010–2011 | Nottingham Forest | ||
| 2011–2012 | Austria Wien | ||
| 2012–2014 | Schalke 04 | ||
| 2014–2016 | Groningen | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2016–2018 | Jong FC Groningen | 31 | (7) |
| 2016–2020 | Groningen | 67 | (5) |
| 2020– | Eintracht Frankfurt | 33 | (3) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2018 | Australia U23 | 4 | (0) |
| 2017– | Australia | 19 | (3) |
|
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 8 May 2022 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 13 June 2022 | |||
Early life
Born in Dandenong, Victoria[2] to Bosnian parents, Hrustic played youth football with South Melbourne and Schalke 04 before moving to FC Groningen, where he made his professional debut in 2017. In 2020 he signed for the German football club Eintracht Frankfurt.
Club career
Groningen
In June 2015, Hrustic signed a three-year contract with FC Groningen, his first senior professional deal.[3] He made his competitive debut for the club as a substitute in a draw against AZ Alkmaar on 2 April 2017.[4] His first goal for the club came two weeks later, with a shot from long range to seal a 5–1 win over PEC Zwolle.[5]
Eintracht Frankfurt
On 28 September 2020, Hrustic signed a contract with German Bundesliga side Eintracht Frankfurt that will keep him at the club through to 2023, and has been given the No. 7 jersey.[6][7] He made his debut on 19 December 2020 in a 2–0 victory against FC Augsburg, coming off the bench for Aymen Barkok.
Hrustic scored his first goal for Eintracht Frankfurt against Mainz 05, on the 9 May 2021, with an improvised finish where he managed to chip the ball over goalkeeper Robin Zentner.[8]
On 18 May 2022, Hrustic became the first Australian player to win the UEFA Europa League in the history, after his club triumphed over Scottish opponent Rangers on penalty shootout 5–4 of the 2022 final, which he himself converted the second in his team's victory.[9] He also became the first Australian since Harry Kewell to win a major UEFA competition since 2005.[10]
International career
Due to his Bosnian and Romanian heritage, Hrustic was eligible to represent Australia, Romania or Bosnia and Herzegovina internationally. He was contacted by the Football Association of Bosnia and Herzegovina in May 2017, but ultimately rejected the offer and expressed his wish to represent the Socceroos.[11]
Hrustic was called up to an Australian under-23 development squad in March 2017.[12] This was the first time Hrustic had been involved with Football Federation Australia in several years, having previously not been involved with the Australian setup since moving to Europe.[3]
On 22 May 2017, Hrustic was named in the Australian national side's 30-man preliminary squad for the month of June, including the 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup, a friendly against Brazil and a 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifier against Saudi Arabia.[13] He was retained in the final 23-man squad.[14] He made his Socceroos debut on the losing side of a 4–0 friendly against Brazil, coming on as a 57th-minute substitute.[15]
On 4 June 2021, Hrustic scored his first goal for Australia against Kuwait in a 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifying match, bending the ball off the inside of the post and in from a 30-odd-metre free-kick. His second goal also came off a free-kick bouncing off the crossbar to go in underneath the goal against Japan in 2021.
Personal life
Hrustic was born in Dandenong, Australia to a Bosnian father and a Romanian mother.[16][4]
Career statistics
Club
- As of match played 8 May 2022[17]
| Club | Season | League | National Cup | Europe | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Groningen | 2016–17 | Eredivisie | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 2 | 0 | 7 | 1 | |
| 2017–18 | 18 | 1 | 1 | 1 | — | 0 | 0 | 19 | 2 | |||
| 2018–19 | 18 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 2 | 0 | 21 | 0 | |||
| 2019–20 | 25 | 3 | 2 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 27 | 3 | |||
| 2020–21 | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 1 | 0 | |||||
| Total | 67 | 5 | 4 | 1 | — | 4 | 0 | 75 | 6 | |||
| Eintracht Frankfurt | 2020–21 | Bundesliga | 11 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 12 | 1 | ||
| 2021–22 | 22 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | — | 26 | 2 | |||
| Total | 33 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 | — | 38 | 3 | |||
| Career total | 100 | 8 | 5 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 113 | 9 | ||
International
- As of match played 13 June 2022[18]
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Australia | 2017 | 1 | 0 |
| 2018 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2019 | 2 | 0 | |
| 2021 | 10 | 2 | |
| 2022 | 6 | 1 | |
| Total | 19 | 3 | |
- Scores and results list Australia's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Hrustic goal.
