Quick Facts
Biography
Sejad Salihović (born 8 October 1984) is a Bosnian professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Chinese club Beijing Renhe and the Bosnia and Herzegovina national team.
Club career
Early career
Salihović began his career in the youth teams of lower-league sides Minerva 93 Berlin and Hertha 03 Zehlendorf. In the 2000–01 season, he was transferred to Hertha BSC, where he played for the U17 and U19 teams before eventually entering the reserve team in 2003.
Hertha BSC
Salihović was promoted to the first team in 2004. He made his professional debut in a Bundesliga match against Hamburger SV on 26 September 2004, which ended in a 2–1 defeat. In 2006, he was transferred to 1899 Hoffenheim.
1899 Hoffenheim
He was rated by kicker sports magazine as the player of 2. Bundesliga 2007–08 season with the best over-all grades and finished the season scoring six goals in 27 matches.
The highly rated midfielder was sidelined with groin injury, which has been troubling him for some while, however he has made a full recovery. Salihović had a good start to the 2010–11 Bundesliga season, but ended with an injury. At the end of the 2012–13 season, Salihović scored two late penalties against Dortmund to secure a play-off match, ultimately saving Hoffenheim from relegation.
Guizhou Renhe
On 7 June 2015, Hoffenheim announced on their official website that Salihović would leave the club to join Chinese Super League side Beijing Renhe.
International career
During October 2006 while playing for the Bosnia and Herzegovina under-21 team, Salihović scored twice in the team's 2–3 aggregate loss to Czech Republic under-21 in the play-offs for 2007 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship. Both his goals were superb shots from 25 meters out and 30 meters out.
Since then, Salihović has been promoted to the Bosnia and Herzegovina senior side and has become an important member of Bosnia and Herzegovina national team. Although his favorite position is in midfield, he has often been used as a left-back in lack of other options. He has scored four goals for the senior national team, three of which have been from free-kicks. Due to unsporting behavior in game against Portugal during 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification play-offs, the Bosnian midfielder was suspended for four games, missing the Euro 2012 qualification matches against Luxembourg, France, Albania and Romania. He returned for a friendly match against Slovakia, which Bosnia won 3–2 in Bratislava.
In June 2014, he was named in Bosnia and Herzegovina's squad for the 2014 FIFA World Cup
Personal life
Salihović and his family migrated to Berlin in 1992, right before the Bosnian War started. In June 2009, after 17 years, Sejad visited his hometown of Zvornik where his parents Ismet and Fadila are renovating their home. His hobbies include reading, playing football, and spending time with his family.
On 15 December 2014, Salihović married his girlfriend Julia.
Style of play
He has a powerful shot with his left foot and is a free-kick specialist.
Career statistics
Club
- As of match played 22 October 2016.
| Club | Season | League | Cup | Other | Europe | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Hertha II | 2003–04 | NOFV-Oberliga Nord | 31 | 13 | – | – | – | 31 | 13 | |||
| 2004–05 | Regionalliga Nord | 27 | 14 | 1 | 0 | – | – | 28 | 14 | |||
| 2005–06 | Regionalliga Nord | 30 | 8 | – | – | – | 30 | 8 | ||||
| Total | 88 | 35 | 1 | 0 | – | – | 89 | 35 | ||||
| Hertha | 2004–05 | Bundesliga | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | – | 5 | 0 | ||
| 2005–06 | Bundesliga | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
| Total | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | ||
| Hoffenheim II | 2006–07 | Oberliga Baden-Württemberg | 1 | 0 | – | – | – | 1 | 0 | |||
| 2011–12 | Regionalliga Süd | 1 | 0 | – | – | – | 1 | 0 | ||||
| Total | 2 | 0 | – | – | – | 2 | 0 | |||||
| Hoffenheim | 2006–07 | Regionalliga Süd | 30 | 10 | – | – | – | 30 | 10 | |||
| 2007–08 | 2. Bundesliga | 27 | 6 | 4 | 1 | – | – | 31 | 7 | |||
| 2008–09 | Bundesliga | 29 | 8 | 1 | 1 | – | – | 30 | 9 | |||
| 2009–10 | Bundesliga | 32 | 4 | 4 | 1 | – | – | 36 | 5 | |||
| 2010–11 | Bundesliga | 26 | 5 | 4 | 0 | – | – | 30 | 5 | |||
| 2011–12 | Bundesliga | 23 | 9 | 3 | 2 | – | – | 26 | 11 | |||
| 2012–13 | Bundesliga | 22 | 7 | 1 | 0 | – | – | 23 | 7 | |||
| 2013–14 | Bundesliga | 28 | 11 | 2 | 0 | – | – | 30 | 11 | |||
| 2014–15 | Bundesliga | 13 | 2 | 0 | 0 | – | – | 13 | 2 | |||
| Total | 230 | 62 | 19 | 5 | – | – | 249 | 67 | ||||
| Beijing Renhe | 2015 | Chinese Super League | 15 | 2 | 0 | 0 | – | – | 15 | 2 | ||
| 2016 | China League One | 13 | 3 | 0 | 0 | – | – | 13 | 3 | |||
| Total | 28 | 5 | 0 | 0 | – | – | 28 | 5 | ||||
| Career total | 340 | 99 | 20 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 361 | 104 | ||
International
- As of match played 13 October 2015.
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bosnia and Herzegovina | |||
| 2007 | 3 | 0 | |
| 2008 | 6 | 0 | |
| 2009 | 8 | 2 | |
| 2010 | 4 | 1 | |
| 2011 | 5 | 1 | |
| 2012 | 7 | 0 | |
| 2013 | 6 | 0 | |
| 2014 | 6 | 0 | |
| 2015 | 2 | 0 | |
| Total | 47 | 4 | |
International goals
- Scores and results list Bosnia and Herzegovina's goal tally first.
| Goal | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | 6 June 2009 | Stade Pierre de Coubertin, Cannes, France |  Oman | Friendly | ||
| 2. | 9 September 2009 | Bilino Polje, Zenica, Bosnia and Herzegovina |  Turkey | 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification | ||
| 3. | 29 May 2010 | Råsunda, Solna, Sweden |  Sweden | Friendly | ||
| 4. | 2 September 2011 | Dinamo Stadium, Minsk, Belarus |  Belarus | UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying |