Dinamo Zagreb & Hajduk Split Among TOP 10 Player Producers in Europe

Dinamo Zagreb and Hajduk Split in the Top 10 (photo credit: HNS)

Croatian football clubs Dinamo Zagreb and Hajduk Split are among the top ten clubs when it comes to producing talent in Europe’s top five leagues, according to a new study by the CIES Football Observatory.

Dinamo Zagreb were ranked third in Europe for producing players. There are 55 players in the top five leagues in Europe who were trained by Dinamo Zagreb for at least three seasons between the ages of 15 and 21, the criteria used by CIES for their latest study.

Luka Modrić

Dinamo Zagreb were ranked ahead of giants Barcelona, Real Madrid and Manchester United, producing the likes of Luka Modrić, Mateo Kovačić, Alen Halilović, Mario Mandžukić, Šime Vrsaljko and Marko Pjaca in recent times.

Dinamo sold Marko Pjaca for a club record 23 million euros this summer (photo: Juventus.com)

Meanwhile Hjaduk Split were ranked 10th on the list, with 46 players. Osijek were the next best ranked Croatian club in 28th place with 34 players playing in the top five leagues in Europe. In first place was Ajax with 72 players, followed by Partizan with 61 players.

Hajduk product Nikola Kalinić plays in Italy (photo: UEFA)

The English Premier League was not represented in the Top 10. Manchester United are the top English producers of talent in Europe’s top five leagues with 34 players.

TOP 10 Producers of Talent
1. Ajax 72
2. Partizan 61
3. Dinamo Zagreb 55
4. Sporting Lisbon 54
5. Barcelona 53
5. Real Madrid 53
7. Dynamo Kiev 52
8. Sparta Prague 48
9. Dinamo Minsk 47
10. Hajduk 46
…
28. Osijek 34