Josip IliÃÂiÃÂ (; born 29 January 1988) is a Slovenian professional footballer who plays for Slovenian PrvaLiga club Koper. Primarily an attacking midfielder, he can also play as a winger or forward.
IliÃÂiÃÂ began his professional career with Slovenian club Bonifika, later also playing for Interblock and Maribor in his home country, before moving to Italy in 2010 to join Palermo. In 2013, he signed for Fiorentina, and subsequently for Atalanta in 2017. After spending twelve years in Italy, IliÃÂiÃÂ returned to Maribor in 2022.
IliÃÂiàenjoyed his best time as a professional footballer with Atalanta, scoring eleven or more league goals in each of his first three years at the club, and was awarded a spot in the 2018âÂÂ19 Serie A Team of the Year. He became the first player to ever score four away goals in a UEFA Champions League knockout match, doing so against Valencia in 2020, which also made him the oldest player to score four goals at this stage of the competition.
IliÃÂiÃÂ made his senior debut for the Slovenia national team in August 2010, in a friendly match against Australia. Three years after his debut, in September 2013, he scored his first international goal against Cyprus. Overall, he earned 86 caps for Slovenia, and represented the side at UEFA Euro 2024.
Born in Prijedor, SR Bosnia and Herzegovina, IliÃÂiàstarted his career playing in the youth teams of Triglav Kranj and later Britof. At the age of 19, he moved to SC Bonifika, where he played for a season in the Slovenian Second League. It was there when his talent was spotted by Interblock, where he stayed for two seasons playing in the Slovenian top division. At the end of the 2009âÂÂ10 season, Interblock was relegated to the Second League after losing the relegation play-offs against Triglav. Despite being one of the best players of his club and one of the top prospects of Slovenian football IliÃÂiàfinished the season as a reserve.
Aged 21, IliÃÂiàcontemplated an idea of finishing his playing career altogether. He wanted to return to futsal, his passion, and to find a job, however, a few weeks later he received a phone call from Zlatko ZahoviÃÂ, the director of football at Maribor, who proposed he should sign for the club. In a life changing decision, IliÃÂiàtook the offer immediately and moved to Slovenia's second largest city, where he made a big impact from the start as he scored twice in the UEFA Europa League qualifying match against Scottish Premier League club Hibernian in July 2010. He then scored again, in the return leg of the UEFA Europa League playoff round against Sicilian Palermo, which ended in a 3âÂÂ2 win for the Slovenian side. On the very next day, it was confirmed that Palermo had acquired IliÃÂiàand teammate Armin BaÃÂinoviàfrom Maribor for a permanent move. The transfer fee paid by Palermo was undisclosed, but it was reported to be around â¬2.3 million.
IliÃÂiÃÂ debuted for Palermo in the Serie A on 12 September 2010 against Brescia, replacing Giulio Migliaccio in the second half. In the next round, he was already a starter and scored his first goal for Palermo at home against reigning champions Internazionale. Only four days later, on 23 September 2010, he scored his second goal of the season, this time against another Italian giant Juventus. His good performances against top Italian teams continued when he scored a goal against Fiorentina on 3 October 2010, and against Roma on 28 November 2010.
On 20 June 2011, IliÃÂiàsigned a new five-year contract. He changed his shirt number to 27 on 16 August 2011. However, in the 2011âÂÂ12 season IliÃÂiàstruggled to make an impact mostly due to Javier Pastore â IliÃÂiÃÂ's attacking midfield partner â being sold in a record bid to Paris Saint-Germain, and IliÃÂiàprovided only two goals as a result. Despite that, he was confirmed for the 2012âÂÂ13 season as well, being paired with new signing Franco Brienza in a 3âÂÂ4âÂÂ2âÂÂ1 formation by new head coach Gian Piero Gasperini. IliÃÂiÃÂ's top moment of the season came on 24 November 2012, when he scored a winning brace in a 3âÂÂ1 home win for a struggling Palermo side against Catania in the Sicilian derby.
On 23 July 2013, Palermo officially confirmed the sale of IliÃÂiàto Serie A rivals Fiorentina on their website. Later, the deal was officially announced by Fiorentina on their website. The transfer fee was undisclosed, reported to be in the sum of â¬9 million including add-ons. He scored six goals in his first season at Fiorentina. The 2014âÂÂ15 season was more successful for him, finishing as the club's top scorer with ten goals in all competitions, along with Mario Gómez.
On 5 July 2017, Atalanta signed IliÃÂiàfrom Fiorentina for a reported fee of â¬5.5 million after Fiorentina declined to offer him a contract extension. IliÃÂiàmade an immediate impact in his first year at Atalanta, scoring 11 times in a seventh-place finish.
The following year, he scored twelve times in a historic season as Atalanta finished third in the Serie A, earning them a spot in the 2019âÂÂ20 UEFA Champions League group stage for the first time. He was also awarded a spot in the 2018âÂÂ19 Serie A Team of the Year along with teammate Duván Zapata.
