Veldin Hodža (born 15 October 2002) is a Croatian professional footballer who plays as a defensive midfielder or an attacking midfielder for Russian Premier League club Rubin Kazan.[1]
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | 15 October 2002 | ||
| Place of birth | Rijeka, Croatia | ||
| Height | 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in) | ||
| Position(s) |
Defensive midfielder/ Attacking midfielder | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Rubin Kazan | ||
| Number | 22 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2008–2021 | Rijeka | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2020–2021 | Rijeka | 0 | (0) |
| 2021 | → Orijent 1919 (loan) | 30 | (1) |
| 2022 | Hrvatski Dragovoljac | 16 | (0) |
| 2022–2024 | Rijeka | 70 | (8) |
| 2024– | Rubin Kazan | 7 | (2) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2018 | Croatia U17 | 6 | (0) |
| 2019 | Croatia U18 | 2 | (0) |
| 2021 | Croatia U19 | 1 | (0) |
| 2022– | Croatia U21 | 19 | (3) |
|
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 2 November 2024 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 11 October 2024 | |||
Club career
editOn 7 October 2020, Hodža made his senior competitive debut against Dilj in Croatian Football Cup first round. He scored a goal in the 69th minute and Rijeka won 6-0.[2] On 26 November 2020, Hodža made his first appearance in a UEFA competition, coming in as a substitute in the 87th minute for Gnezda Čerin in their Europa League group stage match against Napoli.[3] He then joined Orijent on loan in the winter transfer window.[4] He was taken off loan to Orijent and moved back to Rijeka, where his contract was formally terminated, and he joined the newly promoted club Hrvatski Dragovoljac to help with their relegation battle.[5][6]
On 20 June 2022, Hodža rejoined his former club Rijeka, signing a contract until summer 2024.[7]
On 12 September 2024, Hodža signed a four-year contract with Rubin Kazan in Russia.[8]
International career
editHodža represents Croatia at youth international level and has made several appearances for various youth teams.[9] He was called by Croatia U21's coach Igor Bišćan for their 2023 European Under-21 qualifiers against Norway on 3 June 2022 and Estonia on 8 June 2022.[10]
Personal life
editBorn in Rijeka, Hodža is of Gorani origin from Restelicë.[11]
Career statistics
edit- As of match played 6 November 2024
| Club | Season | League | Cup | Europe | Total | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Rijeka | 2019–20 | Croatian Football League | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2020–21 | Croatian Football League | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1[a] | 0 | 2 | 0 | |
| Total | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | ||
| Orijent 1919 (loan) | 2020–21 | Croatian Second Football League | 16 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 16 | 0 | |
| 2021–22 | Croatian Second Football League | 14 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | 15 | 1 | ||
| Total | 30 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | 33 | 1 | |||
| Hrvatski Dragovoljac | 2021–22 | Croatian Football League | 16 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 16 | 1 | |
| Rijeka | 2022–23 | Croatian Football League | 33 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2[b] | 0 | 37 | 1 |
| 2023–24 | Croatian Football League | 32 | 5 | 6 | 1 | 6[b] | 0 | 44 | 6 | |
| 2024–25 | Croatian Football League | 5 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 5[c] | 0 | 11 | 2 | |
| Total | 70 | 8 | 9 | 1 | 13 | 0 | 92 | 9 | ||
| Rubin Kazan | 2024–25 | Russian Premier League | 7 | 2 | 3 | 0 | — | 10 | 2 | |
| Career total | 123 | 12 | 14 | 1 | 14 | 0 | 151 | 13 | ||
- ^ Appearances in UEFA Europa League
- ^ a b Appearances in UEFA Conference League
- ^ Three appearances in UEFA Europa League, two appearances in UEFA Conference League
References
edit- ^ Veldin Hodža at Soccerway
- ^ "DILJ – RIJEKA 0:6 Završila je utakmica u Vinkovcima, Rijeka rutinski izborila osminu finala Kupa". novilist.hr (in Croatian). 7 October 2020. Retrieved 3 June 2022.
- ^ "Napoli-Rijeka | UEFA Europa League 2020/21".
- ^ "Veldin Hodža i Matija Frigan stigli u Orijent 1919 na posudbu iz Rijeke, u srijedu prva test utakmica". novilist.hr (in Croatian). 12 July 2021. Retrieved 3 June 2022.
- ^ "Rijeka povukla Veldina Hodžu s posudbe iz Orijenta 1919 i preusmjerila u redove Hrvatskog dragovoljca" (in Croatian). 24 January 2022. Retrieved 3 June 2022.
- ^ "Filip Braut raskinuo ugovor s Rijekom i potpisao za Hrvatski dragovoljac" (in Croatian). Retrieved 3 June 2022.
- ^ Glasnik 26/22 - HNS-a, HNS, 8 July 2022
- ^ "Ходжа – в "Рубине"" (in Russian). FC Rubin Kazan. 12 September 2024.
- ^ Croatian Football Federation
- ^ "Igor Bišćan predstavio kandidate za odlučujuće utakmice protiv Norveške i Estonije" (in Croatian). HNS. Retrieved 2 June 2022.
- ^ "Veldin Hodža pozvan u reprezentaciju Hrvatske do 17 godina" [Veldin Hodža invited to the Croatian U17 national team]. GoraPress (in Serbian). 19 September 2018.