Nejc Pečnik (born 3 January 1986) is a Slovenian footballer who plays for Dravograd. Primarily an attacking midfielder, he also plays as a winger or forward.
He represented Slovenia at the 2010 FIFA World Cup. He was instrumental in Slovenia's successful qualification to the tournament by scoring an away goal against Russia in the 2010 World Cup qualification play-offs.
Club career
Celje Born in Dravograd, Slovenia (then part of Yugoslavia), Pečnik started his career at hometown club Dravograd. After showing promise in its youth teams he was signed by Celje, making his first division debut on 24 April 2004 against Ljubljana.
The following year Pečnik played in only seven league matches, adding a few cup appearances including the final against Gorica. In the 2005–06 season he managed to gain a regular place in the first team, eventually establishing himself as a key offensive player.
In 2007–08, Pečnik was Celje's top scorer with 14 league goals. After five seasons he was loaned out in June 2008 to Sparta Prague, but appeared rarely with the Czech first division outfit during his six-month stay, spending most of his time with the reserve squad.
Nacional After a further 15 league games with Celje, Pečnik signed with Nacional of Portugal. On 16 July 2012, after three seasons of irregular playing time, also being loaned to Russian club Krylia Sovetov Samara for five months, he signed a two-year deal with Sheffield Wednesday in the Football League Championship.
Sheffield Wednesday In his official debut with the Owls, on 12 August 2012, Pečnik missed a penalty and was booked before half-time, as his team trailed at Oldham Athletic 2–0. He played the full 90 minutes in an eventual 4–2 win for the season's Football League Cup.
Pečnik was released by Wednesday at the end of his only campaign.
Red Star Belgrade On 1 July 2013, Pečnik agreed a two-year contract with Serbian side Red Star Belgrade.FK Crvena Zvezda: Печник у Звезди наредне две године ; Red Star's official website, 1 July 2013 He scored his first goal for Red Star against ÍBV in the second qualifying round of the 2013–14 UEFA Europa League.
International career Pečnik made his debut for the Slovenia national team on 1 April 2009, in a 2010 World Cup qualifier against Northern Ireland. He scored his first goal for Slovenia on 10 October 2009, during the same qualifying campaign, in a 2–0 win over Slovakia. On 14 November 2009, he scored a decisive away goal in the 2010 World Cup qualification play-offs, as Slovenia lost 2–1 against Russia at the Luzhniki Stadium, only to win 1–0 in the second leg, taking the tie on the away goals and qualifying for a World Cup for the second time in the nation's history; in the final stages, he appeared twice as a late substitute, having to be however stretchered off in the match against the United States. Overall, Pečnik earned a total of 32 caps, scoring 6 goals.
Career statistics
Club Nippon Sports Kikaku Publishing inc./日本スポーツ企画出版社, "2017 J1&J2&J3選手名鑑 (NSK MOOK)", 8 February 2017, Japan, (p. 41 out of 289)Nippon Sports Kikaku Publishing inc./日本スポーツ企画出版社, "J1&J2&J3選手名鑑 2015 (NSK MOOK)", 14 February 2015, Japan, (p. 168 out of 298)
+ Appearances and goals by club, season and competitionClubSeasonLeagueNational cupContinentalTotalDivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsCelje2003–04Slovenian PrvaLiga200000202004–057030001002005–0630240203622006–0731233—3452007–08351420—37142008–0915300—153Sparta Prague (loan)2008–09Czech First League40002060Sparta Prague B (loan)2008–09Czech 2. Liga92——92Nacional2009–10Primeira Liga24260803822010–119010—1002011–124010—50Krylia Sovetov (loan)2011–12Russian Premier League21110—221Sheffield Wednesday2012–13Championship10040—140Red Star Belgrade2013–14Serbian SuperLiga28731413592014–1515210—162JEF United Chiba2015J2 League391400—3914Omiya Ardija2016J1 League211104—31520176061—121Tochigi SC2017J3 League126——1262018J2 League22200—222Career total3445845916140568
International Scores and results list Slovenia's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Pečnik goal.
+ List of international goals scored by Nejc PečnikNo.DateVenueOpponentScoreResultCompetition110 October 2009Tehelné pole, Bratislava, Slovakia2–02–02010 World Cup qualification214 November 2009Luzhniki Stadium, Moscow, Russia1–21–22010 World Cup qualification playoffs314 November 2012Philip II Arena, Skopje, Macedonia1–22–3Friendly42–3514 June 2015Stožice Stadium, Ljubljana, Slovenia2–22–3UEFA Euro 2016 qualification612 October 2015San Marino Stadium, Serravalle, San Marino2–02–0UEFA Euro 2016 qualification
Honours Celje Slovenian Cup: 2004–05 Red Star Serbian SuperLiga: 2013–14
References
External links