mack Posted September 14, 2012 Share Posted September 14, 2012 Mateo Poljak Date Of Birth: 09/10/1989 Nation: Croatia Birthplace: Zagreb, Croatia Squad Number: 8 Position: Defensive Midfield Secondary Positions: Joined Wanderers: 08/13/2012 Contract Details: 1 year initial contract. Signed 1 year extension on 22nd December 2012. Signed 2 year extension on 5 September 2013. Contract Finish: 2015/16 Previous Club: NK Lokomotiva (Zagreb) Wanderers Debut: 6th October 2012 vs Central Coast Mariners Wanderers A-League Appearances: 66 Wanderers A-League Goals: 3 Wanderers ACL Appearances: 6 Wanderers ACL Goals: 1 Wanderers FFA Cup Appearances: 1 Wanderers FFA Cup Goals: 0 Wanderers Club World Cup Appearances: 2 Wanderers Club World Cup Goals: 0 Wanderers Total Appearances: 75 Wanderers Total Goals: 4 Yearly Appearances & Goals: 2012/13: 25 (1), 2013/14: 22 (1), 2014/15: 28 (2) International Team: Croatia International Caps: 0 International Goals: 0 Club Exit Date: 01/01/1970 Individual Awards: Team Honours: A-League Premiership Winner (2012/13), Asian Champions League Winner (2014). Highlight: Scored his first ever goal for Western Sydney against Adelaide United in Round 19, Season 2012/13 on 3/02/2013. Highlight: Highlight: Description: A young defensive midfielder who has been capped in the Croatian youth setup. Has been deployed by Tony Popovic as an anchor man, shoring up the defensive structure to allow the likes of Ono and Mooy to push forward. The defensive anchor around which the Wanderers premiership winning campaign was founded, Poljak has earned his spot as one of the best defensive midfielder players in the competition and was rewarded by the club with a new contract, only to have that cut short by a season, Poljak moving up north to the Newcastle Jets for 2015/16 onwards. View full record Link to comment
MarcelFC Posted September 15, 2012 Share Posted September 15, 2012 Speaking to a few of my Croatian friends who have heard of Mateo and/or have seen him play, he is definitely one to look out for and is a great addition to have to the squad. Link to comment
matty Posted October 12, 2012 Share Posted October 12, 2012 I'm seeing that now Marcel. He is very solid and has a good shot on him too as a nice bonus. Link to comment
montywoodpeg Posted November 1, 2012 Share Posted November 1, 2012 I'm a big fan of Mateo. On the field, it seems his defensive strengths allow Mooy to push up in attack and press in defense. Also of note is his strength in an interview, haha. Can we also acknowledge his name is a ready-made aussie nickname? "Mate-o!" (Obviously not pronounced like that, though, but combining 'Mate' and '-o' can't be overlooked) Interview before Roar game - LINK Interview after Roar game - LINK Link to comment
Kraken Posted November 2, 2012 Share Posted November 2, 2012 Watched his interview for round 5 preview today, sounds like his enjoying himself and promoting the league. I think he could be doing a little more on the field. If we get rid of Dino I hope he Mateo stays. He could teach Mooy a thing or two about interviews. Link to comment
Beretta Posted November 5, 2012 Share Posted November 5, 2012 i met mateo personally over the weekend he is a good kid. went out and showed him a night on the town... gave me an insight to things at wsw and he is enjoying himself... i dont think some wsw fans understand his work rate...he works all 90min, and he does all the dirty work for mooy and ono, which gives them freedom to be more creative... one player that wsw need to re-sign! Link to comment
Benched Posted November 5, 2012 Share Posted November 5, 2012 Beretta, I have him in my fantasy team, so definitely know what he adds. Good to hear he is enjoying himself. So was the night out organised through SU? Link to comment
Beretta Posted November 5, 2012 Share Posted November 5, 2012 nah, he met a mate of mine somehow... (i think because of where he lives atm) it was my friends bday so we went out on the town, and because we are all croats, made him feel at home and comfortable, there was no language barrier problem... people dont realise but it can be lonely for a 23 year old alone, and not knowing many people etc... so he appreciated it, and we will catch up again soon. Link to comment
RBBKopite Posted November 5, 2012 Share Posted November 5, 2012 Can't believe anyone would criticise Poljak. The lad has come in and done his job to the extent that Mooy & Ono have been allowed free creative reign through the middle. Looks to me like he has developed a good understanding with Mooy (watch them interchange at times) and is enjoying his football. Beretta, good on you & your mates for taking him in and showing him a good time. Link to comment
Beretta Posted November 5, 2012 Share Posted November 5, 2012 Beretta, good on you & your mates for taking him in and showing him a good time. another friend of mine said you will ruin his career if he keeps hanging around you lot lol... but he is well level headed, follows a strict diet etc. Link to comment
DeeDee Posted November 5, 2012 Share Posted November 5, 2012 He's the perfect sidekick to the likes of Ono and Mooy, compliments them so well. Few aspects of his game he can improve such as keeping possession and some runs into trouble, but likes its been said he gets through so much of the "dirty work" and doesn't stop. Link to comment
Benched Posted November 5, 2012 Share Posted November 5, 2012 nah, he met a mate of mine somehow... (i think because of where he lives atm) it was my friends bday so we went out on the town, and because we are all croats, made him feel at home and comfortable, there was no language barrier problem... people dont realise but it can be lonely for a 23 year old alone, and not knowing many people etc... so he appreciated it, and we will catch up again soon. I just think that's f.kn awesome. I bet he was stoked and just happy to be able to feel comfortable, speaking Croatian and being among'st other young dudes. Glad you guys did it. Link to comment
