Kosta Nedeljković

Kosta Nedeljković
Kоста Недељковић
Nedeljković playing for Red Star Belgrade in 2023
Personal information
Full name Kosta Nedeljković
Date of birth (2005-12-16) 16 December 2005
Place of birth Smederevo, Serbia and Montenegro
Height 1.84 m (6 ft 0 in)
Position Right-back
Team information
Current team
 Rangers
(on loan from Aston Villa)
Number 18
Youth career
2016–2024 Red Star Belgrade
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2023–2024 Red Star Belgrade 14 (0)
2023 → Grafičar (loan) 21 (1)
2024– Aston Villa 5 (0)
2025–2026 → RB Leipzig (loan) 15 (0)
2026– → Rangers (loan) 0 (0)
International career‡
2021–2022 Serbia U17 12 (0)
2022–2023 Serbia U18 3 (0)
2023–2024 Serbia U19 7 (1)
2024– Serbia 11 (0)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 20 December 2025
‡ National team caps and goals as of 9 September 2025

Kosta Nedeljković (Serbian Cyrillic: Kоста Недељковић; born 16 December 2005) is a Serbian professional footballer who plays as a right-back for Scottish Premiership club Rangers, on loan from Premier League club Aston Villa and the Serbia national team.

Club career

Red Star Belgrade

A product of Red Star Belgrade's youth academy, Nedeljković signed his first professional contract with the club in February 2021,[1] which was later extended until December 2022.[2] He played for the club's youth teams until January 2023.

On 26 June 2023, Nedeljković made his senior debut in a pre-season friendly match against FK Sloboda Užice after he was promoted to the 2023–24 season by coach Barak Bakhar.[3]

Grafičar Beograd (loan)

In January 2023, he was loaned, together with Aleksej Vukičević and Stefan Radujko, to Serbian First League team Grafičar Beograd for the second half of the 2022–23 season.[4]

Nedeljković had 17 appearances for the Grafičar, scoring his first goal on 16 March 2023[5] and recorded a top speed 36.4 km/h against FK Zlatibor Čajetina, that was comparable to Kylian Mbappé, Achraf Hakimi, and Erling Haaland.[6]

Aston Villa

On 22 January 2024, Nedeljković signed for Premier League club Aston Villa, remaining at Red Star on loan until the end of the season.[7] The transfer fee was undisclosed, but it was reported to be around £8 million plus add-ons.[8][9]

After returning to Red Star on loan, Nedeljković suffered a knee injury during a warm weather training camp in Cyprus in the league's winter break and spent time on the sidelines.[10]

On 17 August 2024, 18-year-old Nedeljković made his Premier League debut as a substitute in a 2–1 opening day victory against West Ham United.[11] He became the 1000th player to represent Aston Villa in a competitive match.[12]

Loans to RB Leipzig and Rangers

On 3 February 2025, Aston Villa loaned Nedeljković out to RB Leipzig for the remainder of the 2024–25 Bundesliga season.[13] On 14 July 2025, Nedeljković re-joined RB Leipzig for a season-long loan.[14]

On 19 August 2026, Nedeljković joined Scottish Premiership club Rangers on a season-long loan with an appearance based, conditional obligation to buy for £4 million.[15][16]

International career

Nedeljković represented three Serbian youth teams ranged from U17 to U19.[17] In 2023, he was invited to train with the senior Serbia national team, but excluded in the senior squad of any matches.[18]

On 30 August 2024, Nedeljković received his first call-up to the Serbian senior squad ahead of its upcoming 2024–25 UEFA Nations League matches.[19] The same year on 5 September, he made his international senior debut in a goalless Nations League draw against Spain.[20]

Career statistics

Club

As of match played 20 August 2026[21]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National cup[a] League cup[b] Europe Other Total
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Red Star Belgrade 2023–24[c] Serbian SuperLiga 14020—4[d]0—200
Grafičar (loan) 2022–23 Serbian First League 15100——2[e]0171
2023–24 Serbian First League 6000———60
Total 21100——20231
Aston Villa 2024–25 Premier League 5010202[d]0—100
2026–27 Premier League 000000000000
Total 5010202000100
RB Leipzig (loan) 2024–25 Bundesliga 10010———110
2025–26 Bundesliga 5010———60
Total 15020———170
Rangers (loan) 2026–27 Scottish Premiership 0000001[f]0—10
Career total 55150206020701
  1. ↑ Includes Serbian Cup, FA Cup, DFB-Pokal
  2. ↑ Includes EFL Cup
  3. ↑ Part of this season was spent on loan from Aston Villa
  4. 1 2 Appearances in UEFA Champions League
  5. ↑ Appearances in Serbian First League promotion play-offs
  6. ↑ Appearances in UEFA Conference League

