Wolfsburg are on the brink of their first Bundesliga title in the club's history. And a huge part of that is unbelievable run of their Bosnian striker Edin Dzeko. But how long will the 23-year-old stay in Wolfsburg with big clubs knocking on his door?
War Times As Child
Edin Dzeko was born on March 17, 1986 in Sarajevo, the capital of Bosnia and Herzegovina. When he was six years old, he and his family had to deal with war raging his country.
Start With Zeljeznicar, Move To Czech Republic
After surviving the war, Dzeko eventually started his professional football career in 2003 playing as a midfielder from 2003 to 2005 with FK Zeljeznicar, scoring five goals in 40 games. In 2005 he moved to Czech top flight side FK Teplice but was sent on loan to second division side FK Usti. He returned and in 2006-07 he led the league in scoring while being named the best foreign player in the league.
Start With Magath, Wolfsburg In 2007
In 2007, Dzeko was brought to German club Wolfsburg by coach and manager Felix Magath for 4 million euros on a four-year contract until 2011. In his first season with the Wolves, Dzeko collected eight goals and seven assists in 28 appearances.
Magical 2008-09 Run
The 2008-09 season proved to be a magical one for Dzeko, who teamed with his striker partner Grafite to take the league by storm and lead Wolfsburg to a two point lead in the Bundesliga with one game left - which would be the club's first title in history. After five goals and seven assists in the first half of the season, Dzeko went wild after the winter break. In a 15-game stretch, he collected two hat-tricks on his way to 20 goals, failing to score in just three contests. He even scored a hat-trick within 13 minutes against Hofffenheim on May 2, 2009.
On The Brink Of Bundesliga History
Dzeko's 25 goals with one game left was one fewer than Grafite, who led the league with his 26 scores. With a combined three goals on the final game day, Dzeko and Grafite can set the Bundesliga record for combined goals in a season. Gerd Müller and Uli Hoeness tallied 53 goals in the 1971-72 season (40 for Müller, 13 for Hoeness) and the duo matched the mark the next season, 1972-73 (36 for Müller, 17 for Hoeness). Dzeko's 20 goals in the second half also ranks him tied for third all-time. Gerd Müller scored 23 in the second half of the 1971-72 season and 20 in 1969-70 and Dieter Müller struck 21 goals in the second half of the 1976-77 campaign. And should Dzeko and Grafite finish in the top two of the league in scoring - Stuttgart's Mario Gomez has 23 goals - it would be the first time one team had the top two scorers since Fredi Bobic and Giovane Elber were one-two in 1996-97.
Disappointed With Magath Departure, Market Hot After Dzeko
Dzeko was openly disappointed when Wolfsburg coach and manager Felix Magath announced he would be leaving the club after the season for fellow German side Schalke. Dzeko has a contract with Wolfsburg until 2011 but he is a highly-sought after striker with a market value of about 20 million euros. And while Grafite has said he would like to extend his contract with Wolfsburg, Dzeko has said he will wait until the end of the season. But there have been plenty of big European clubs connected with the striker. Rumors have teams like Juventus, AC Milan, Lyon, Chelsea, Fiorentina, Manchester United, Real Madrid, Arsenal Romas, Liverpool and Bayern Munich all interested in Dzeko.
International Career
Dzeko played for the Bosnian U19 side at the 2003 and 2004 European Championships in Kazakhstan and Italy, respectively. He also played for the Bosnian U21s at the 2007 Euros in Netherlands. He made his Bosnian senior side debut on June 2, 2007 against Turkey and scored in the game. He has earned 15 caps for Bosnia and Herzegovina and scored nine goals. He is hoping to lead the Bosnians to their first ever World Cup in 2010 South Africa.
