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4 days ago
It started really it finished: pinch a delicate chip. Twenty‑five years ago, Mark Viduka scored each 4 goals successful Leeds’s 4-3 triumph against Liverpool astatine Elland Road. While those astir furiously pedalled, Viduka remained Buddha‑esque, bookending his efforts pinch deft wedges complete Sander Westerveld.
“I had to study it complete time,” Viduka says erstwhile asked whether his serenity was a superpower. “I played a batch of games wherever I was very nervous. When I was younger, I mightiness conscionable person belted it and hoped for nan best.”
Viduka chuckles arsenic he recalls a crippled early successful his clip astatine Croatia Zagreb, now called Dinamo Zagreb. He joined successful 1995 and successful nan Eternal derby against Hajduk Split he was one-on-one pinch Tonci Gabric. He admits he panicked. “There was immense expectation, and a roar from nan crowd. Somehow, I deed it pinch nan extracurricular of my ft and it went done nan keeper’s legs. All nan commentators thought I did it connected intent and I’m thinking: ‘Thank God that went in.’”
That was 1 of 52 goals he scored for Zagreb. Viduka is backmost successful nan metropolis now, serving successful nan java shop he runs pinch his wife. His parents had migrated from Croatia to Melbourne earlier he was born. He says he sewage “a spot of stick” increasing up: “They utilized to telephone america wogs. But what do you expect? My parents had it worse erstwhile they came – but you cognize what, who’s complaining? Sometimes you’ve sewage to return it connected nan chin. I’m proud of Australia. Australia is 1 of nan champion countries successful nan world. It gave my parents everything. It gave them an opportunity to raise their kids successful a safe environment.”
Viduka’s builder dada loved shot and they were regulars astatine Melbourne Croatia, now Melbourne Knights. At 16, Viduka near location connected a two-year danasiwa astatine nan Australian Institute of Sport. By property 18, he was successful nan Knights’ first team.
Rapidly, Viduka outgrew Australian home football. Borussia Dortmund and nan Japanese broadside Jubilo Iwata showed interest, but nan Croatian president Franjo Tudjman was visiting Australia and invited nan Vidukas retired for a meal. He wanted Mark successful Zagreb. Given nan civilian war, his parents were reluctant. Viduka, though, was insistent.
“It was exciting,” he says. “I didn’t really deliberation astir nan information facet of it. But looking backmost now … bloody hell, I don’t cognize if I’d person fto my kid spell astatine that time.”
Viduka had a relative successful Zagreb who he saw regularly. But soon aft Viduka’s arrival, nan relative – a typical forces operative – “had to spell to war”. Days passed without news. “There was nary internet, location was nothing.” Thankfully Operation Storm ended nan Croatian warfare of independency successful 1995 and his relative returned safely.
Amid poorness and occupation losses, Tudjman’s fame waned and Viduka was, successful nan public’s eyes, linked inextricably pinch nan politician. “I’d person my fans and nan guidance fans singing insults to maine earlier I moreover started playing,” he says.
Viduka likens it to David Beckham’s post-France 98 experience. “I scored successful a derby lucifer successful Split, and my ain fans were insulting me. I’m reasoning to myself: ‘This has sewage thing to do pinch football.’”
He would beryllium insulted, moreover spat connected erstwhile he near nan house. “I conscionable felt exhausted. Exhausted of each time being attacked by group having a spell astatine maine connected nan street. I didn’t cognize really to woody pinch it. I’d ne'er envisaged that benignant of point from football. It could person ruined me. I could person stopped playing.”
Determined to continue, Viduka joined Celtic successful December 1998, but his debut was delayed until February 1999. He was broken. His friends told him not to show his caller coach his struggles, but he needed to speak up. “I had to opportunity precisely really it is, and immoderate happens, happens.”
He called nan Celtic head Jozef Venglos and asked for clip pinch his family. Venglos was sympathetic, nan media little so. “At six successful nan morning, I’ve sewage a news unit successful beforehand of my parents’ house. It was for illustration nan full world was not large enough.”
By past nan property had labelled him a mercenary. “If I wanted to do it for nan money, I wouldn’t person said anything,” he says. Some suggested he had entered a intelligence wellness institution. In reality, Viduka was a young personification struggling successful a high-pressure business thousands of miles from home. “In nan UK, group move from London to nan northbound and they struggle,” he says.
Viduka spent clip pinch his parents and 4 sisters and headed yet for Scotland. And nan Australian footballer taxation hit. “We’ve sewage to activity really difficult for group to return notice. People’s first thought is: ‘You Aussies don’t person a hint astir football.’ You could beryllium a amended subordinate than nan Brazilian aliases European but someway there’s still that cognition … You travel to nan UK and conscionable autumn successful for illustration immoderate benignant of alien.”
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A Scottish League Cup winners’ badge and 35 goals later, David O’Leary’s Leeds, who had conscionable qualified for nan Champions League, paid £6m for him. Viduka deed nan crushed sprinting, his 22 goals – including nan 4 against Liverpool – helping them to make a Champions League semi-final successful 2000-01.
He began an enduring relationship pinch nan French midfielder Olivier Dacourt and recalls that broadside fondly, from Lee Bowyer’s goalscoring support to Ian Harte’s free-kicks, from Alan Smith’s relentlessness to nan value of chap Australian Harry Kewell.
But failing to suffice for nan Champions League for nan pursuing 2 seasons created a financial spread that turned nan club’s highs into lows. Rio Ferdinand, Robbie Keane, Bowyer and Jonathan Woodgate were sold, and O’Leary was sacked. Viduka’s 20 Premier League goals successful 2002-03 kept Leeds afloat. “It was a immense uphill battle,” he says. “It went pear-shaped.” Relegation was confirmed successful May 2004.
“I emotion Leeds, I emotion nan place, I emotion nan club,” Viduka says. “If everything was OK, I would person stayed there. But I didn’t want to beryllium playing 2nd section football, and they couldn’t spend for maine to stay.”
His adjacent extremity was Middlesbrough, nan item a tally to nan 2006 Uefa Cup final. Having trailed aft nan quarter-final and semi‑final distant legs against Basel and Steaua Bucharest respectively, Steve McLaren’s broadside progressed via emphatic Riverside victories. “I’m thinking: ‘This thing’s destined for us.’ Little did we cognize Sevilla weren’t reasoning nan aforesaid way.” A 4-0 conclusion deed hard.
Months later, Viduka captained Australia astatine nan 2006 World Cup. Was that nan pinnacle? “A monolithic item but 1 of my champion moments was winning nan title pinch my club, Melbourne Knights [in 1995]. We’d dominated successful nan precocious 80s and early 90s without winning nan title. I grew up going to those games each week”
Viduka, who turned 50 past month, seldom watches shot now, though he will occasionally beryllium a spectator astatine his son’s games. Working successful nan cafe suits him. “When I came to Zagreb, nan first point they asked maine astatine nan airdrome was: ‘Do you portion coffee?’ The civilization present is each astir gathering pinch friends complete a cup of coffee.”
His woman runs nan cafe day‑to‑day “up wherever we unrecorded successful northbound Zagreb, successful nan hills successful a green, leafy neighbourhood”, he says. “There was a spot I utilized to spell for a beer, but nan java wasn’t nan best. The surroundings were beautiful, tough. We’ve lived each complete nan spot but we thought to ourselves: ‘If this spot ever comes up we’ll springiness it a go.’ The conception is fundamentally that it is location for america to portion coffee.”
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