Darko KovaÃÂeviÃÂ (; born 18 November 1973) is a Serbian former professional footballer who played as a forward.
KovaÃÂeviÃÂ began his career in his native country with Proleter Zrenjanin and subsequently played for Red Star Belgrade, with whom he won a Yugoslav League title and two Yugoslav Cups. His performances earned him a move to Premier League side Sheffield Wednesday, although his time in England was less successful. He is mainly known for his spells at Real Sociedad, where his offensive partnership with Nihat Kahveci was one of the best in Spain. KovaÃÂeviÃÂ also had positive spells with Italian club Juventus and Greek side Olympiacos.
Internationally, KovaÃÂeviÃÂ represented Yugoslavia at the 1998 FIFA World Cup and at the UEFA Euro 2000.
Beginning his career with his hometown club RadniÃÂki Kovin, he was soon spotted by Zrenjanin-based top league club Proleter Zrenjanin. Spending two seasons with the club, KovaÃÂeviÃÂ managed over a goal every other game, was signed by Serbian football club Red Star Belgrade. KovaÃÂeviÃÂ won a Yugoslav League title and two Yugoslav Cups, earning a call-up to the Yugoslavia national team.
KovaÃÂeviàwas then signed by Premier League club Sheffield Wednesday in December 1995, valued at ã2.5m in a joint ã4.5m transfer also involving Dejan Stefanovic. KovaÃÂeviÃÂ's notable goals for The Owls were two against Bolton Wanderers at Hillsborough and an important finish versus Liverpool, also at home.
KovaÃÂeviàplayed the remainder of the 1995/96 season, but his failure to adapt and settle into the UK way of life prompted a bid of ã2.5m from Real Sociedad to be accepted. A sell-on clause in the transfer agreement ensured Sheffield Wednesday received a further ã2.0m (taking the transfer to ã4.5m) when Real Sociedad later sold him to Juventus.
KovaÃÂeviàmoved to La Liga side Real Sociedad in 1996. Larger clubs soon came calling, with Italian giants Juventus acquiring the big Serbian in the summer of 1999 for 33 billion lire (ã12 million).
At Juventus, KovaÃÂeviàfound goals in both the Serie A and competitions such as the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Cup becoming their leading European goalscorer, and the top-scorer of the UEFA Cup during the 1999âÂÂ2000 season, with 10 goals; despite facing competition from the club's starting attacking partnership of Filippo Inzaghi and Alessandro Del Piero, KovaÃÂeviàmade a total of 44 appearances in all competitions in his first season with the club (27 in Serie A, 3 in the Coppa Italia, and 11 in European competitions), scoring 21 goals in all competitions (eight in Serie A, two in the Coppa Italia, and 11 in European competitions, one of which came in Juventus's victorious UEFA Intertoto Cup campaign, which enabled them to qualify for the UEFA Cup).
The following season, due to the arrival of French striker David Trezeguet, KovaÃÂeviàfound less space in the squad under manager Carlo Ancelotti, making 27 appearances in all competitions (20 of which came in Serie A), mostly from the bench, and scoring only six goals (five in Serie A). The Juventus management felt KovaÃÂeviàwas underachieving, and soon both parties were looking for a move out of Italy, with clubs such as Rangers willing to offer ã12m for his transfer. In 2001, KovaÃÂeviàspent a brief time with Lazio (as part-swap deal with Marcelo Salas), making only seven appearances, before moving back to Spain in the middle of the season.
In 2001, KovaÃÂeviàreturned to Real Sociedad, where he spent six more seasons at the club, netting 51 goals in his second spell with Sociedad. The 2006âÂÂ07 season would be KovaÃÂeviÃÂ's last season with the Spanish side, ending in the club's relegation. Alongside Jesús MarÃÂa Satrústegui, KovaÃÂeviàis Real Sociedad's all-time top goalscorer in European club competitions, with 10 goals.
KovaÃÂeviàscored 107 goals in his stages with Real Sociedad in nine seasons, with a total average of between eleven and twelve goals per season. They are only surpassed by Jesús MarÃÂa Satrústegui and López Ufarte in the txuri-urdin team. He is the most efficient foreigner that Real Sociedad has had in all its years of existence.
In 2007, KovaÃÂeviÃÂ signed with Greek champions Olympiacos. In early 2009, he was diagnosed with a blocked artery; he successfully underwent heart surgery to improve the flow of blood to his heart. His doctors advised to retire from football, and KovaÃÂeviÃÂ officially retired in May 2009, playing a final friendly match for Olympiacos to celebrate the winning of the Greek domestic double. With Olympiacos, KovaÃÂeviÃÂ won two Greek Super League titles, two Greek Cups and a Greek Super Cup.
On the national level, KovaÃÂeviÃÂ made his debut for Serbia and Montenegro in a December 1994 friendly match away against Argentina, coming on as a 74th-minute substitute for Predrag MijatoviÃÂ, and earned a total of 59 caps, scoring 10 goals. He would go on to compete in both UEFA Euro 2000 and the 1998 FIFA World Cup. His final international was a March 2004 friendly against Norway.
A quick and powerful striker, with good movement, technique, and an eye for goal, KovaÃÂeviÃÂ's key attributes were his strength and aerial ability.
After his retirement, KovaÃÂeviÃÂ stated that he may take another role at his former team Olympiacos. KovaÃÂeviÃÂ and his family subsequently returned to Spain. However, KovaÃÂeviÃÂ returned to Greece, as he loved the country and worked for several months as a columnist. In June 2010, the new president of Olympiacos, Evangelos Marinakis, hired KovaÃÂeviÃÂ as a chief scout; he eventually become the sports director for the club. He remained in that position until 2018. He is the current sports director of the Serbian Football Association.
KovaÃÂeviÃÂ has three children, Mia, Darko (Jr.) and Stella.
Red Star Belgrade
Juventus
Olympiacos
Individual