*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 17:41, 28 April 2024 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 23:46, 26 March 2024 (UTC)
A Croatian youth international, Gvardiol made his debut for the senior side in 2021, and represented them at
UEFA Euro 2020 and the
2022 FIFA World Cup, helping his country to third place at the latter tournament.
Club career
Early career
Gvardiol started playing football at the age of seven when his father Tihomir, once an amateur player in his native
Novigrad, took him to
Trešnjevka. While there, he was spotted by
Lokomotiva and
Zagreb; however, at the last minute he received an offer from
Dinamo Zagreb which his family accepted.[12]
Gvardiol made his
league debut for the senior Dinamo team on 18 October in a 4–2 victory over
Gorica, coming on for
Mario Gavranović in the 87th minute.[21] In his second league appearance for the club on 2 November, he scored the only goal in a 1–0 victory over
Inter Zaprešić. That made him the sixth youngest league goalscorer for Dinamo, after
Alen Halilović,
Mateo Kovačić,
Niko Kranjčar,
Ante Ćorić and
Tin Jedvaj.[22] On 12 February 2020, in a
UEFA Youth Leagueplay-off against
Dynamo Kyiv, Gvardiol successfully converted a
penalty in a shootout as Dinamo won 4–3 and qualified for the
round of 16.[23] In the round of 16 against
Bayern Munich on 4 March, Gvardiol deflected
Leon Dajaku's shot
into his own net to set the score to 2–2. In the resulting shootout, he successfully converted his attempt again as Dinamo won 6–5 and progressed to the
quarter-finals.[24] On 25 June, Gvardiol signed a five-year contract with Dinamo.[25] On 5 July, in the
derby against
Rijeka when the league title was already secured, Gvardiol deflected
Franko Andrijašević's shot into his own net as Rijeka won 2–0, which would eventually cost coach
Igor Jovićević his job.[26][27]
However, on 28 September, it was announced that Gvardiol signed for
Bundesliga club RB Leipzig on a five-year contract for
€16 million, plus various add-ons.[38] The fee was the highest ever paid for a Croatian teenager and the third highest ever paid for a Croatian defender, only behind
Dejan Lovren and
Duje Ćaleta-Car.[39] Gvardiol remained at Dinamo for the remainder of the
season.[38] On 22 October, he debuted for Dinamo in a senior
UEFA competition, as Dinamo drew 0–0 with
Feyenoord in the Europa League.[40] On 16 November, Gvardiol tested positive for
COVID-19, which forced him to miss the derby against
Osijek, now coached by Bjelica, on 21 November.[41][42] On 10 December, Gvardiol scored his first goal in a senior UEFA competition, as Dinamo defeated
CSKA Moscow 3–1 in the Europa League.[43] After completion of the
Europa League group stage, Gvardiol's performances were highly praised, as Dinamo conceded only one goal and topped their group.[44] On 28 February 2021, he scored the opening goal and assisted the third one in a 3–0 victory over
Slaven Belupo.[45] However, after a
quadriceps injury in training in early March, he was forced to miss both legs of Dinamo's
Europa League Round of 16 tie against
Tottenham Hotspur, which Dinamo won 3–2 on
aggregate.[46][47][48] He returned for the
quarter-final match against
Villarreal on 8 April, which ended as a 1–0 loss.[49][50] Three days later, he scored his third goal of the season in a 2–0 victory over Lokomotiva.[51] On 22 May, Gvardiol played his last game for Dinamo, 1–0 victory over
Šibenik.[52][53]
RB Leipzig
Gvardiol made his
Bundesliga debut on 20 August 2021 in a 4–0 victory over
VfB Stuttgart, playing the entire match.[54] He quickly established himself in Leipzig's starting XI and attracted attention with his good plays.[55] On 15 September, he made his
Champions League debut in a 6–3 defeat to Manchester City.[56][57] On 11 December, he scored his debut goal for Leipzig in a 4–1 victory over
Borussia Mönchengladbach.[58][59] He significantly contributed to Leipzig's good form during the beginning of
Domenico Tedesco's tenure as manager, after the poor start of the
season during previous manager
Jesse Marsch's term.[60][61] On 23 January 2022, he scored his second goal of the season in a 2–0 victory over
VfL Wolfsburg.[62] By the end of the season, Gvardiol helped Leipzig win the
DFB-Pokal and reach the
semi-finals of the
Europa League, accomplishing both feats for the first time in the history of the club.[63] Furthermore, the DFB-Pokal victory was also the first major trophy title in the history of the club.[64]
On 12 August, France Football announced Gvardiol as one of the nominees for the
2022 Kopa Trophy,[65] where he eventually finished in sixth place.[66] On 1 September, Gvardiol extended his contract with RB Leipzig until 2027, with the club having rejected
Chelsea's
€90 million offer for the player.[67] On 25 October, Gvardiol scored his first ever
Champions League goal in a 3–2 victory over
Real Madrid.[68][69] The game was Madrid's first defeat of the
season.[70] On 22 February 2023, Gvardiol scored an equalizer in a 1–1 draw with Manchester City in the
Champions League round of 16. Aged 21 years and 30 days, he became the youngest Croatian player ever to score in a Champions League knockout phase.[71]
