Rajko Brežančić

Rajko Brežančić (Serbian Cyrillic: Рајко Брежанчић; born 21 August 1989) is a Serbian retired footballer who playeds as a defender.

Rajko Brežančić
Personal information
Full nameRajko Brežančić
Date of birth (1989-08-21) 21 August 1989 (age 34)
Place of birthVlasenica, SFR Yugoslavia
Height1.76 m (5 ft 9 in)
Position(s)Left-back
Youth career
Radnički Nova Pazova
2002–2007Partizan
Senior career*
YearsTeamApps(Gls)
2007–2010Partizan10(0)
2007–2008Teleoptik (loan)15(0)
2008Bežanija (loan)13(0)
2010Teleoptik (loan)9(0)
2010–2011Metalac Gornji Milanovac7(0)
2011Bežanija (loan)13(0)
2011–2013Bežanija58(2)
2013–2015Čukarički61(2)
2015–2016AZ8(1)
2016–2019Huesca55(0)
2019Málaga0(0)
2019–2022Partizan16(1)
2022–2023Radnički Beograd17(0)
International career
2005–2006Serbia and Montenegro U17[note 1]7(0)
2007Serbia U19[note 1]2(0)
2009Serbia U201(0)
2009–2010Serbia U213(0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 21 April 2023

Club career

After coming through the youth system at Partizan, Brežančić signed his first professional contract with the club on 1 June 2007, penning a five-year deal.[1] He subsequently went on loan to Teleoptik and Bežanija in order to get experience. In January 2009, Brežančić returned to Partizan and made seven league appearances until the end of the 2008–09 season, as the club won the title. He recorded three more during the first part of the 2009–10 season, before moving on loan to Teleoptik again in January 2010.

In the summer of 2010, Brežančić signed with Serbian SuperLiga club Metalac Gornji Milanovac. He would be loaned to Serbian First League side Bežanija in the 2011 winter transfer window. Six months later, Brežančić signed a permanent contract with Bežanija and stayed there for the next two seasons.

In the summer of 2013, Brežančić was transferred to newly promoted SuperLiga club Čukarički. He made 29 league appearances and scored once in the 2013–14 campaign. In the following season, Brežančić again missed only one out of 30 league games and scored one goal, as Čukarički finished in third place. He also helped the team win the 2014–15 Serbian Cup.[2]

On 4 August 2015, Brežančić signed a three-year contract with Dutch club AZ.[3] He made his official debut for the team in a 3–1 away league win over De Graafschap on 12 September 2015, scoring the opener early in the game.

In August 2016, Brežančić was transferred to Spain and joined Segunda División club Huesca.[4] He contributed with 30 appearances during the 2017–18 season, as the club gained promotion to the top flight for the first time ever. On 11 November 2018, Brežančić made his La Liga debut in a 2–1 away loss to Alavés, replacing injured Pablo Insua.

On 31 January 2019, Brežančić terminated his contract with Huesca and signed an 18-month deal with Málaga.[5][6]

On 21 June 2019, Brežančić signed a three-year contract with Partizan, returning to the club after nine years.[7] He made 16 appearances across all competitions in his first season back at the club, scoring a goal in a 2–2 away league draw against Napredak Kruševac. After the appointment of Aleksandar Stanojević as manager in September 2020, Brežančić appeared in only two official matches over his last two seasons.

International career

Brežančić represented Serbia and Montenegro at the 2006 UEFA Under-17 Championship. He also played for Serbia U19 in the team's unsuccessful qualifying campaign for the 2008 UEFA European Under-19 Championship. In early 2009, Brežančić participated with the under-20 team at the Qatar International Friendship Tournament.[8][9]

Brežančić made his debut for the Serbia national under-21 team in a 4–1 friendly win over the Macedonia U21s on 7 June 2009.[10] He was subsequently a member of the team at the 2009 UEFA Under-21 Championship, but failed to make any appearance at the tournament. Brežančić gained his second cap for the under-21 side in a 1–0 home friendly win over Israel U21 on 11 August 2009. His third and last appearance for the team came in another friendly, a 1–3 loss away to Romania U21 on 26 May 2010.[11]

Career statistics

As of 4 October 2022[12]
ClubSeasonLeagueCupContinentalOtherTotal
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Partizan2007–08Serbian SuperLiga00000000
2008–09Serbian SuperLiga70100080
2009–10Serbian SuperLiga30202070
Total1003020150
Teleoptik (loan)2007–08Serbian League Belgrade15010160
Bežanija (loan)2008–09Serbian First League13010140
Teleoptik (loan)2009–10Serbian First League900090
Metalac Gornji Milanovac2010–11Serbian SuperLiga7070
Bežanija (loan)2010–11Serbian First League13000130
Bežanija2011–12Serbian First League30200302
2012–13Serbian First League28010290
Total58210592
Čukarički2013–14Serbian SuperLiga29110301
2014–15Serbian SuperLiga2914040371
2015–16Serbian SuperLiga30004070
Total6125080742
AZ2015–16Eredivisie812020121
Huesca2016–17Segunda División240202[a]0280
2017–18Segunda División30000300
2018–19La Liga102030
Total5504020610
Málaga2018–19Segunda División00000000
Partizan2019–20Serbian SuperLiga1211030161
2020–21Serbian SuperLiga40000040
2021–22Serbian SuperLiga00000000
Total1611030201
Career total2656180150203006

Honours

Partizan

Čukarički

Individual

Notes

References