Lucic: Teddy Mark Sime (Teddy)

2002-2003 (Player Details)

Left Back

Born: Biskopsgaard, Gothenburg, Sweden: 15-04-1973

Debut: v Liverpool (h): 19-10-2002

6’1 1/2” 11st 13 1/2lb (2003)

Lucic, who is qualified to play for his native Sweden and Finland (mother) and Croatia (father), started with Lunby in Gothenburg, as a sixteen-year-old in 1989. He made his debut for them in his first season there and stayed with them until 1992, scoring thirteen goals in sixty-three games. He then joined Vastra Frolunda, another Gothenburg team, who were in the country's top League, the Allsvenskan, and stayed there for three years, from 1993 until 1995, and made sixty eight appearances for them. He also came to the notice of the Swedish International selectors and he was part of the Swedish squad that took part in the 1994 World Cup, but did not get a game. He was, however, in the Swedish team for the Umbro Cup tournament in England in 1995. He made his debut in a 0-1 defeat by Brazil at Villa Park, Birmingham, on 4th June 1995, four days later he was awarded his second cap at Elland Road, as England scrambled a 3-3 draw with goals from David Platt and Darren Anderton in the final two minutes. two days later he had a third cap as Sweden drew 2-2 with Japan at the City Ground Nottingham. His fourth and fifth caps came in home games in Stockholm in a 2-0 win over Scotland, on 11th October 1995 and a 2-2 draw with Turkey on 15th November 1995. He joined IFK Gothenburg, one of Sweden's top teams, and came to prominence as he won a League Championship medal in 1996, his first season with the club. He scored twice in fifty-eight appearances in his three season stay and established himself in the Swedish national team, adding a further twelve caps, as well as becoming noticed in European circles with Gothenburg's qualification for the European Cup, where he scored once in twelve appearances. This saw him leave for Italian football with Bologna in July 1998. He only made nine appearances for the Serie A side in the two seasons that he was with them but picked up another fourteen caps for Sweden to bring his total to thirty-one, of which eight were as a substitute. He was with the Italian club until July 2000 when he joined AIK Solna in his native Sweden. Back on his native soil he was able to get more regular football and he scored four times in fifty-eight games. However, AIK Solnia ran into financial difficulties and needed to get several of their stars off their payroll. Lucic was taken by Terry Venables on loan to Leeds for the 2002-03 season in which United struggled. The loan was supposed to have commenced in August 2002, but he was on duty with Sweden in their European Qualifying games and Venables had to wait until he had played in a 1-1 draw in a friendly with Russia in Moscow on 21st August 2002, before he became available. He had by now accumulated another sixteen caps and had forty-seven to his credit. However, Lucic proved his worth as a versatile defender either at left-back or in central defence. AIK Solnia extended Lucic's contract until November 2004, thereby avoiding any possibility of a Bosman transfer. Lucic came to Leeds having been a member of the Swedish World Cup team, in Japan in 2002, who were top of their Group and were favoured to progress to the last eight, but after Henrik Larsson had given Sweden an early lead, Senegal got an equaliser before half-time with a goal from Henri Camara and the same player got the golden goal in the sudden death extra-time to eliminate the more favoured Scandinavians. While at Leeds he took part in a thrilling 3-3 draw with the Czech Republic in a friendly in Teplice on 20th November 2002, but missed the King's Cup tournament in Thailand, but was back for the key European Qualifier in Budapest against Hungary on 2nd April 2003, when a brace from Marcus Allback gave Sweden an excellent 2-1 victory. Terry Venables had departed and Peter Reid deemed Lucic surplus to requirements and so he released him for a friendly in Stockholm on 30th April 2003 in which Croatia won 1-2 to gain his fiftieth cap. It had not been a happy time for Lucic or Leeds, who had struggled to survive in the EPL, had been eliminated from the UEFA Cup by Malaga at Elland Road and then Sheffield United had eliminated them from both the F.A. Cup and the League Cup at Bramall Lane, when it seemed that Leeds were the favourites to progress further in each of the games. Lucic was popular with the Leeds fans who knew they could always depend on him to give his best in each game. Leeds did have the option to buy him for £600,000 but it was never excercised. He joined German club Bayer Laverkusen in May 2003 for £267,000. Again he was used as a back-up player only managing eleven Bundesliga one Champions League and one DFB Pokal Cup appearances in his first season but none in the second before he left in May 2005. He did, however, pick up another twenty-one caps for Sweden to bring his tally to seventy-one. He went back to Sweden once more, this time with BK Hacken, where he scored eight goals in seventy League and three UEFA Cup appearances and completed his International career with eighty-six caps, of which eight had been gained as a substitute. He had represented Sweden in the 2006 World Cup in Germany, but unfortunately he had been sent off in a 0-2 loss to the hosts, Germany, in Munich on 24th June 2006 in his eighty-fifth game. He then played his final game for Sweden in a 3-1 win over Liechtenstein in his home town of Gothenburg on 6th September 2006. Lucic joined IFS Elfsborg Boras in January 2008 for £169,100 on a three year contract and in that time he scored three goals in sixty-six League appearances. He also played two games in the UEFA Cup and four in the U1 Cup. He played his final game for IFS Elfsborg Borason 24th October 2010 in a 4-4 draw at Djurgardens IF and officially ended his playing career. As well as his eighty-six full Swedish caps, Lucic also gained eighteen Under-Twenty-One caps and Youth honours for Sweden. He appeared in the 1994, 2002 and 2006 World Cups and in European Cup final stages in 2000 and 2004. Despite his veteran status, Lucic was still relatively speedy across the pitch and a powerhouse at the centre of the defence. He was also a consistent performer at all levels of the game.