Luka Krajnc (born 19 September 1994) is a Slovenian professional footballer who plays as a defender.
Club career Krajnc began his football career at the age of eight, when his father took him to the Slovenian club Maribor for a trial. He signed his first professional contract with Maribor at the age of 16 and played for the main squad in a couple of friendly matches. On 29 May 2011, he played his first and only 1. SNL match for Maribor in the last round of the 2010–11 season, with Maribor already being crowned champions. At the time of his debut, he was the youngest player ever with an appearance for Maribor in a 1. SNL match, a record which lasted until 25 March 2012 when it was surpassed by Petar Stojanović.
On 3 April 2011, Krajnc signed a pre-contract with Italian Serie A club Genoa. The transfer fee paid by Genoa was undisclosed, but was reported to be close to €1 million. He joined his new club on 1 July 2011 and was assigned to Genoa's youth team, which he also captained, before making his debut for the first team on 27 October 2012 at San Siro in a league match against AC Milan. With 18 years, one month and 14 days, he became the youngest Slovenian player with an appearance in the Italian top division, Serie A.
On 3 July 2013, he moved to Cesena in a temporary co-ownership deal. In June 2015, Genoa acquired Cesena's share and became the sole owner of the player's rights.
On 31 August 2016, Krajnc joined Sampdoria on a season-long loan. In the second part of the 2016–17 season, he was loaned to Frosinone.
On 20 June 2018, Frosinone turned Krajnc's loan into a permanent deal for an undisclosed fee.
In September 2020, he joined Fortuna Düsseldorf on a season-long loan.
On 24 August 2021, Krajnc joined Hannover 96 on a three-year contract.
On 23 August 2023, Krajnc returned to Italy and signed a two-year deal with Catanzaro.
After 13 years of playing abroad, Krajnc returned to his childhood club Maribor on 7 September 2024 and signed a contract until 2026 with the option for another year.
International career Krajnc has represented Slovenia at all youth levels from under-16 to under-21. He made his senior international debut on 30 March 2015, replacing Dominic Maroh after 65 minutes in an eventual 1–0 friendly defeat against Qatar at the Jassim bin Hamad Stadium in Doha.
Personal life Krajnc is from Kapla na Kozjaku in the hilly region of northeastern Slovenia near the Austrian border, approximately 37 km from the city of Maribor. Before moving to Maribor, he usually had to study and do homework in the back seat of his father's car, driving to and from training.
Career statistics
+ Appearances and goals by club, season and competitionClubSeasonLeagueNational cupTotalDivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsMaribor2010–111. SNL100010Genoa2011–12Serie A0000002012–13Serie A300030Total300030Cesena (loan)2013–14Serie B221002212014–15Serie A22010230Total44110451Cagliari2015–16Serie B 210302402016–17Serie A000000Total21030240Sampdoria (loan)2016–17Serie A001010Frosinone (loan)2016–17Serie B190001902017–18Serie B27020290Total46020480Frosinone2018–19Serie A9000902019–20Serie B150001502020–21Serie B0000002021–22Serie B000000Total24000240Fortuna Düsseldorf (loan)2020–212. Bundesliga24200242Hannover 962021–222. Bundesliga200202202022–232. Bundesliga201102112023–242. Bundesliga000000Total40130431Catanzaro2023–24Serie B150001502024–25Serie B100010Total16000160Maribor2024–251. SNL23120251Career total24251202545
References
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