Mario Mandžukić

Youth and early career

Mandžukić started playing football in Germany, where he and his parents relocated to due to the Croatian War of Independence. In 1992, he joined German club TSF Ditzingen, near Stuttgart. Upon returning to his home country, the newly independent Croatia, he spent the period between 1996 and 2003 at NK Marsonia before spending a season at the city minnows NK Željezničar. The next season, he returned to Marsonia and in the summer of 2005 he made a move to NK Zagreb.

Dinamo Zagreb

In the summer of 2007, Mandžukić was bought by the Croatian powerhouse Dinamo Zagreb for €1.3 million as a replacement for their Arsenal-bound star striker Eduardo da Silva. Upon his arrival, he managed to secure his spot in starting eleven, playing mostly in the position of second striker. On 4 October 2007, he put on an impressive performance against AFC Ajax in Amsterdam when he scored two goals in extra-time to secure Dinamo's 2–3 away win, as Dinamo qualified for the group stage of 2007–08 UEFA Cup. He finished his first season at Dinamo with 12 goals and 11 assists throughout 29 matches, but also had a poor discipline record, collecting eight yellow cards. He started the 2008–09 season with two goals against Linfield in a qualifier for the UEFA Cup. In the 2008–09 Prva HNL, Mandžukić was the league's top goalscorer, bagging 16 goals in 28 appearances. He also scored three goals in the season's UEFA Cup. This was the season of his rise in the Croatia…

After putting together a string of solid performances in the 2007–08 Prva HNL, as well as in Dinamo's UEFA Champions League and UEFA Cup matches, Mandžukić earned a call–up to the Croat national team, for which he debuted in a game against Macedonia on 17 November 2007. On 10 September 2008, he scored his first ever goal for Croatia in a 4–1 home loss against England in a 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifying match.

Euro 2012

Mandžukić's influence in the national team increased during the UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying. His first goal of the campaign came in June 2011, when he scored an equalizer against Georgia at the Stadion Poljud. He added another header against Latvia in the last match of the qualifiers. With Croatia finishing second in their group, they had to face Turkey in the Euro 2012 play-offs. In the first match played in Istanbul, Croatia stunned the home fans by winning 0–3, with Mandžukić scoring the second goal from a header in the 32nd minute of the match. Mandžukić was one of two of manager Slaven Bilić's first choice strikers for Croatia at UEFA Euro 2012, being paired with the Everton striker Nikica Jelavić. He scored twice in Croatia's opening 3–1 win against the Republic of Ireland, and also scored in a 1–1 draw against Italy the following match. Despite Croatia's group-stage exit, he was the joint-top scorer of the tournament with three goals alongside Mario Balotelli, Fernando Torres, Cristiano Ronaldo, Alan Dzagoev, and future Bayern teammate Mario…

In addition to his goalscoring, pundits noted Mandžukić for his physical strength, versatility, mobility and fitness, as well as his ability in the air. He was even given the nickname Đilkoš [dʑîːlkoʃ] by Miroslav Blažević, which means brash and unsophisticated, referring to the striker's physical strengths, powerful physique and seemingly endless stamina, rather than his technical ability; his other nicknames included Mandžo and Super Mario. Known for his high work-rate and defensive contribution, Mandžukić's former manager at Wolfsburg, Felix Magath, noted his endurance, stating that the striker was "so fit that I think he could play two back-to-back games without stopping even for a minute."

Following his move to Atlético Madrid, Sky Sports analyst Adam Bate wrote that he was the perfect fit for manager Diego Simeone's style as Mandžukić was "often the instigator of the press with his energetic running, Mandzukic battles defences, driving them back to create space for teammates as well as preventing opponents building patiently without pressure on the ball." Bate further added that the Croatian was "...both a physical and mobile striker who does much of his best work without the ball, seemingly doing the work of two players and thus allowing an extra man in midfield." ESPN FC contributor Michael Cox also praised Mandžukić for his excellent team-work, highlighting that while he pressed his opponents energetically when they attempted to play the ball out from the back, he…

Mandžukić was born in Slavonski Brod, present-day Croatia, on 21 May 1986. His father Mato is a Bosnian Croat from Prud near Šamac. Mato was also a football player, who moved to Slavonski Brod upon transferring from Kozara Bosanska Gradiška to BSK. Mandžukić has been in a relationship with Ivana Mikulić from Strizivojna since 2007. On 16 April 2021, AC Milan club Chairman Paolo Scaroni announced that Mandžukić donated his March salary to AC Milan's club charity, Fondazione Milan, as he was injured the entire month. Fondazione Milan is a charity set up by the club in order to develop facilities and help younger players with difficulty getting the chance to play football. Mandžukić later donated his April and May wages as a result of a long injury.