Mladen Božović

Mladen Božović (Serbian Cyrillic: Младен Божовић, pronounced [mlâden bôːʒoʋitɕ]; born 1 August 1984) is a Montenegrin former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper. Internationally, he earned 42 caps for the Montenegro national team.[1]

Mladen Božović
Božović with Montenegro in 2014
Personal information
Date of birth (1984-08-01) 1 August 1984
Place of birth Titograd, SR Montenegro, SFR Yugoslavia
Height 1.97 m (6 ft 5+1⁄2 in)
Position(s) Goalkeeper
Youth career
1993–2002 Zabjelo
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2002–2003 Zabjelo 17 (0)
2004–2007 Budućnost Podgorica 57 (0)
2004 → Mladost Podgorica (loan) 9 (0)
2005–2006 → Kom (loan) 29 (0)
2008–2010 Partizan 68 (0)
2010–2013 Videoton 63 (0)
2013–2015 Tom Tomsk 8 (0)
2014 → Khimik Dzerzhinsk (loan) 9 (0)
2016–2017 Zeta 48 (0)
2017–2018 Larissa 27 (0)
2020 Drezga
2021 Zora
2021 Zeta 5 (0)
International career
2007–2017 Montenegro 42 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Club career

Beginnings

Light enough on his feet, and quick enough with his reflexes to dominate between the sticks, Božović started out with his local club Zabjelo, and joined Budućnost Podgorica in the 2004 winter transfer window. He was later loaned to Mladost Podgorica and Kom, before returning to the club and becoming the first-choice goalkeeper in the 2006–07 season.

Partizan

On 14 January 2008, Božović was transferred to Partizan, on a four-year deal.[2] He made his competitive debut for the club in a 2–0 home league win over Bežanija on 22 March 2008, replacing his compatriot Darko Božović in the 87th minute of the game. Until the end of the 2007–08 season, Božović became the first-choice goalkeeper, as Partizan won the double.

He played the full 90 minutes in all of his team's league fixtures in the 2008–09 campaign. In April 2009, he first broke the club record (previously held by Ivica Kralj) in consecutive minutes without conceding a goal (840 minutes),[3] after which he became the record holder in Serbian football after not conceding a goal for 916 consecutive minutes. The previous record holder was former FK Obilić goalkeeper Nenad Lukić who did not concede a goal for 903 consecutive minutes in the 1998–99 season.[4] He was eventually named in the team of the season and also helped Partizan win the 2008–09 Serbian Cup, collecting the double for the second year in a row.[5] He briefly lost his place in the team to Aleksandar Radosavljević between late September and early November 2009,[6] before again becoming Partizan's undisputed first-choice goalkeeper. In May 2010, Božović celebrated his third Serbian championship title with the club.[7]

During his tenure with Partizan, Božović played with the club twice in the UEFA Europa League group stage: in 2008–09 and 2009–10.

Later career

On 4 June 2010, Božović moved to Hungarian side Videoton.[8] He was a regular starter in his debut season at Sóstói Stadion, helping the club win their first championship title ever. In the following two years, Božović added three more trophies to his collection, one Ligakupa and two Szuperkupa trophies (2011 and 2012).

On 23 June 2013, Božović joined Russian club Tom Tomsk on a free transfer. He was the first-choice goalkeeper at the beginning of the 2013–14 season, before losing his place in the starting lineup. In August 2014, Božović was loaned to Khimik Dzerzhinsk. He returned to the Siberian club in December 2014, making one league appearance until the end of the 2014–15 season.

In the 2016 winter transfer window, Božović returned to his homeland and signed with Zeta. He spent the next 18 months at the club, making 50 official appearances (league and cup).[9]

On 20 June 2017, Božović moved to Greece and signed with AEL on a two-year deal.[10]

International career

On 3 June 2007, Božović made his international debut for Montenegro in a 0–1 loss to Colombia at the Kirin Cup. He then served as a backup goalkeeper for Vukašin Poleksić during the team's unsuccessful qualification campaign for the 2010 FIFA World Cup. Subsequently, Božović played the full 90 minutes in all of his team's UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying games, including a play-offs tie against the Czech Republic. However, Montenegro failed to reach the final tournament.[11]

During the World Cup 2014 qualifying stage, Božović maintained his role as Montenegro's first-choice goalkeeper, appearing in eight games (out of 10), as the team finished in third place behind England and Ukraine.

