David Zdrilic

After a season at Aarau he moved to German side SSV Ulm 1846, newly promoted to the second division.

David Allen Zdrilic (Zdrilić; born 13 April 1974) is an Australian soccer coach and former player, who is currently the assistant manager of A-League Men club Sydney FC.

After playing through the youth ranks for St George Saints he broke into the senior side in 1993 at the age of 19.

Mid-way through the NSW Super League year he signed to Sydney United for the coming National Soccer League season.

He made an immediate impact shortly after joining the club, scoring four goals in four games in a preseason cup competition.

However, he played most of his first NSL season playing as fullback, netting only once for the year.

Zdrilic's versatility meant he was often used in different positions and during the 1994/95 and 1995/96 seasons, he was more often among the goal scorers.

It was in the 1996/97 season that for the first time Zdrilic was used as an out and out striker and eventually took out the Golden Boot scoring 21 goals in 26 games.

During this time he combined studied a law degree at Sydney University, working full-time at a Western Sydney Law Firm with his footballing duties.

It was not until this 1996/97 NSL season that his footballing career rose to the next level.

Zdrilic's first call-up to the national team came in January 1997.

After the appointment of Terry Venables as the new Socceroos coach, Australia hosted the Optus Cup a four-team tournament including an Australian squad of domestic-based players.

In forming the squad, Venables had asked "who's the leading scorer in the NSL?", the answer being Zdrilic (having scored 12 goals in as many games), and he played all three matches.

He continued his scoring ways in the NSL to win the Golden Boot for that season with 21 goals, United topping the table before losing the grand final to Brisbane.

His position atop the Australian league attracted attention in Europe, particularly in Switzerland with an offer to join Grasshoppers accepted, where he would initially be loaned out to FC Aarau.

Ulm's strong 1998–99 season with Zdrilic a regular starter and scoring 12 goals for the season saw them promoted again into the Bundesliga, the club's first appearance in the top flight.

Now playing in a top European league, he earned a recall to national side in early 2000 for a tournament in Chile.

Zdrilic was injured as a result of a bad tackle in the final minutes of Australia's game against Bulgaria and he returned to Ulm injured.

He again rejoined the side in June as Australia hosted a three match series against Paraguay, which he scored his first international goal in a 2–1 win.

Zdrilic remained with the side for the 2000 OFC Nations Cup, adding to his goal tally twice against Cook Islands.

Returning to club duties, with Zdrilic out injured for much of the season due to the knee injury he sustained on international duty, Ulm had been relegated back to the second division and Zdrilic sought to remain in the top league.

Despite the injury Zdrilic scored 6 goals in 13 Bundesliga starts for Ulm and moved to SpVgg Unterhaching.

The club struggled for consistency through the 2000–01 season and was eventually relegated, Zdrilic remaining with the club on its return to 2. Bundesliga.

Haching continued to struggle for results in the 2001–02 season, relegated again at the end of the year.

In contrast to club fortunes, Zdrilic was achieving greater success at international level throughout this time.

Becoming a regular inclusion in an Australian side under Frank Farina, he was recalled for a friendly against Scotland to replace the injured Mark Viduka scoring in a memorable 2–0 victory at Hamden Park.

He retained his place in the squad for the Oceania World Cup qualifiers.

In Australia's second match of the tournament, he scored eight goals in a world record 31–0 win over American Samoa.

He and his strike partner Archie Thompson, who scored 13 goals, broke the record for most goals scored in a senior international match.

He remained in the team for the 2001 FIFA Confederations Cup, taking part in the Socceroos memorable victories over Mexico and Brazil.

As a football presenter on the Special Broadcasting Service (SBS), Zdrilic hosted the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil which won a Logie Award for Most Outstanding Sport Coverage as well as SBS's Friday Night A-League coverage.

He has hosted games from the UEFA Champions League, Europa League, various international cup competitions and the football entertainment show Thursday FC on SBS2.

Over the last few years, Zdrilic served in a variety of coaching roles in Germany, Belgium and Italy and the MLS.

In early 2022 he became assistant at Serie A club Genoa - the first Australian to coach in Serie A - after turning down the offer of coaching Australia at the 2024 Olympic Games.

Zdrilic attended Patrician Brothers' College, Fairfield and St Patrick's College, Sutherland during his time as a teenage schoolboy he featured prominently in all teams including the A Grade squad.

He had the opportunity as a child to pursue a tennis career, receiving coaching and playing in tournaments, but chose football instead.

Zdrilic is also a football presenter on the Special Broadcasting Service (SBS), Most recently he was a key figure in SBS's coverage of the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia.

Zdrilic played on 30 occasions for the Australia national soccer team, having once scored eight goals in a single match – the second highest recorded for any Australian player, behind Socceroos teammate Archie Thompson, who scored 13 goals in the same game.

He was also a member of the Australia national beach soccer team, the Beach Socceroos, having captained the side.

He previously played for Sydney FC in the A-League after forging a professional career in Switzerland, Germany, England and Scotland.