Ante Milicic (/ˈænteɪ ˈmɪlətʃɪtʃ/ AN-tay MIL-ə-chitch; Croatian: Ante Miličić [ǎːnte mîlitʃitɕ]; (born 4 April 1974) is an Australian soccer manager and former professional player who currently is the head coach of the China women's national football team.
 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Anthony Josip Milicic | ||
| Date of birth | 4 April 1974[1] | ||
| Place of birth | Sydney, New South Wales, Australia | ||
| Height | 1.81 m (5 ft 11+1⁄2 in) | ||
| Position(s) | Forward | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Sydney United | |||
| Hurstville ZFC | |||
| 1990–1991 | AIS | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1992–1993 | Sydney United | 6 | (1) |
| 1993 | Canberra Deakin | 13 | (6) |
| 1993–1997 | Sydney United | 114 | (39) |
| 1997–1999 | NAC Breda | 47 | (10) |
| 1999–2001 | NK Rijeka | 51 | (15) |
| 2001–2002 | Sydney United | 14 | (8) |
| 2002–2003 | Sydney Olympic | 39 | (30) |
| 2003–2004 | Parramatta Power | 26 | (20) |
| 2004 | Pahang | 11 | (9) |
| 2004–2005 | Sydney United | ||
| 2005–2006 | Newcastle Jets | 20 | (7) |
| 2006–2008 | Queensland Roar | 24 | (4) |
| 2008 | Shahzan Muda | (10) | |
| 2009 | Sydney United | ||
| 2010 | Dandenong City | (7) | |
| International career | |||
| Australia U-20 | |||
| Australia U-23 | |||
| 2002–2005 | Australia | 6 | (5) |
| Managerial career | |||
| 2009 | Sydney United | ||
| 2010–2012 | Melbourne Heart (Assistant) | ||
| 2012–2014 | Western Sydney Wanderers (Assistant) | ||
| 2014–2018 | Australia (Assistant) | ||
| 2017–2018 | Australia U23 | ||
| 2018–2019 | Australia U23 (Assistant) | ||
| 2018–2019 | Australia U20 | ||
| 2019–2020 | Australia Women | ||
| 2020–2022 | Macarthur FC | ||
| 2024– | China Women | ||
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 2 December 2007 | |||
Personal life
editThe son of Croatian immigrants, Milicic grew up in Strathfield, a suburb in the Inner West of Sydney. Milicic was largely brought up by his father after his mother died when he was 17. At 16, he was selected to train at the Australian Institute of Sport.[2]
Club career
editHe played for a variety of sides in two stints in the National Soccer League. The first stint was played almost entirely for Sydney United, for whom he played as a junior, and which culminated in playing in their runner-up 1996/97 side. After that season he moved to NAC Breda in the Netherlands, and after 2 seasons there went to Croatia's NK Rijeka, where he was the club's top scorer in 2000/01 with 10 goals. On his return to the NSL in season 2001/02, he rejoined Sydney United for a brief stay, before moving to city rival Sydney Olympic during the same season. He would spend the rest of the season and the next playing there, including scoring the only goal of the 2001/02 Grand Final against Perth Glory. In the final he was awarded the Joe Marston Medal, delivering Sydney Olympic their second NSL title, as well as playing in the runner up side the following season against Perth Glory.
In the last season of the NSL in 2003–04 season, he moved to Parramatta Power, where he would again experience Grand Final defeat against the Perth Glory. After the NSL was disbanded, Milicic played in the Malaysia Super League for Pahang. He score a brace for Pahang in his debut against Perlis.[3] He scored 9 goals for Pahang as they were crowned as the league champions of the 2004 season.[4] It was widely felt that with the $1.5 million salary caps imposed on all A-League clubs, Milicic would not be able to be brought back to Australia. However, he joined the Newcastle United Jets, who finished 4th on the A-League ladder in 2005/2006, also joining close friends Labinot Haliti, Ned Zelic.[citation needed]
Ante Milicic was the first player in the A-League to score a Hat-Trick in the game Newcastle Jets v New Zealand Knights on 4 November 2005 in round 11. In May 2006 Ante signed to transfer to rival A-League team Queensland Roar, where he played in 44 matches scoring 11 goals. On 8 December 2007, Milicic had his contract terminated by mutual consent and joining Malaysian Premier League Shahzan Muda FC, citing that "It wasn't quite happening for me at Queensland Roar."[5]
National team statistics
edit| Australia national team | ||
|---|---|---|
| Year | Apps | Goals |
| 2002 | 2 | 1 |
| 2003 | 0 | 0 |
| 2004 | 3 | 2 |
| 2005 | 1 | 2 |
| Total | 6 | 5 |
International goals
edit| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | 10 July 2002 | Auckland, New Zealand |  Fiji |
1–0 | 8–0 | 2002 OFC Nations Cup |
| 2. | 9 October 2004 | Honiara, Solomon Islands |  Solomon Islands |
2–0 | 5–1 | 2004 OFC Nations Cup |
| 3. | 12 October 2004 | Sydney, Australia | Solomon Islands |
1–0 | 6–0 | |
| 4. | 29 March 2005 | Perth, Australia |  Indonesia |
1–0 | 3–0 | Friendly |
| 5. | 2–0 |
Coaching
editMilicic returned home to his club Sydney United as player/coach for season 2009 and 2010 in the NSW Premier League. It is his first venture as coach and currently boasts a record of 9 wins (8 in Premier League 1 Tiger Turf Cup), 2 Draws and 1 Loss.
