Matthew Spiranovic

Early career

Spiranovic played junior football in Geelong and Melbourne and had represented his state, Victoria, at U–14 and U–15 Australian national championship level.

North Geelong Warriors

He had a brief stint with former junior club and Victorian State League Division 2 North-West side North Geelong Warriors, scoring one league goal in a 5–0 home win against Albion Rovers on 5 June 2004.

Victorian Institute of Sport

In 2004, he earned a scholarship with the Victorian Institute of Sport under coach Ian Greener, and was awarded the Weinstein Medal for best junior player of the year by Football Federation Victoria in 2005. Spiranovic was selected in a 20-man Australia U–17 national team by coach Ange Postecoglou for a five-match tour of Chile against Palestino U–17, Universidad Catolica U–17, Colo-Colo U–17 and Chile U–17. The tour was preparation for the 2005 OFC U-17 Championship. The Qantas U–17 Joeys were then crowned champions of the 2005 OFC U-17 Championship and qualified for the 2005 FIFA U-17 World Championship in Peru, where Spiranovic played in all three group-stage matches of the competition. He was also selected for a Four-Nations tournament in Peru against Costa Rica U–17, Ecuador U–17 and Peru U–17 in July 2005.

Australian Institute of Sport

In 2006, Spiranovic then graduated to the Australian Institute of Sport where he joined future Socceroo teammates Dario Vidošić, Bruce Djite, Nikita Rukavytsya and Nathan…

Socceroos

On 5 April 2007, Spiranovic publicly announced his intention to play for Australia on SBS's football program, The World Game. He was called up to the national side for a friendly against Uruguay, which was held on 2 June 2007. Spiranovic did not play in the defeat against the South Americans and surprisingly missed out on a spot in Australia's 2007 Asian Cup Squad, for which only five recognized defenders were selected. Spiranovic made his senior international debut for the Socceroos on 23 May 2008, coming on as a substitute against Ghana, followed by a start in the World Cup Qualifier against China on 22 June 2008. Spiranovic did not make the 2010 FIFA World Cup squad and was transferred to Japanese side Urawa Red Diamonds to gain more playing time. After a lengthy absence from the national team, Spiranovic played a full 90 minutes in a 0–0 draw against Switzerland on 5 September 2010. During this time which had followed Craig Moore's retirement from the national team, Spiranovic was labelled as Australia's central defender for the next decade as coach Holger Osieck noticed his potential before selection for the 2011 Asian Cup. In 2015 Spiranovic was selected for the 2015 AFC Asian Cup, which was hosted in Australia. Spiranovic played in the final against South Korea, which the Australian side won.

2005 FIFA U-17 World Championship

Spiranovic was selected in a 20-man Australia U–17 national team by coach Ange Postecoglou for a five-match tour of…

Club

As of 28 October 2017

1Includes QSL play-offs and A-League finals series. 2Includes DFB-Pokal, Emperor's Cup and FFA Cup. 3Includes J. League Cup. 4Includes UEFA Europa League and AFC Champions League.

International

Under–17

Scores and results list Australia U–17's goal tally first.

Socceroos

As of 7 June 2019

Personal and family life

Spiranovic was born in Geelong, Victoria. He is the son of Michael Spiranovic, an English born former footballer for North Geelong Warriors. Spiranovic grew up in Geelong's South-West suburb Wandana Heights. He attended St. Robert's Primary School of Geelong and St Joseph's College from 2001 to 2005. Spiranovic has two younger sisters, Amelia, who play for South Melbourne in the Women's Victorian Premier League, and Laura, who plays for ŽNK Split in the Croatian Women's First Football League. He shares a strong friendship with former 1. FC Nürnberg teammate Dario Vidošić, the pair having played together for the Australia U20 team before signing professional terms with the German club. Spiranovic's agent is John Grimaud.

National team decision

By 2007, it was clear that Spiranovic was to play for Australia when he officially rejected an offer from the Croatian Football Federation. Former Socceroos coach Graham Arnold was informed of Spiranovic's decision by phone and therefore included him in the national side prior to the 2007 Asian Cup and 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifiers. Arnold stated that Football Federation Australia (FFA), as well as the Australian national team's staff, were in danger of losing the defender as Spiranovic's parents received phone calls from Croatia in the middle of the night which applied much pressure on Spiranovic to make his final decision.