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 3 June 2021 | Jaber Al-Ahmad International Stadium, Kuwait City, Kuwait | 3–0 | 3–0 | 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification | |
| 2 | 12 October 2021 | Saitama Stadium 2002, Saitama, Japan | 1–1 | 1–2 | 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification | |
| 3 | 7 June 2022 | Ahmed bin Ali Stadium, Al-Rayyan, Qatar | 2–1 | 2–1 | 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification |
Honours
Eintracht Frankfurt
See also
References
- ^ a b c "FIFA Confederations Cup Russia 2017: List of Players: Australia" (PDF). FIFA. 2 July 2017. p. 1. Archived from the original (PDF) on 22 December 2017.
- ^ "Ange Postecoglou has had Socceroos bolter Ajdin Hrustic on radar for almost a decade". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 22 May 2017. Retrieved 11 May 2021.
- ^ a b Kulas, Damir (29 June 2015). "Former South Melbourne youth Hrustic pens senior deal with FC Groningen". CornerFlag.com.au. Retrieved 10 April 2017.
- ^ a b Davutovic, David (3 April 2017). "Young Aussie striker Ajdin Hrustic making waves in Europe with new Dutch club Groningen". Herald Sun. Retrieved 10 April 2017.
- ^ Davutovic, David (17 April 2017). "Aussie youngster Ajdin Hrustic opens professional account with tidy goal in Dutch league". Herald Sun. Retrieved 21 April 2017.
- ^ "Socceroo Hrustic makes Frankfurt move". The World Game. 28 September 2020. Retrieved 29 September 2020.
- ^ Elliott, Binks (29 September 2020). "Bundesliga's latest Aussie star to wear No. 7 shirt". FTBL.com.au. Retrieved 29 September 2020.
- ^ Thomas, Josh (9 May 2021). "Socceroo Ajdin Hrustic scores stunning first Bundesliga goal for Eintracht Frankfurt". The Sporting News. Archived from the original on 9 May 2021. Retrieved 23 December 2021.
- ^ "Socceroo wins Europa League in shootout thriller". 18 May 2022.
- ^ "Socceroo Hrustic steps up on Europe's big stage".
- ^ Davutovic, David (22 May 2017). "Ajdin Hrustic tells why he chose the Socceroos over World Cup-bound Bosnia". Herald Sun. Retrieved 13 June 2017.
- ^ Davutovic, David (15 March 2017). "Deni Juric, the younger brother of Socceroos striker Tomi, selected for Olyroos camp in Spain". Herald Sun. Retrieved 13 June 2017.
- ^ "Uncapped Hrustic named in Socceroos squad". FourFourTwo. 22 May 2017.
- ^ "Socceroos squad named by Ange Postecoglou for vital June clashes, Ajdin Hrustic called up". ABC News. 31 May 2017. Retrieved 12 June 2017.
- ^ Kemp, Emma (13 June 2017). "Socceroos go down 4–0 to classy Brazil". Nine's Wide World of Sports. Retrieved 13 June 2017.
- ^ Kulas, Damir (2 April 2017). "Former Heatherton, South junior Hrustic makes Eredivisie debut". CornerFlag.com.au. Retrieved 10 April 2017.
- ^ "Ajdin Hrustić » Club matches". WorldFootball.net. Retrieved 21 September 2020.
- ^ a b "Ajdin Hrustic". National Football Teams. Benjamin Strack-Zimmermann. Retrieved 29 March 2022.
External links
- Ajdin Hrustic at WorldFootball.net
- Ajdin Hrustic at Soccerway
- Ajdin Hrustic – UEFA competition record (archive)