Mitja Ilenič

Mitja Ilenič (born 26 December 2004) is a Slovenian professional footballer who plays as a right-back for Major League Soccer club New York City FC.

Mitja Ilenič
Personal information
Date of birth (2004-12-26) 26 December 2004
Height 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in)[1]
Position(s) Right-back[1]
Team information
Current team
 New York City FC
Number 35
Youth career
2011–2016 NK Bela Krajina
2016–2019 NŠ Bela Krajina
2019–2021 Domžale
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2021–2023 Domžale 32 (3)
2023– New York City FC 19 (0)
International career‡
2020 Slovenia U17 1 (0)
2021–2022 Slovenia U18 3 (1)
2022–2023 Slovenia U19 6 (0)
2022– Slovenia U21 9 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 21 August 2023
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 17 October 2023

Club career

Early career

Ilenič started his football career in 2011, at the age of six, with Bela Krajina,[2] and then joined Domžale in the summer of 2019.[3] He initially played as a forward, but later moved to the position of right-back when he was still a youngster.[4] He signed his first professional contract with Domžale at the age of sixteen,[5] and made his Slovenian PrvaLiga debut on 22 May 2021 against Aluminij, in the final round of the 2020–21 season.[6]

In October 2022, Ilenič extended his contract with Domžale until 2025.[7][8] Throughout 2022, he established himself in the club's starting eleven,[9] as he attracted the interest of several foreign clubs, including Sturm Graz, Hellas Verona, Lugano, Sparta Prague and New York City FC.[10][11]

New York City FC

On 4 January 2023, Ilenič joined Major League Soccer club New York City FC on a permanent deal, signing a contract until 2026, with an option for another year.[12]

International career

Ilenič has represented Slovenia at all youth international levels from under-17 to under-21.[13]

He made his debut for the Slovenian under-21 national team on 25 March 2022, starting and playing the full 90 minutes in a 0–0 draw against Kosovo, a match from the qualification round of the 2023 UEFA European Under-21 Championship.[14] At the age of 17 years, two months and 27 days, he became the second youngest player to ever represent the team, behind only Jan Oblak.[12]

Career statistics

Club
As of 21 August 2023[1][15]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National cup Continental Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Domžale 2020–21 1. SNL 1000—10
2021–22 1531000163
2022–23 16000—160
Total 3231000333
New York City FC 2023 MLS 190002[lower-alpha 1]0210
Career total 5131020543
  1. Appearance(s) in Leagues Cup

References
  1. Mitja Ilenič at WorldFootball.net
  2. "ZAPISNIK 25. seje Registracijske komisije z dne 08.06.11" (PDF). mnzljubljana-zveza.s (in Slovenian). MNZ Ljubljana. Retrieved 17 December 2022.
  3. Berce, Nejc. "Mitja Ilenič do prve pogodbe" [Mitja Ilenic signs his first contract]. nkdomzale.si (in Slovenian). NK Domžale. Retrieved 16 December 2022.
  4. Kozmelj, Jaka (8 May 2022). "Sanja Liverpool, a mladim nikjer ni lepše kot v Domžalah". Sportklub (in Slovenian). Retrieved 17 December 2022.
  5. Batič, Jakob (2 April 2022). "Ker je pomagal zamenjati Skenderja, je bil občutek še toliko boljši". 24ur.com (in Slovenian). Retrieved 16 December 2022.
  6. "Mitja Ilenič » PrvaLiga 2020/2021". worldfootball.net. Retrieved 17 December 2022.
  7. "Najbolj vroč produkt ostaja v Domžalah, Ilenič podpisal do 2025". nogomania.com (in Slovenian). 13 October 2022. Retrieved 17 December 2022.
  8. Ulčar, Miha (21 October 2022). "Mitja Ilenič, NK Domžale: "Razmišljati moramo o sebi in rezultat bo prišel"" ["We have to think about ourselves and the result will come"]. domzalec.si (in Slovenian). Retrieved 16 December 2022.
  9. "Ilenič šov: Domžale so na krilih najstniškega branilca zlahka porazile Aluminij". nogomania.com (in Slovenian). 1 May 2022. Retrieved 17 December 2022.
  10. Valant, Simon (22 December 2022). "Domžalčani vendarle ostali brez mladega branilca, ki odhaja čez lužo". Slovenski nogometni portal (in Slovenian). Retrieved 22 December 2022.
  11. Zore, Miran (16 December 2022). "Preobrat: Američani bodo očitno pokvarili posel Sturmu, mladi Mitja Ilenič na pragu selitve v ligo MLS". nogomania.com (in Slovenian). Retrieved 17 December 2022.
  12. "New York City Football Club Signs Mitja Ilenič from NK Domžale". New York City FC. 4 January 2023. Archived from the original on 4 January 2023. Retrieved 4 January 2023.
  13. "Mitja Ilenič – reprezentanca". nzs.si (in Slovenian). Football Association of Slovenia. Retrieved 17 December 2022.
  14. "V Prištini brez zadetkov". nzs.si (in Slovenian). Football Association of Slovenia. 25 March 2022. Retrieved 5 January 2023.
  15. "Mitja Ilenič – Nogometna zveza Slovenije". nzs.si (in Slovenian). Football Association of Slovenia. Retrieved 17 December 2022.
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