Nikola Krstović

Nikola Krstović (Montenegrin Cyrillic: Никола Крстовић; born 5 April 2000) is a Montenegrin professional footballer who plays as a striker for Serie A club Lecce and the Montenegro national team. He is considered to be one of the most promising young talents in Montenegro.[1]

Nikola Krstović
Personal information
Full name Nikola Krstović
Date of birth (2000-04-05) 5 April 2000
Place of birth Golubovci, Montenegro, FR Yugoslavia
Height 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)
Position(s) Striker
Team information
Current team
 Lecce
Number 9
Youth career
2014–2017 Zeta
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2016–2019 Zeta 92 (37)
2019–2021 Red Star Belgrade 21 (2)
2020 → Grafičar Beograd (loan) 6 (2)
2021–2023 DAC Dunajská Streda 56 (29)
2023– Lecce 7 (4)
International career‡
2015–2017 Montenegro U17 9 (2)
2017–2018 Montenegro U19 5 (0)
2017–2022 Montenegro U21 27 (7)
2022– Montenegro 11 (2)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 6 October 2023 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 17 October 2023 (UTC)

Club career

FK Zeta

On 23 April 2016, Krstović made his competitive debut for Zeta, being assigned the number 13 jersey. He came on as a second-half substitute for Filip Kukuličić in their 1–1 league draw away against Iskra Danilovgrad, becoming the youngest player ever to appear in a 1. CFL game at the age of 16 years and 18 days old.[2] Until the end of the 2015–16 Montenegrin First League, Krstović would go on to play in three more fixtures (all as a substitute) as the club hovered around the middle of the table.

On 5 November 2016, Krstović made his first appearance of the 2016–17 season, entering the field during the second half of a 1–0 home league win over Bokelj. He scored his first senior goals in March of the following year, netting a brace in a 3–0 away victory over Jedinstvo Bijelo Polje,[3] making him the first player born in the 2000s to find the back of the net in the top flight of Montenegrin football.[4] In his first full season at Zeta, Krstović played in 19 games (all in the league) and bagged seven goals.[5]

On 29 June 2017, Krstović appeared as a starter for Zeta wearing the number 9 shirt in a 1–0 away loss to Željezničar Sarajevo in the first leg of the 2017–18 UEFA Europa League first qualifying round. He then scored an equalizer in the return tie a week later at home (the game ended in a 2–2 draw).[6] In October of the same year, Krstović netted his first senior hat-trick and led his team to a 4–2 home win over Kom.[7] He tallied 15 goals in 39 matches across all competitions throughout the season.

Red Star Belgrade

On 25 February 2019, Krstović signed with Serbian club Red Star Belgrade until the summer of 2023 with an option for another year.[8] He remained on loan at Zeta until the end of the season, becoming the Montenegrin First League top scorer with 17 goals.[9]

DAC 1904 Dunajská Streda

On 5 September 2021, DAC has announced the signing of Krstović on a four-year contract. DAC's sporting director Jan Van Daele claimed that DAC had scouted Krstović since his youth years in Montenegro. He was given the jersey number 45. Krstović claimed gladness and honour following the contract signing.[10] In 2022–23 Fortuna Liga season, Krstović became the league's top scorer, scoring 18 goals in 27 appearances, up from 4 goals in 11 matches in the previous season.[11]

Lecce

On 17 August 2023, he was signed by Italian Serie A side Lecce and on 27 August he scored on his debut against Fiorentina, securing a 2–2 draw. Then he scored the opening goal at the Stadio Via del mare as giallorossi beat Salernitana 2–0 and a goal in a draw against Monza (1-1), thus becoming the first Lecce player to score in his first three games with the club.

International career

Krstović was capped for Montenegro at all youth levels from under-17 through to under-21. He made his debuts for the national under-21 team at the Valeriy Lobanovskyi Memorial Tournament in June 2017, appearing in both of his side's matches and scoring a brace in a 3–2 victory over Slovenia U21 in the third-place game.[12] Later that year, Krstović netted a goal in a UEFA Under-21 Championship 2019 qualifier away to Bulgaria, as Montenegro suffered a 3–1 loss.[13] On 28 March 2022, he made his senior debut in a home friendly against Greece.[14] Krstović scored his first international goal in his fourth appearance on 24 March 2023, to give Montenegro a 1-0 win away at Bulgaria in a 2024 European Championship qualifying match.[15]