He was also called up as an assistant coach to the Australia men's national under-20 soccer team team for the 2009 FIFA U-20 World Cup in Egypt and 2011 Under 20s World Cup in Colombia.
On 18 November 2009, it was announced that he would be joining Jesper Olsen as an assistant coach at new A-League side Melbourne Heart.
After being passed over for the vacant manager position at Melbourne Heart, he joined his close friend Tony Popovic as the inaugural assistant coach of Western Sydney Wanderers FC.[7]
At the end of the 2013–14 A-League season, Milicic joined Ange Postecoglou as assistant coach of Australia's men’s national football team, the Socceroos.[8]
On 18 February 2019, Milicic was announced by the FFA as the interim head coach of the Australia women's national team,[9] the Matildas, managing the Matildas to a round of 16 finish at the 2019 FIFA Women's World Cup. He resigned from this position on 19 July 2020.[10]
On 15 May 2019, Milicic was announced as the inaugural head coach for new A-League club Macarthur FC.[11] He began following his spell with the Matildas.
After two seasons with Macarthur, on 26 April 2022, Milicic informed the club that the 2021–22 season would be his last choosing to return to Croatia for family reasons.
On 11 May 2024, Milicic was appointed as the head coach of China.[12]
Managerial statistics
edit- As of 18 May 2022
| Team | Nat | From | To | Record | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| G | W | D | L | Win % | ||||
| Australia women's | 
|
2019 | 2020 | 16 | 11 | 2 | 3 | 68.75 |
| Macarthur |
|
2020 | 2022 | 56 | 22 | 12 | 22 | 39.29 |
| Total | 72 | 33 | 14 | 25 | 45.83 | |||
Honours
editWith Australia:
With Sydney Olympic:
With Pahang:
With Trinity Grammar 4th XI:
- Cassen Cup- Most Outstanding Opens Team: 2009
Personal honours:
- Joe Marston Medal: 2001–2002 with Sydney Olympic
- Johnny Warren Medal: 2003–2004 with Parramatta Power
- NSL Top Scorer: 2003–2004 with Parramatta Power – 20 goals
References
edit- ^ FIFA.com. "FIFA Women's World Cup France 2019™ - Coaches - Ante MILICIC". www.fifa.com. Archived from the original on 8 June 2019. Retrieved 22 August 2019.
- ^ Mark, David (June 2019). "From fringe Socceroo to accidental head coach: Ante Milicic's path to the Matildas' top job". ABC News. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 8 September 2019.
- ^ Milicic goes through a gamut of emotions in debut match with Pahang - The Star, 19 April 2004.
- ^ Malaysia 2004 - RSSSF.
- ^ "Milicic leaves Roar for good". The World Game. 8 December 2007. Archived from the original on 8 December 2007. Retrieved 8 December 2007.
- ^ Ante Milicic at National-Football-Teams.com
- ^ Davutovic, David (22 May 2012). "Ante's heart is back in Sydney". thetelegraph.com.au. News Limited. Retrieved 29 June 2012.
- ^ "UAE will be formidable Asian Cup hosts for defending champions Australia, says Ante Milicic" The National. Retrieved 10 May 2018.
- ^ "Ante Milicic confirmed as Matildas head coach for World Cup". TheGuardian.com. 18 February 2019.
- ^ "Milicic quits Matildas as A-League beckons". The World Game. Special Broadcasting Service. Retrieved 19 July 2020.
- ^ "Milicic to take the helm of new club Macarthur FC". The World Game. Retrieved 15 May 2019.
- ^ "安特·米利西奇出任中国国家女子足球队主教练" (in Chinese). Chinese Football Association. 11 May 2024. Retrieved 11 May 2024.