Davo Posted November 5, 2012 Share Posted November 5, 2012 Plus we'll know to blame Beretta if he ends up in the papers for his wild nights out on the town. Link to comment
Beretta Posted November 9, 2012 Share Posted November 9, 2012 hanged out with both mateo and dino last night, played fifa 13 lol... dino should be back this week on the bench after his injury. Link to comment
MCHammer Posted November 9, 2012 Share Posted November 9, 2012 hanged out with both mateo and dino last night, played fifa 13 lol... dino should be back this week on the bench after his injury. ahaha are they any good? mateo is awesome. not sure how many people would say this but he's my favourite WSW player Link to comment
shakeyourface Posted December 1, 2012 Share Posted December 1, 2012 hanged out with both mateo and dino last night, played fifa 13 lol... dino should be back this week on the bench after his injury. haha nice one! i spoke to him briefly at the launch and he seemed like a really cool guy. hopefully he'll be back playing against the phoenix this weekend and own it again Link to comment
romic90 Posted December 23, 2012 Share Posted December 23, 2012 http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sport/football/mateo-poljak-re-signs-with-wanderers-more-deals-to-follow/story-fndb5nmd-1226542717044 EXCELLENT NEWS Link to comment
Neverbloom Posted December 23, 2012 Share Posted December 23, 2012 http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sport/football/mateo-poljak-re-signs-with-wanderers-more-deals-to-follow/story-fndb5nmd-1226542717044 EXCELLENT NEWS great news like all our boys seems like a really good guy and a talented player the more players with his attitude in our team(which they all have) the better Link to comment
WanderersFC Posted December 23, 2012 Share Posted December 23, 2012 This guy has been probably our best player so far along with Mooy. He does all the hard work on the field, and not many people realise that. Hopefully he can score one soon as well, and that would be just what he deserves. Link to comment
Davo Posted December 23, 2012 Share Posted December 23, 2012 My favourite quote from that article: It is the best feeling, the fans are unbelievable, they carry you and when you first start to play football you only wish and imagine that one day you will feel this atmosphere Link to comment
Neverbloom Posted December 23, 2012 Share Posted December 23, 2012 My favourite quote from that article: It is the best feeling, the fans are unbelievable, they carry you and when you first start to play football you only wish and imagine that one day you will feel this atmosphere that is how we have to be with every player, every single moment of every match if someone is deciding who they want to play for in the A-league and see our atmosphere compared to the cove then we will get them wanting to play for us every single time Link to comment
ManfredSchaefer Posted December 23, 2012 Share Posted December 23, 2012 http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sport/football/mateo-poljak-re-signs-with-wanderers-more-deals-to-follow/story-fndb5nmd-1226542717044 EXCELLENT NEWS great news like all our boys seems like a really good guy and a talented player the more players with his attitude in our team(which they all have) the better Damn good news to see Poljak staying on board...for me it's been the likes of him, Polenz, D'Apuzzo and Topor-Stanley that have been the bedrock on which the other more media-favourite players have built on. I'd say anyone of the other teams in the HAL would love to have four such players combining so well for them into such a sound structure. Link to comment
Neverbloom Posted December 23, 2012 Share Posted December 23, 2012 http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sport/football/mateo-poljak-re-signs-with-wanderers-more-deals-to-follow/story-fndb5nmd-1226542717044 EXCELLENT NEWS great news like all our boys seems like a really good guy and a talented player the more players with his attitude in our team(which they all have) the better Damn good news to see Poljak staying on board...for me it's been the likes of him, Polenz, D'Apuzzo and Topor-Stanley that have been the bedrock on which the other more media-favourite players have built on. I'd say anyone of the other teams in the HAL would love to have four such players combining so well for them into such a sound structure. i agree i can honestly say no player has disappointed me even if they didnt have great matches i have never seen one of our players give up many of our players tend not to get noticed but their contribution is still massive i see Poljak as one of those players Link to comment
Boban Posted December 23, 2012 Share Posted December 23, 2012 My favourite quote from that article: It is the best feeling, the fans are unbelievable, they carry you and when you first start to play football you only wish and imagine that one day you will feel this atmosphere I can't see us having trouble holding onto any of the players that we want given how the players feel. On top of that, any prospective players will no doubt take this into account. Link to comment
Pup55 Posted December 23, 2012 Share Posted December 23, 2012 fantastic news. he is the unsung hero of our midfield 5 Link to comment
MCHammer Posted December 23, 2012 Share Posted December 23, 2012 yer i love this guy. has been my favourite player since day 1. great news he's staying on! Link to comment
Jaggy Posted December 24, 2012 Share Posted December 24, 2012 Quality player, glad he will be with us next season. Link to comment
cpcDanger Posted December 24, 2012 Share Posted December 24, 2012 He's still only 23, should lock him into a 3 or 5 year contract. Link to comment
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