In August 2016, Božović was called up to the national team after more than a year of absence.[12] He helped Montenegro make a successful start of the World Cup 2018 qualifying phase, winning seven points in the first three games.

Personal life

After his playing career ended, Božović began suffering from poverty and depression.[13] On 8 March 2022, he attempted suicide but survived.[14]

Statistics
As of 20 June 2017

Club
Club Season League Cup League Cup Super Cup Continental Total
AppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Zabjelo 2002–03 17000———170
Budućnost Podgorica 2003–04 12000———120
2006–07 31000———310
2007–08 14000———140
Total 57000———570
Partizan 2007–08 10030——00130
2008–09 33030——100460
2009–10 25020——90360
Total 68080——190950
Videoton 2010–11 25040201020340
2011–12 13060100000200
2012–13 250303010110430
Total 6301306020130970
Tom Tomsk 2013–14 7000———70
Khimik Dzerzhinsk (loan) 2014–15 9010———100
Tom Tomsk 2014–15 1000———10
Zeta 2015–16 16000———160
2016–17 32020———340
Total 48020———500
Larissa 2017–18 27000———270
Career total 297024060203203610

International
National teamYearAppsGoals
Montenegro[15] 200710
200830
200920
201080
201180
201270
201340
201430
201510
201640
201710
Total420

Honours

Club
Budućnost Podgorica
Partizan
Videoton

Individual

References
  1. "Montenegro - Record International Players". Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation. Retrieved 25 October 2020.
  2. "Božović potpisao za Partizan!" (in Serbian). partizan.rs. 14 January 2008. Retrieved 22 March 2016.
  3. "Rekorder Božović i "udarač" Dijara" (in Serbian). mondo.rs. 24 April 2009. Retrieved 10 August 2016.
  4. B92 (26 April 2009). "Partizan proslavio titulu uz rekord" (in Serbian). Retrieved 14 June 2022.
  5. "Trofeji ostaju tamo gde im je i mesto!" (in Serbian). partizan.rs. 21 May 2009. Retrieved 10 August 2016.
  6. "Pobeda raduje, igra baš ohrabruje!" (in Serbian). partizan.rs. 7 November 2009. Retrieved 10 August 2016.
  7. "Puna srca na radnoj proslavi 22. titule" (in Serbian). partizan.rs. 16 May 2010. Retrieved 10 August 2016.
  8. "Mladen Bozsovics a Videoton FC új kapusa!" (in Hungarian). vidi.hu. 4 June 2010. Retrieved 10 August 2016.
  9. "Player Information - Mladen Božović". fscg.me. Retrieved 20 June 2017.
  10. "Ανακοίνωση" (in Greek). aelfc.gr. 20 June 2017. Retrieved 20 June 2017.
  11. "Czech cheer as Jiráček ends Montenegro bid". UEFA. 15 November 2011. Retrieved 16 October 2016.
  12. Vijesti (27 August 2016). "Božović: Srećan sam zbog reprezentacije, Zeta može dosta" (in Montenegrin). Archived from the original on 2 November 2016. Retrieved 14 June 2022.
  13. "DETALJI POKUŠAJA SAMOUBISTVA GOLMANA PARTIZANA: Popio šaku tableta i uzeo lovačku pušku". kurir.rs. Retrieved 8 March 2022.
  14. B92 (8 March 2022). "Bivši golman Partizana pokušao samoubistvo" (in Serbian). Retrieved 10 March 2022.
  15. "Mladen Božović". eu-football.info. Retrieved 1 June 2017.
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