As a Croatia international, Ćorluka has earned103 caps for the country, making him one of the nation's most capped players. He represented Croatia at various youth levels before making his senior debut in August 2006, in a friendly match againstItaly. He was part of the country's squad at theUEFA European Championships in2008,2012,2016 and at theFIFA World Cups in2014 and2018. In August 2018, Ćorluka confirmed his retirement from international football.[4]
Ćorluka was born inDerventa,SR Bosnia and Herzegovina,SFR Yugoslavia. His parents, Jozo and Anđa, come from Modran, a village near Derventa. Due to theBosnian War, in 1992 the family moved toZagreb, where his father still works as an engineer in addition to being Ćorluka's manager. His mother is a judge. Vedran has one brother.[5] Ćorluka began playing football inDinamo Zagreb's youth teams when he was eight years old, impressing many scouts from the youth academy.[6]
His professional career began in 2003, but during that season he made no appearance for the first team. He was sent on a one-year loan toInter Zaprešić, helping the team place second in the league, before returning to Dinamo in 2005. After establishing himself as a key player for Dinamo, he helped the club win theCroatian First League title three seasons in a row from 2005–06. He also played a dominant part in his side capturing theCroatian Cup in the 2006 season.
After consistently strong performances, Ćorluka was signed by EnglishPremier League sideManchester City on 2 August 2007.[7][8] City did not reveal the fee, though Croatian media reports suggested the deal was worth around£8 million, with the 21-year-old penning a five-year deal.[9]
As usual, Ćorluka consistently found a starting spot for his side in the Premier League. Despite a nightmare blunder during his side's shocking 6–0 defeat toChelsea atStamford Bridge, he remained strong during his first season in England as his side finished ninth in the league and gained entry to aUEFA Cup qualifying round via theUEFA fair play ranking. On few rare occasions, he was also used as a defensive midfielder during the season, proving to be a factor for opposing attackers.
Ćorluka scored his first goal in the 4–2 loss atAston Villa on the opening weekend of the2008–09 season.[10] In theUEFA Cup second qualifying round match second leg, Ćorluka scored the decisivespot kick in the dramatic 4–2 penalty shoot-out victory over Danish minnowsMidtjylland after the tie had ended 1–1 on aggregate. He played his last match for City againstSunderland on 31 August 2008, throwing his shirt into the crowd at the end of the match.[11]
On 1 September 2008, it was announced that Ćorluka had signed forTottenham Hotspur for a fee of £8.5 million on a six-year contract, joining his fellowCroatian international and best friendLuka Modrić at the club.[12] During the match againstStoke City on 19 October, Ćorluka was severely injured; kneed under his chin by teammateHeurelho Gomes, he was immediately knocked unconscious. After ten minutes of on-field treatment, he was rushed to hospital where it was announced no serious damage was evident.[13] In theLeague Cupfinal on 1 March 2009, Ćorluka scored his and Tottenham's only penalty in the shootout loss toManchester United, receiving a runners up medal for his efforts.[14][15]
Ćorluka scored his first Premier League goal for Spurs during a 2–2 draw againstBolton Wanderers on 3 October 2009. On 2 February 2011, he started and played the full 90 minutes at right-back ahead of the injuredAlan Hutton in the 1–0 victory overBlackburn Rovers atEwood Park.[16]
In the January 2012 transfer window, Ćorluka signed on loan for GermanBundesliga clubBayer Leverkusen for the remainder of the2011–12 season on 31 January, with the option to buy out his contract in the summer transfer window.[17]
Ćorluka made his debut for the club in a 2–2 home draw againstVfB Stuttgart at theBayArena on 4 February, playing the full 90 minutes.[18] In his onlyChampions League appearance for the club, Ćorluka provided the cross forMichal Kadlec's leveler in the 52nd minute in a 3–1 loss toBarcelona.[19] On 25 February, the defender provided an assist for the first ofLars Bender's brace in the 2–0 win over1. FC Köln.[20]
On 27 June 2012,Lokomotiv Moscow announced the signing of Ćorluka from Tottenham for £5.5 million. The signing came in light of recent naming of former Croatia national teamSlaven Bilić as the manager of Lokomotiv. Ćorluka signed a three-year contract following the successful completion of his medical examination.[21] At Lokomotiv, he also reunited withRoman Pavlyuchenko, with whom he had previously played for Tottenham Hotspur from September 2008 until January 2012. He scored on his debut against newly promotedMordovia Saransk in a 3–2 victory. In September 2012,[22] March 2014,[23] and December 2014[24] Ćorluka won the monthly poll among Loko supporters in the social networks and was named the best club player of the month. In June 2015, after Ćorluka helped Lokomotiv to winRussian Cup, fans named him team's Player of the Year.[25]
On 1 April 2021, Ćorluka announced his departure from the club at the end of theseason.[26] He played his last game for Lokomotiv in a 1–0 victory overUral Yekaterinburg.[27]
Ćorluka playing forCroatia against Portugal in 2013
He started to play for theCroatia under-21 team and eventually progressed to his country'snational team, for which he soon made his debut in the friendly match against world championsItaly on 16 August 2006 inLivorno. Croatia won the match 2–0 and Ćorluka, aged 20 during his debut, entered the game in the second half and satisfied critics with his very good, solid performance against experiencedSerie A forwards. During Croatia'sUEFA Euro 2008 qualifying campaign, he became one of the key players under head coachSlaven Bilić. Croatia finished first in Group E, notably ahead ofRussia and favouritesEngland, who eventually failed to qualify from the group. Ćorluka was in the final match of the tournament where Croatia's exit came againstTurkey in extra time and penalties.[28][29] Turkey wingerArda Turan revealed in an interview withUEFA that Ćorluka is the most difficult right-back he has ever played against, whom he came up against during this match.[30] The defender was included for the preliminary squad forEuro 2012 in Poland and Ukraine after impressive performances in his loan spell at Bayer Leverkusen.[31]
On 17 May 2021, Ćorluka was officially presented asZlatko Dalić's assistant for the upcomingUEFA Euro 2020, succeedingIvica Olić. At the press conference, Ćorluka expressed his wish to enroll in a coaching academy after the tournament.[35]
On 6 July 2021, he returned toLokomotiv Moscow, also as an assistant coach, while still remaining the assistant coach of Croatia.[36] On 19 July, he left Lokomotiv due to family reasons.[37]
^Oscroft, Tim (2 August 2007)."Sven welcomes Corluka".Manchester City F.C. mcfc.co.uk. Archived fromthe original on 25 August 2012. Retrieved6 October 2009.