Manchester City
On 5 August 2023,
Premier League club Manchester City announced the signing of Gvardiol on a five-year deal,[72] making him the third Croatian to join the club's first team after
Vedran Ćorluka and Mateo Kovačić.[73] The fee was undisclosed, but reported to be around £77 million (€90 million), making Gvardiol the
second most expensive defender in the world.[74][75]
Gvardiol made his
Premier League debut for Manchester City on 11 August in a 3–0 victory over
Burnley, coming on for
Rico Lewis in the 79th minute. He was given his first Manchester City start in the
2023 UEFA Super Cup against
Sevilla, playing the full 90 minutes, with his team winning 5–4 on
penalties after a 1–1 draw in regulation time.[76] Three days later, he started his first
Premier League game in a 1–0 home win against
Newcastle United.[77] On 6 September, Gvardiol was announced as one of the nominees for the
2023 Ballon d'Or.[78] He scored his first Manchester City goal on 9 April 2024, in the first leg of the
Champions League quarter-final against Real Madrid, which ended in a 3–3 draw at the
Santiago Bernabéu Stadium.[79]
International career
Gvardiol earned his first call-up to
Croatia national under-21 team in October 2019, at the age of 17, when coach
Igor Bišćan listed him in the squad for
Under-21 Euro 2021qualifiers against
Lithuania and the
Czech Republic.[80] Gvardiol debuted on 14 November against the former opponent, being named in the starting lineup, as Croatia won 3–1.[81] On 8 October 2020, he scored the tenth goal in Croatia's 10–0 victory over
San Marino, the largest victory in the history of the national team.[82] On 9 March 2021, he was named in Bišćan's
23-man squad for the group stage of the tournament; however, he was forced to miss it due to a quadriceps injury.[83][46][47] On 17 May, he was named in Bišćan's
23-man squad for the knockout stage of the tournament,[84] as well as
Zlatko Dalić's
26-man squad for the
UEFA Euro 2020.[85]
After losing 2–1 to
Spain after
extra time in the
Under-21 Euro quarter-final,[86] Gvardiol joined the
senior team.[87] He made his senior debut in a friendly 1–0 defeat to
Belgium on 6 June, being substituted on for
Borna Barišić at half-time.[88][89] A week later, he earned his first start for the national team, in a 1–0 defeat to
England in Croatia's opening game of Euro 2020.[90][91] At the age of 19 years, 4 months and 21 days, he became the youngest ever player to play for Croatia at a major tournament, surpassing Mateo Kovačić.[92][93] He went on to start all Croatia's games at the tournament.[94] On 8 October 2021, he scored his debut goal for Croatia in a 3–0
World Cup qualifying victory over
Cyprus.[95]
On 9 November 2022, Gvardiol was named in Dalić's
26-man squad for the
2022 FIFA World Cup.[96] A day later, in a
Bundesliga match against
Freiburg, Gvardiol broke his nose after colliding with
Willi Orbán and prominently wore a face mask during the tournament as a consequence.[97][98][99][100] He received extended praise for his defensive performance in the
group stage,[101][102][103] especially in the decisive match against Belgium on 1 December that ended up as a goalless draw and saw Croatia qualify for the
knockout stage for the third time in history.[104][105][106] On 17 December, in the
third place play-off against
Morocco, Gvardiol scored his first goal for Croatia at a major tournament. At the age of 20 years, 10 months and 24 days, he became the youngest ever player to score for Croatia at a major tournament, surpassing
Ivica Olić.[107] He was named
Man of the Match,[108] as Croatia won 2–1 and claimed their second bronze and third overall World Cup medal in history.[109] Despite being a favourite for the
FIFA Young Player Award,[110][111][112] he lost it to
Enzo Fernández.[113][114]
Josko Gvardiol has been described as a modern-day centre-back who can perform all the necessary defensive tasks of a traditional
defender while also providing his team with serious ball progression when in possession.[118][119][120]
Gvardiol can break the opponent's lines and is a good dribbler under pressure.[120][121] He can carry the ball forward when space presents itself and slide a smooth pass to a teammate farther up the field.[122][123] He is a strong and powerful runner, capable of surging forward with the ball at his feet to break lines of pressure.[118][123] He can muscle past defenders and create space for himself and his teammates. He is also known to be able to link up with attackers higher up in the field to create and finish chances.[120][121][123]
Gvardiol has been described by pundits as having a level of maturity in his play style beyond his years.[122][123] His left-footedness provides an excellent outlet for his team as it allows them to line him up alongside a right-footed partner.[118][120] He also has good attributes for a defender in spotting danger and having the speed to stop it.[120][121] He is capable of changing direction quickly to deal with the ball in behind, as well as having the pace and strength to face fast and strong wingers with through balls.[122][123]