Career statistics

Club
As of match played 6 October 2023[16]
Club Season League National cup[lower-alpha 1] Europe Total
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Zeta 2015–16 Montenegrin First League 4000—40
2016–17 Montenegrin First League 19700—197
2017–18 Montenegrin First League 361311213915
2018–19 Montenegrin First League 331742—3719
Total 923753219941
Red Star Belgrade 2019–20 Serbian SuperLiga 60000060
2020–21 Serbian SuperLiga 1112100132
2021–22 Serbian SuperLiga 41004[lower-alpha 2]081
Total 2122140273
Grafičar Beograd (loan) 2019–20 Serbian First League 6200—62
DAC 1904 2021–22 Slovak Super Liga 26900—269
2022–23 Slovak Super Liga 2718236[lower-alpha 3]53526
2023–24 Slovak Super Liga 32002[lower-alpha 4]052
Total 562923856637
Lecce 2023–24 Serie A 7400—74
Career total 183749714620685

International
As of 10 September 2023
Montenegro
YearAppsGoals
202250
202362
Total112

International goals
No.DateVenueOpponentScoreResultCompetition
1.25 March 2023Huvepharma Arena, Razgrad, Bulgaria Bulgaria1–01–0UEFA Euro 2024 qualification
2.7 September 2023Darius and Girėnas Stadium, Kaunas, Lithuania Lithuania1–12–2
  1. Includes Montenegrin Cup, Serbian Cup, Slovak Cup
  2. Three appearances in UEFA Champions League, one appearance in UEFA Europa League
  3. Appearances in UEFA Europa Conference League
  4. Appearances in UEFA Europa Conference League

Honours

Red Star Belgrade

References
  1. "Krstović za MONDO: Moji idoli Mitar i Zlatan…" (in Montenegrin). mondo.me. 3 March 2018. Retrieved 5 July 2018.
  2. "Novi rekord u 1.CFL: Dobili smo najmlađeg debitanta" (in Montenegrin). cg-fudbal.com. 26 April 2016. Retrieved 5 July 2018.
  3. "ČUDO OD DETETA Ima 17 godina i 14 prvoligaških golova - Da li je ovo novi Savićević ili Mijatović?" (in Serbian). blic.rs. 22 October 2017. Retrieved 5 July 2018.
  4. "Vrtić iz Golubovaca hoće u Evropu, a mogao je i do titule" (in Montenegrin). vijesti.me. 2 May 2017. Retrieved 5 July 2018.
  5. "Fudbaler rođen 2000. godine očekuje prolaz protiv Želje" (in Bosnian). sportsport.ba. 19 June 2017. Retrieved 5 July 2018.
  6. "Nikola Krstović – biser crnogorskog fudbala" (in Montenegrin). reprezentacija.me. 15 September 2017. Retrieved 5 July 2018.
  7. "Ovo su golovi cijele ekipe" (in Montenegrin). dan.co.me. 23 October 2017. Retrieved 5 July 2018.
  8. "Krstović potpisao za Zvezdu" (in Serbian). crvenazvezdafk.com. 25 February 2019. Retrieved 26 May 2019.
  9. FOTO: Novi igrač u Zvezdi!, mondo.rs, 25 February 2019
  10. Nagy, Krisztián. "Nikola Krstović z Crvenej Zvezdy do DAC-u". FC DAC 1904 Dunajská Streda. Retrieved 2021-09-05.
  11. Antol, Miroslav (2023-05-24). "Najlepší strelec ligy Nikola Krstovič o budúcnosti v DAC: Chcem zostať, ale…". Šport.sk. Retrieved 2023-07-03.
  12. "Krstović nastavio da rešeta: Crna Gora bolja od Slovenije" (in Montenegrin). vijesti.me. 8 June 2017. Retrieved 5 July 2018.
  13. "Kažnjeni za promašaje" (in Montenegrin). fscg.me. 14 November 2017. Retrieved 5 July 2018.
  14. "Nikola Krstović, international football player". eu-football.info. Retrieved 2023-03-24.
  15. UEFA.com. "Bulgaria-Montenegro | European Qualifiers 2024". UEFA.com. Retrieved 2023-03-24.
  16. "Nikola Krstović" (in Montenegrin). fscg.me. Retrieved 5 July 2018.
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