Designated future crack of the football planet ten years ago, Alen Halilovic had been recruited by FC Barcelona. His path seemed set on the path to success. But the Croatian got lost on the way.
“I would like to take a step forward. I still have ten years of career ahead of me and now I’m ready for bigger challenges.”, confessed Alen Halilovic last summer. At 25, the Croatian was convinced that he could still break through at the highest level and become the big star that was expected. Indeed, ten years ago now, the midfield exploded in the Dinamo Zagreb side.
Aged 16, he signed his first professional contract there before becoming the youngest player to make a professional match with his club and the youngest scorer in the Croatian league. A few months later, in June 2013, he made his national team debut against Portugal. Precocious, the crack born in 96 quickly aroused the greed of the best clubs. Manchester United, Manchester City and Real Madrid in particular.
Barça recruited him very young
But FC Barcelona overtook everyone in 2014 by having him sign a 5-year contract and signing a check for €2.2 million (excluding bonuses). The idea was to integrate him into Barça B before he could take his first steps in the first team. The beginning of a dream for the native of Dubrovnik. “Arriving at Barcelona is something special. This club has made me dream since I was a child and I am honored to have the chance to play for Barça.he said after signing.
On a cloud, the young teenager, who trained with Messi and the pro group, spent the whole year with the Barcelona reserve. Time to play around thirty games and score 4 goals. He also played 29 minutes with the pros in the King’s Cup on January 15, 2015. His one and only match in the Blaugrana jersey. Indeed, he was loaned to Sporting Gijon the following season to gain playing time in La Liga. Unconvinced by crack, Barça finally sold him in 2016.
A complicated journey
Direction Hamburg for the Croatian, who was then loaned to Las Palmas for a year and a half. Free at the end of his contract with the German team, Halilovic rebounded at AC Milan in the summer of 2018. We then imagined the young player finally launching his career. It was quite the opposite since he chained a loan to Standard de Liège then another to Hereenveen before being freely transferred to Brimingham last year. A club where he played 17 matches (1 goal) in the Championship.
Under contract until the end of the season, the middle could have continued the adventure. But he wanted to take his time as explained in the Croatian press. “I was happy in Birmingham and there were a lot of requests. I decided that I was not going to rush because I already rushed earlier in my career. I decided to take the time and make the right decision. In the last 2 or 3 years, I haven’t done as much as I hoped because of mistakes and injuries. But going to England helped me a lot.”.
Catch up
Courted by English and Spanish teams, but also by clubs based in Dubai and China, he wanted to stay in Europe. And it was finally in Reading (English D2) that he signed this season. After playing 6 matches and scoring 1 goal, he was out for nearly two months with a hamstring injury. He missed 9 games before returning at the end of November. And after 6 matches played, he was on the flank again. Injured in the hamstrings, he was out until the end of February.
In the group to face Blackpool on February 26, he was not retained afterwards, he who was sent with the U23s to find the rhythm. If Halilovic assured that he was ready to play again on social networks, his coach, Paul Ince, is of a completely different opinion. “It will take a while before he comes back”, he confided about the midfielder who has not played an official match since January 8 in the FA Cup (39 minutes). Impatient, Alen Halilovic no longer wants to wait and wants more than ever to make up for lost time!
