Mileta Rajović (born 17 July 1999) is a Danish professional footballer who plays as a forward for Danish Superliga club Brøndby, on loan from EFL Championship club Watford.

Mileta Rajović
Personal information
Date of birth (1999-07-17) 17 July 1999 (age 25)
Place of birth Ballerup, Denmark[1]
Height 1.92 m (6 ft 4 in)[2]
Position(s) Forward
Team information
Current team
Brøndby
(on loan from Watford)
Number 17
Youth career
2010–2014 Brøndby
2014–2016 AB
2016–2017 Brøndby
2017–2018 Randers
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2018–2019 B.93 11 (4)
2019 HB Køge 1 (0)
2019–2021 Roskilde 29 (9)
2021–2022 Næstved 55 (29)
2023 Kalmar FF 20 (7)
2023– Watford 44 (11)
2024–Brøndby (loan) 4 (3)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 6 October 2024 (UTC)

Career

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Early career

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Having previously played for AB, Brøndby and Randers at youth level,[3][4] Rajović signed for B.93 in September 2018 following a trial spell at the club.[5] He transferred to HB Køge on a contract until the end of the season in January 2019,[6] but he was released when his contract expired at the end of the season,[7] having made a single league appearance for the club.[8] He joined Roskilde in summer 2019 and agreed a one-year contract with the club in September 2019.[9][10]

Næstved and Kalmar FF

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Rajović signed for Næstved in January 2021.[11][12] Having scored 12 goals in his opening 17 matches of the 2021–22 season, he signed a contract extension with the club in October 2021.[13] During the 2021–22 season, he scored 18 goals in 27 games as Næstved were promoted from the Danish 2nd Division as champions,[14] and was given the club's Player of the Year award for the season.[15] In December 2022, it was rumoured that there was transfer interest in Rajović from multiple clubs in the Danish Superliga and Allsvenskan, including IFK Göteborg.[14][16] Having amassed 30 goals in 58 games for Næstved,[17] Rajović signed for Allsvenskan club Kalmar FF on a three-and-a-half-year deal on 9 December 2022.[17][18] The fee received for Rajović was a new club record for Næstved according to their sporting director Peter Dinesen.[17] His first four appearances for Kalmar came in the Svenska Cupen, in which he scored five goals.[19]

Watford

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On 25 August 2023, Rajović signed for EFL Championship club Watford on a five-year contract for an undisclosed fee, reported to be around £1 million.[20][21] He made his debut as a substitute in a 1–0 Championship defeat to Blackburn Rovers on 27 August,[22] and scored a brace on his first start the following week as Watford drew 3–3 away to Coventry City.[23] On 11 November 2023, Rajović scored the first two goals in a 5-0 thrashing at home to Rotherham, making the club six games undefeated.[24] Despite Rajović starting only 17 of his 43 appearances for the 2023-24 season, he finished as the top goalscorer with 11 goals across all competitions.[25]

On 2 September 2024, Rajović returned to former club Brøndby on loan for the rest of the 2024–25 season.[26]

Personal life

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Born in Denmark, Rajović is of Montenegrin descent.[27] The Rajović family is of the Vasojevići tribe in origin.

Career statistics

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As of match played 6 October 2024[8]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National cup[a] League cup[b] Other Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Roskilde 2019–20 Danish 1st Division 18 6 0 0 18 6
2020–21 Danish 2nd Division 11 3 2 2 13 5
Total 29 9 2 2 0 0 0 0 31 11
Næstved 2020–21 Danish 2nd Division 13 2 0 0 13 2
2021–22 Danish 2nd Division 27 18 1 0 28 18
2022–23 Danish 1st Division 15 9 2 1 17 10
Total 55 29 3 1 0 0 0 0 58 30
Kalmar 2023 Allsvenskan 20 7 4 5 2[c] 1 26 13
Watford 2023–24 Championship 41 10 2 1 0 0 43 11
2024–25 Championship 3 1 0 0 2 2 0 0 5 3
Total 44 11 2 1 2 2 0 0 48 14
Brøndby (loan) 2024–25 Danish Superliga 4 3 1 1 0 0 5 4
Career total 152 59 12 10 2 2 2 1 168 72
  1. ^ Includes Svenska Cupen, FA Cup
  2. ^ Includes EFL Cup
  3. ^ Appearances in UEFA Europa Conference League

