Ljubo Puljić

Ljubo Puljić
Personal information
Full name Ljubo Puljić
Date of birth (2007-05-31) 31 May 2007
Place of birth Vinkovci, Croatia
Height 1.94 m (6 ft 4 in)
Position Centre-back
Team information
Current team
 Atalanta
Youth career
Cibalia
2018–2023 Osijek
2023–2025 Bayern Munich
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2025–2026 Bayern Munich II 16 (0)
2026– Atalanta 0 (0)
2026– Atalanta U23 0 (0)
International career‡
2022–2024 Croatia U17 16 (2)
2024– Croatia U19 18 (2)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 23:30, 16 May 2026 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals as of 23:45, 8 July 2026 (UTC)

Ljubo Puljić (born 31 May 2007) is a Croatian professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for Serie A club Atalanta. He is a Croatian youth international.[1]

Early life

He is a native of Vinkovci, Croatia.[2]

Club career

Bayern Munich

Puljić went from the youth academy of his hometown club Cibalia to the Osijek youth academy, then he signed for the Bayern Munich youth academy on 31 May 2023, coinciding with his 16th birthday, for a transfer fee that could reportedly rise up to €2,800,000. Becoming a record fee for a Croatian of his age.[3] He was originally assigned with the Bayern Munich U17s at the start of the 2023–24 season and made four appearances before he went on to feature for the U19 side, as well as starting to train with the senior team, all at only the age of 16 years-old.[4] In January 2024, he accompanied the senior team on their mid-season training block in Faro, Portugal.[5]

The following season, he made his professional debut with Bayern Munich II, starting for a 2–1 away loss Regionalliga Bayern match against TSV Aubstadt on 23 April 2025.[6]

In early 2026, Serie A club AC Milan showed interest in recruiting him.[7][8][9]

Atalanta

In June 2026, AC Milan was beaten in the pursuit of recruiting Puljić, as fellow Italian side Atalanta agreed with the player to sign him earlier, ahead of the 2026–27 season.[10][11][12][13][14] His signing was officially announced on June 15, he is set to initially join Atalanta's reserve team in the Serie C.[15]

International career

As a Croatia U17 international, he scored the Croatian goal in a match against Netherlands U17 that finished 1–1 at the 2023 UEFA European Under-17 Championship in Hungary in May 2023.[16]

He made his debut for the Croatia national under-19 football team against England U19 in a home 1–1 draw on 7 September 2024, in Koprivnica.[17]

Career statistics

As of match played 16 May 2026
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League Cup Total
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Bayern Munich II 2024–25 Regionalliga Bayern 10—10
2025–26 150—150
Total 160—160
Career Total 16000160
Notes

Style of play

He mainly operates as a centre-back. Puljić is left-footed and is known for his physicality and athleticism.[18]

References

  1. ↑ "Ljubo Puljic". Soccerway. Retrieved 31 May 2023.
  2. ↑ "Puljić:'I Juventus je zagrizao, ali na kraju je Ljubina bila zadnja'". jutarnji.hr. June 2023.
  3. ↑ "Bayern Munich sign talented 16-year-old Croatian defender". Croatia Week. 31 May 2023. Retrieved 31 October 2023.
  4. ↑ "THE RESERVES SQUAD FOR THE TRAINING CAMP IN THE USA". FC Bayern Munich. 11 January 2026.
  5. ↑ "WHO ARE THE YOUTH PLAYERS AT BAYERN'S TRAINING CAMP IN FARO?". fcbayern. 15 January 2024. Retrieved 26 April 2025.
  6. ↑ "AUBSTADT VS. BAYERN MÜNCHEN II 2 - 1". Soccerway. 23 April 2025. Retrieved 26 April 2025.
  7. ↑ "Milan, allacciati i contatti per un giovane talento del Bayern". tuttomercatoweb.com (in Italian). 26 January 2026.
  8. ↑ "El Milan inicia negociaciones por el defensa del Bayern Ljubo Puljic". tribuna.com/es (in Spanish). 26 January 2026.
  9. ↑ "Report: AC Milan open talks for Bayern Munich youth CB Ljubo Puljić". bavarianfootballworks.com. 27 January 2026.
  10. ↑ "Chi è Ljubo Puljic, il colpo messo a segno dall'Atalanta dal Bayern Monaco. La sua storia e il suo identikit tecnico". calcionews24.com (in Italian). 10 June 2026.
  11. ↑ "Atalanta set to sign Bayern youngster". bulinews.com. 10 June 2026.
  12. ↑ "Bayern Munich to lose defensive prospect to Atalanta". bavarianfootballworks.com. 10 June 2026.
  13. ↑ "Romano: Atalanta set to beat Milan to Bayern's Under 19 captain – the latest". sempremilan.com.
  14. ↑ "Atalanta, Puljic (19 anni) detta la linea nerazzurra: acquisti giovani da offrire a Sarri". bergamo.corriere.it (in Italian). 12 June 2026.
  15. ↑ "U23, DAL BAYERN MONACO ECCO PULJIĆ" (in Italian). Atalanta BC. 15 June 2026.
  16. ↑ "NETHERLANDS U17 VS. CROATIA U17 1 - 1". Soccerway. 24 May 2023. Retrieved 31 October 2023.
  17. ↑ "CROATIA U19 VS. ENGLAND U19 1 - 1". Soccerway. 7 September 2024. Retrieved 26 April 2025.
  18. ↑ Kraft, Justin (8 December 2023). "Everyone on campus is excited about one midfielder! The biggest talents in FC Bayern's youth academy". Goal.com. Retrieved 28 April 2025.
This page is issued from Wikipedia. The text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 unless otherwise noted. Additional terms may apply for the media files.