Biography
Who is Mato Neretljak?
Football playing career
Mato Neretljak began his professional path in 1999 while playing for HNK Orašje. He moved to NK Osijek in 2000 and remained with that club until 2002. Following this, he joined Hajduk Split for three seasons before moving to the South Korean side Suwon Samsung Bluewings in 2005. He later played for the Japanese club Omiya Ardija in 2009.
In May 2012, he signed a two-year contract with HNK Rijeka. He eventually announced his retirement from professional playing in 2014. During his time as a player, he earned titles with Hajduk Split, Suwon Bluewings, and won a Herzeg-Bosnia Cup with Orašje. He also achieved K League 1 Best XI honors in 2006, 2007, and 2008.
International career highlights
Mato earned eight caps for the Croatia U21 national team during 2000 and 2001. He made his first full appearance for the senior Croatian national team in a friendly against Greece on 25 April 2001. This match took place in Varaždin, where he entered the game as a substitute for Boris Živković in the 88th minute.
His first competitive match for Croatia occurred on 15 November 2003 against Slovenia during the UEFA Euro 2004 qualifying play-offs. He played the full 90 minutes in that 1-1 draw in Zagreb. On 18 February 2004, he scored his single international goal for Croatia during a 2-1 loss to Germany in Split. He was a member of the squad for the UEFA Euro 2004 tournament in Portugal.
Managerial career path
After retiring, he started managing HNK Orašje in 2015. He led the team until the end of the 2015–16 season, where they finished in third place. On 14 November 2016, he took over as manager of NK Metalleghe-BSI but left the club on 1 June 2017. Shortly after, he returned to manage Orašje again for a season where they reached fifth place.
In September 2018, he became the manager for GOŠK Gabela. His first match with the club saw a 1-2 victory against Željezničar Sarajevo, secured by a late penalty from Mirsad Ramić. He departed GOŠK in March 2019. He later held a third stint at Orašje and served as an assistant manager for the Croatia national under-20 team.
Birthday and age
Mato Neretljak was born on June 3, 1979, which makes Mato 47 years old today. That birthday falls under the Gemini sign. Mato shares the date with 31 other famous people.
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