Happy Birthday Josip!
Our striker Josip Misic turns 25 today, and PAOK FC would like to wish him many years of health, happiness and successes on both a personal and professional level.
Josip Misic was born on June 28 1994 in Vinkovci in Croatia. In 2005 at the age of 11 he joined the youth setup at Ojisek, where be began his footballing education, progressing through the age levels and eventually into the first team. He made his full senior debut on July 12 2012, in a home match against FC Santa Coloma in the UEFA Europa League.
By December of 2014 his performances began to attract the interest of the country’s top clubs, and Rijeka won the race to sign him, despite strong interest from Dinamo Zagreb. At Ojisek he made 64 appearances and scored three goals.
After six months at his new club and 15 appearances, he was loaned out to Italian outfit Spezia, who were playing in Serie B at the time, making nine appearances. The 2016-17 season proved to be a breakthrough point. He won a regular place in the starting lineup at Rijeka, played 42 times and scored twice, while also contributing six assists. He was a vital part of the team that won the domestic double that season.
During the first six months of the 2018-19 season he put his foot on the gas and by January he had made 32 appearances, scoring twice and serving up six assists, while also playing in the Champions League qualifying rounds as well as the groups stages of the Europa League.
Interest from abroad then came and Sporting Lisbon paid 2,35 million euros for this services. In Portgual, Misic did not manage to get the playing time he wanted, making just nine appearances.
The 25-year-old is a full Croatian international, making his debut in 2017 in two friendly matches against Chile and China.
In January 2019 he arrived in Thessaloniki on loan and following a six-month period of adjustment, during which he celebrated the domestic double, he has since taken on a leading role in the team. He has scored six goals and laid on 11 more in 32 matches overall. Just several days ago he was sidelined with a groin injury and underwent surgery and is expected to return in time for the start of next season.
Get well soon and happy birthday Mr Vertical!