On 25 January 2020, IliÃÂiàscored a hat-trick, which included a free kick goal from the halfway line, in a 7âÂÂ0 victory over Torino. Two months later, on 10 March, he scored all four of Atalanta's goals in the 2019âÂÂ20 UEFA Champions league round of 16 match against Valencia, to secure a 4âÂÂ3 win and help Atalanta progress to the quarter-finals. He became the first player in the history of the competition to score four goals in an away tie of a knockout stage match, and the oldest player at the time to score four goals in a single match in the competition at the age of 32 years and 41 days, surpassing Zlatan IbrahimoviÃÂ. IliÃÂiàalso received UEFA's Player of the Week award after the Champions League round of 16 matches. Later in 2020, IliÃÂiàwas nominated for the UEFA 50 Men's Team of the Year.
After spending five years with the club, his contract with Atalanta was terminated by mutual consent on 31 August 2022. Overall, IliÃÂiÃÂ made 173 appearances for Atalanta and scored 60 goals.
After twelve years of playing in Serie A, IliÃÂiàreturned to Slovenia and joined his former club Maribor on 5 October 2022, signing a contract until June 2025. He made his second debut for Maribor a month later, on 6 November, in a 5âÂÂ1 home win over Mura, where he also scored Maribor's fifth goal from the penalty spot.
In June 2025, after his contract with Maribor expired, IliÃÂiÃÂ signed for fellow Slovenian top division side Koper.
IliÃÂiÃÂ made his international debut with the Slovenia under-20 team in October 2008 in a match against Croatia. Overall, he made four appearances for the team, all of them in the Mirop Cup. He also played for the under-21 team between 2009 and 2010, including two appearances in the qualifiers for the 2011 UEFA European Under-21 Championship.
IliÃÂiÃÂ missed out on the 2010 FIFA World Cup but made his debut for the senior team in a friendly match against Australia on 11 August 2010. He scored his first international goal on 10 September 2013 against Cyprus.
In May 2024, IliÃÂiÃÂ was included in the preliminary squad for UEFA Euro 2024, ending his two-and-a-half years absence from the national team. The following month, he was selected in the final 26-man squad for the tournament. IliÃÂiÃÂ made his European Championship debut on 25 June, coming off the bench in the last group stage match against England, which ended in a goalless draw as Slovenia advanced from the group stage for the first time.
A predominantly left-footed player, IliÃÂiàis capable of playing as a second striker, as a wide midfielder or winger on either flank, or even in a central role as an attacking midfielder in a 4âÂÂ2âÂÂ3âÂÂ1 or 4âÂÂ3âÂÂ1âÂÂ2 system. His former Palermo coach, Bortolo Mutti, believed that the 4âÂÂ3âÂÂ3 system was the perfect formation for his characteristics, as it allowed him to be deployed on the right flank, a position from which he could cut inside and strike on goal with his stronger left foot. He has also been deployed as a central midfielder on occasion, although this is not his preferred position. During his time at Atalanta, he has often been used in a free advanced role in a fluid 3âÂÂ4âÂÂ3 formation under manager Gian Piero Gasperini.
A powerful and accurate striker of the ball with either foot, in particular from distance, he is highly regarded for his touch on the ball, technique, dribbling skills, and creativity, as well as his physical strength, leadership, strong personality, and instinctive play on the pitch; he is also known for his use of feints, in particular the back-heel move, and is an accurate set piece and penalty taker. While he is known for his composure, ability to find space, and eye for goal, he is also an excellent playmaker and assist provider, courtesy of his vision, crossing, and precise passing ability, in particular with the outside of his boot, which enables him to contribute to his team's offensive plays effectively by creating goalscoring chances for himself or his teammates. Moreover, he is a hard-working player, who possesses quick feet, poise, and elegance in possession, despite his tall stature, athletic build, and lack of significant pace or acceleration. Despite his talent and ability, he has been accused by certain pundits of being inconsistent at times, and has also drawn criticism over his difficult character, defensive positioning, and tactical awareness, in particular in his youth, although he was able to improve on the mental aspect of his game as he matured and his career progressed, which saw him reach his prime and maintain a consistent level of performance into his early 30s. His playing style and speed of thought has earned him the nickname Il Professore ("The Professor") in the Italian media.
Josip IliÃÂiÃÂ was born in Prijedor, present-day Bosnia and Herzegovina and moved to Kranj, present-day Slovenia when he was only one year old, together with his mother Ana and brother Igor, after his father was killed. IliÃÂiÃÂ was once asked in an interview if he would be interested in playing for Croatia national team, due to his Croatian ancestry, but he replied that he would have never accepted the offer due to the fact he had lived in Slovenia his whole life. Later, he made a similar comment regarding Bosnia and Herzegovina, the country where he was born.
In 2020 he suffered from depression due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In early 2022, IliÃÂiÃÂ suffered again from mental health problems and was absent from the Atalanta squad.
Interblock
Maribor
Palermo
Fiorentina
Atalanta
Individual