International

As of match played 9 September 2025[22]
Appearances and goals by national team and year
National teamYearAppsGoals
Serbia 202460
202520
Total80

Honours

Red Star Belgrade

Aston Villa

References

  1. ↑ "Zvezda potpisala profesionalne ugovore sa devetoricom igrača". Sportski žurnal (in Serbian). 5 February 2021.
  2. ↑ "Zvezda potpisala profesionalne ugovore sa devetoricom igrača". Red Star Belgrade (in Serbian). 5 December 2022. Archived from the original on 7 December 2022.
  3. ↑ "Nedeljković, taj može da prođe!". Mozzart Sport (in Serbian). 30 June 2023.
  4. ↑ Jocić, Stefan (6 January 2023). "Saznajemo: Zvezdina deca jačaju Grafičar u borbi za Superligu". telegraf.sr (in Serbian).
  5. ↑ "Kosta Nedeljković". Serbian SuperLiga. Retrieved 30 June 2023.
  6. ↑ Недељковићеви резултати за светски врх. Red Star Belgrade (in Serbian). 24 March 2023. Archived from the original on 20 June 2023. Retrieved 19 June 2023.
  7. ↑ "Villa announce Nedeljković signing". Aston Villa F.C. 22 January 2024. Retrieved 3 April 2025.
  8. ↑ Townley, John (22 January 2024). "Aston Villa announce first January transfer signing as loan agreement confirmed". Birmingham Live. Retrieved 23 January 2024.
  9. ↑ "Kostin transfer: Fiksno 7.500.000, laki bonusi i velikih 15%". Sport klub (in Serbian). 17 January 2024. Retrieved 24 January 2024.
  10. ↑ Chapman, Joseph (12 February 2024). "Aston Villa 'informed' about Kosta Nedeljkovic injury". Birmingham Mail. Retrieved 8 March 2024.
  11. ↑ "West Ham United vs Aston Villa: Premier League". BBC Sport. BBC. Retrieved 17 August 2024.
  12. ↑ "West Ham United 1-2 Aston Villa". Aston Villa F.C. 17 August 2024. Retrieved 3 April 2025.
  13. ↑ "Kosta Nedeljković heads out on loan". Aston Villa F.C. 3 February 2025. Retrieved 3 April 2025.
  14. ↑ "Kosta Nedeljković rejoins RB Leipzig on loan". Aston Villa Football Club. 14 July 2025. Retrieved 14 July 2025.
  15. ↑ "Nedeljkovic joins Rangers". Aston Villa Football Club. 19 August 2026. Retrieved 19 August 2026.
  16. ↑ "Kosta Nedeljkovic: Rangers sign Aston Villa right-back on loan with £4m obligation to buy Serbia international". Sky Sports. 19 August 2026. Retrieved 19 August 2026.
  17. ↑ Haigh, Phil (23 January 2024). "Former Liverpool man lifts lid on new Aston Villa signing Kosta Nedeljković". Metro. Retrieved 23 January 2024.
  18. ↑ Townley, John (23 January 2024). "Kosta Nedeljkovic profiled after smart Aston Villa transfer". Birmingham Live. Retrieved 3 April 2025.
  19. ↑ "Head Coach Dragan Stojković Announces the Final List of Players for the Nations League Matches With Spain and Denmark". Football Association of Serbia. 30 August 2024. Retrieved 2 September 2024.
  20. ↑ Нови талас Орлова, два 19-годишњака и Кристијан. Sportski žurnal (in Serbian). 5 September 2024. Retrieved 3 April 2025.
  21. ↑ "K. Nedeljković". Soccerway. Retrieved 22 January 2024.
  22. ↑ "Kosta Nedeljković". National Football Teams. Benjamin Strack-Zimmermann. Retrieved 9 September 2024.
  23. ↑ "Super Liga 2023/2024 Championship: Results & Table". worldfootball.net. Retrieved 19 August 2026.
  24. ↑ "Izvestaj sa utakmice | Fudbalski savez Srbije" (in Serbian). Retrieved 19 August 2026.
  25. ↑ UEFA.com. "Paris vs Aston Villa | UEFA Super Cup 2026 Final". UEFA.com. Retrieved 20 August 2026.
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