References

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  1. ^ "Mileta Rajović". Watford F.C. Retrieved 29 December 2023.
  2. ^ Behind the transfer of Mileta Rajović. Watford F.C. 25 August 2023. Retrieved 28 August 2023 – via YouTube.
  3. ^ Schmidt, Martin (9 October 2021). "Tidligere BIF-talent lyner i 2. div: Drøm om SL". bold.dk (in Danish). Retrieved 25 August 2023.
  4. ^ "Mileta Rajović". worldfootball.net. Retrieved 25 August 2023.
  5. ^ Blond, Mikael (2 September 2018). "B93 henter ny angriber". bold.dk (in Danish). Retrieved 25 August 2023.
  6. ^ Tøfting, Nicolai (31 January 2019). "HB Køge kaprer tidligere BIF-talent i B93". bold.dk (in Danish). Retrieved 25 August 2023.
  7. ^ Schmidt, Martin (24 May 2019). "Tidligere Brøndby-talent stopper i HB Køge". bold.dk (in Danish). Retrieved 25 August 2023.
  8. ^ a b "M. Rajović: Summary". Soccerway. Perform Group. Retrieved 25 August 2023.
  9. ^ Tøfting, Nicolai (23 July 2019). "Angriber vil kickstarte karrieren i Roskilde". bold.dk (in Danish). Retrieved 25 August 2023.
  10. ^ Schmidt, Martin (12 September 2019). "Tidligere Brøndby-talent forlænger i Roskilde". bold.dk (in Danish). Retrieved 25 August 2023.
  11. ^ "Næstved henter angriber i FC Roskilde". Sjællandske Nyheder (in Danish). 21 January 2021. Retrieved 25 August 2023.
  12. ^ "Rajovic har ramt det meste". Sjællandske Nyheder (in Danish). 8 September 2021. Retrieved 24 August 2023.
  13. ^ Nelausen, Raymund (21 November 2021). "Stor Næstved-nyhed: Forlænger med bomber". bold.dk (in Danish). Retrieved 25 August 2023.
  14. ^ a b Okstrøm, Oliver (6 December 2022). "Danske og svenske klubber ude efter Næstved-bomber". Tipsbladet.dk (in Danish). Retrieved 24 August 2023.
  15. ^ Sand, Nicholas (11 June 2022). "Ung målsluger er sæsonens profil i Næstved". bold.dk (in Danish). Retrieved 25 August 2023.
  16. ^ Porse, Kristian (6 December 2022). "bold.dk erfarer: IFK og Superliga-klubber jagter Næstved-bomber". bold.dk (in Danish). Retrieved 24 August 2023.
  17. ^ a b c Lissau, Andreas Sandby (9 December 2022). "Bekræftet: Næstved sælger topscorer til Kalmar FF i rekordhandel". Sjællandske Nyheder (in Danish). Retrieved 24 August 2023.
  18. ^ Ortiz, Oscar Lindgren (9 December 2022). "Kalmar FF har gjort klart med anfallare". Fotbolldirekt (in Swedish). Retrieved 24 August 2023.
  19. ^ Grönlund, Konrad (1 April 2023). "Ska hålla kvar Kalmar i toppen: "Tror på mig"". expressen.se (in Swedish). Retrieved 24 August 2023.
  20. ^ "Official: Rajović Joins The Hornets". watfordfc.com. Watford F.C. 25 August 2023. Retrieved 25 August 2023.
  21. ^ French, Andrew (25 August 2023). "Watford have signed young Danish striker Mileta Rajovic". Watford Observer. Retrieved 25 August 2023.
  22. ^ "Match Report: Watford 0–1 Blackburn Rovers". watfordfc.com. Watford F.C. 27 August 2023. Retrieved 30 August 2023.
  23. ^ "Coventry and Watford draw six-goal thriller". BBC Sport. 2 September 2023. Retrieved 2 September 2023.
  24. ^ "Watford 5-0 Rotheram United: Hornets thrash Rotherham to extend unbeaten run to six". BBC Sport. 11 November 2023. Retrieved 31 May 2024.
  25. ^ "2023-24 Stats". ESPN. 4 May 2024. Retrieved 31 May 2024.
  26. ^ "Brøndby IF lejer Mileta Rajovic i Watford FC". Brøndby IF (in Danish). 2 September 2024. Archived from the original on 3 September 2024. Retrieved 22 September 2024.
  27. ^ El-Itr, Obaida (9 June 2023). "Hjulmand holder øje med ham: Blev overrasket". Tipsbladet.dk (in Danish). Retrieved 24 August 2023.
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