Montenegrin Footballer of the Year explained

The Montenegrin Footballer of the Year is an annual award chosen by the team captains and the coaches of the Prva crnogorska fudbalska liga — 1. CFL to determine the best player in Montenegro. It is published by the Football Association of Montenegro. The most successful player is Mirko Vučinić, who has won the award seven times, as well as being the inaugural winner. Stevan Jovetić is the youngest player to receive this honour so far; he was 20 years old when he won the award. The most recent footballer of the year is Stefan Savić for 2021. Before 2006, two Montenegrin footballers were named Yugoslav Footballer of the Year; Dejan Savićević in 1995, and Predrag Mijatović (for three times) in 1992, 1993 and 1998.

Winners

YearPlayerClubPosition
2006 Forward
2007 Mirko Vučinić Roma Forward
2008 Mirko Vučinić Roma Forward
2009 Forward
2010 Mirko Vučinić Roma Forward
2011 Mirko Vučinić Forward
2012 Mirko Vučinić Juventus Forward
2013 Mirko Vučinić Juventus Forward
2014 Defender
2015 Stevan Jovetić Forward
2016 Defender
2017 Stefan Savić Atlético Madrid Defender
2018 Stefan Savić Atlético Madrid Defender
2019 Forward
2020 Stefan Savić Atlético Madrid Defender
2021 Stefan Savić Atlético Madrid Defender
2022 Stefan Savić Atlético Madrid Defender
2023 Stefan Savić Atlético Madrid Defender

Players

RankPlayerNumber of winsWinning years
1 2006—2008, 2010—2013
2 2016—2018, 2020—2023
3 2009, 2015
4 2014
2019

2013 controversy

In 2013, Mirko Vučinić won the Montenegrin Footballer of the Year for the seventh time. However, the public opinion was that in 2013, Dejan Damjanović should have been given the award. Damjanović scored four goals in the 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifiers (two against England and one against Poland and Ukraine), was announced as the top scorer of the K-League and the MVP of the 2013 AFC Champions League. The media agreed that Vučinić was the best overall Montenegrin footballer, however, Damjanović's performances in 2013 were far better than Vučinić's, who was injured during the decisive qualification matches of the national team.[1] [2] Finally, Montenegrin website CG-Fudbal awarded Damjanović "Best Montenegrin Footballer of the Year", according to a poll voted by the fans.[3]

Breakdown of winners

Winners by club nationality

RankClub nationalityNumber of winsWinning years
1 9 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2013, 2015
2 6 2016, 2017, 2018, 2020, 2021, 2022
3 1 2014
1 2019

Winners by club

RankClubNumber of winsWinning years
1 6 2016, 2017, 2018, 2020, 2021, 2022
2 4 2006, 2007, 2008, 2010
3 3 2011, 2012, 2013
4 1 2009
1 2014
1 2015
1 2019

Winners by position

RankPositionNumber of wins
1 10
2 7

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Bozo Jankovic. Boske zaslužio crnogorsku zlatnu loptu. Cafe del Montenegro. 26 December 2013.
  2. Web site: Danilo Mitrović, Aleksandar Radović. Glasali po automatizmu i inerciji. Vijesti. 26 December 2013.
  3. Web site: CG fudbal: Damjanović fudbaler godine. Portal Analitika. 26 December 2013.