Muhamed Konjić
{{short description|Bosnian retired professional footballer (born 1970)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2022}}
{{Infobox football biography
| name = Muhamed Konjić
| image =
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1970|5|14|df=yes}}
| birth_place = Tuzla, SFR Yugoslavia
| height = 1.91 m
| currentclub =
| position = Centre-back
| youthyears1 =
| youthclubs1 =
| years1 = 1988–1989
| clubs1 = Famos Hrasnica
| caps1 = 15
| goals1 = 0
| years2 = 1989–1992
| clubs2 = Sloboda Tuzla
| caps2 = 21
| goals2 = 0
| years3 = 1992–1993
| clubs3 = Belišće
| caps3 = 19
| goals3 = 0
| years4 = 1994
| clubs4 = Sarajevo
| caps4 = 1
| goals4 = 0
| years5 = 1993–1996
| clubs5 = Zagreb
| caps5 = 63
| goals5 = 5
| years6 = 1996–1997
| clubs6 = Zürich
| caps6 = 36
| goals6 = 5
| years7 = 1997–1999
| clubs7 = Monaco
| caps7 = 37
| goals7 = 2
| years8 = 1999–2004
| clubs8 = Coventry City
| caps8 = 138
| goals8 = 4
| years9 = 2004–2006
| clubs9 = Derby County
| caps9 = 16
| goals9 = 0
| totalcaps = 345
| totalgoals = 16
| nationalyears1 = 1995–2006
| nationalteam1 = Bosnia and Herzegovina
| nationalcaps1 = 39
| nationalgoals1 = 3
}}
Muhamed Konjić ({{IPA|bs|muxǎmed kǒːɲitɕ}}; born 14 May 1970) is a Bosnian retired professional footballer who played as a centre-back, most notably for Monaco, Coventry City and the Bosnia and Herzegovina national team who he also captained.
Club career
A solid defender, he played for many clubs around Europe including FC Zürich, AS Monaco, Coventry City and Derby County.
Konjić played in Jean Tigana's talented Monaco side which famously put Manchester United out of the Champions League in 1998 on away goals after a 1–1 draw at Old Trafford.{{cite web |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football-monaco-and-bust-for-sorry-united-1151168.html |title=Monaco and bust for sorry United |work=The Independent |date=19 March 1998 |access-date=30 December 2014}}
Early in 1999, Konjić was recruited by Gordon Strachan, manager of English Premiership side Coventry City for a fee of around £2 million. He became the first Bosnian to play in England’s top tier. Injuries prevented fans from getting a real glimpse of the player though, as he made just 19 appearances before the club's relegation at the end of the 2000–01 season.
In the next three seasons, all of which were spent in the Championship. 'Big Mo' (as he was nicknamed by Sky Blues fans) made 138 appearances, and scored four goals. During this period, Konjić had captained the club and became a fan favourite. He was renowned both for his fully committed style of play and also his willingness to bring the ball forward if the midfield and attack were not having any impact.
He was sold at the end of the 2003–04 season to Derby County by then Sky Blues manager Peter Reid. In the 2004–05 season, he made 18 appearances in George Burley's Derby side which reached the Football League Championship play-offs. Injuries have continued to hamper his progress, and he made just one appearance for Derby in the 2005–06 season as a result. He was released at the end of the season and subsequently retired from playing.{{Cite news|title = Mo goes|url = http://www.dcfc.premiumtv.co.uk/page/NewsDetail/0,,10270~817652,00.html|publisher = Derby County F.C.|date = 18 April 2006|access-date = 4 January 2009}}{{dead link|date=February 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}
International career
File:Bosnia and Herzegovina national football team in 2002.jpg squad during UEFA Euro 2004 qualifying.]]
Konjić was an influential player in the Bosnian-Herzegovinian squad, for whom he was capped 39 times and scoring 3 goals.{{Cite web|author=Mamrud, Roberto|title=Bosnia and Herzegovina – Record International Players| url=https://www.rsssf.org/miscellaneous/bih-recintlp.html|date= 16 July 2009 |website=RSSSF|access-date = 30 January 2021}} He was the captain in the first match played by Bosnia and Herzegovina on 30 November 1995.[https://historija.ba/d/144-prva-zvanicna-utakmica-reprezentacije-bih Prva zvanična utakmica reprezentacije BiH] - Historija {{in lang|bs}} This match, a 2–0 defeat to Albania, famously came just nine days after the Dayton Peace Agreement brought an end to the Bosnian conflict.
His final international was an August 2006 friendly match against France.{{cite web|url=https://eu-football.info/_player.php?id=10954|title=Player Database|website=eu-football.info|accessdate=28 March 2021}}
Personal life
Konjić spent the first eight months of the Bosnian War in his country's army. After his military discharge he trained in the streets, often during artillery raids when everybody else was covering in bomb shelters or cellars.[http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4156/is_/ai_n13942127] The Sunday Herald
Career statistics
:Scores and results list Bosnia and Herzegovina's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Konjić goal.
| class="wikitable sortable"
|+ List of international goals scored by Muhamed Konjić | ||||||
| scope="col"|No.
!scope="col"|Date !scope="col"|Venue !scope="col"|Opponent !scope="col"|Score !scope="col"|Result !scope="col"|Competition | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| style="text-align:center"|1 | 14 October 1998 | Žalgiris Stadium, Vilnius, Lithuania | {{fb|Lithuania}} | style="text-align:center"|1–0 | style="text-align:center"|2–4 | UEFA Euro 2000 qualifying |
| style="text-align:center"|2 | 29 March 2000 | Bilino Polje Stadium, Zenica, Bosnia and Herzegovina | {{fb|North Macedonia}} | style="text-align:center"|1–0 | style="text-align:center"|1–0 | Friendly |
| style="text-align:center"|3 | 7 October 2001 | Koševo City Stadium, Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina | {{fb|Liechtenstein}} | style="text-align:center"|1–0 | style="text-align:center"|5–0 | 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification |
Honours
Individual
References
{{reflist}}
External links
- {{Soccerbase|name=Muhammed Konjic}}
- {{NFT player|901}}
{{Coventry City F.C. Player of the Year}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Konjic, Muhamed}}
Category:Footballers from Tuzla
Category:Bosniaks of Bosnia and Herzegovina
Category:Men's association football sweepers
Category:Yugoslav men's footballers
Category:Bosnia and Herzegovina men's footballers
Category:Bosnia and Herzegovina men's international footballers
Category:FK Famos Hrasnica players
Category:FK Sloboda Tuzla players
Category:Coventry City F.C. players
Category:Derby County F.C. players
Category:Yugoslav First League players
Category:Croatian Football League players
Category:Swiss Super League players
Category:Premier League players
Category:English Football League players
Category:Bosnia and Herzegovina expatriate men's footballers
Category:Expatriate men's footballers in Croatia
Category:Bosnia and Herzegovina expatriate sportspeople in Croatia
Category:Expatriate men's footballers in Switzerland
Category:Bosnia and Herzegovina expatriate sportspeople in Switzerland
Category:Expatriate men's footballers in Monaco
Category:Bosnia and Herzegovina expatriate sportspeople in Monaco
Category:Expatriate men's footballers in England
Category:Bosnia and Herzegovina expatriate sportspeople in England