January 26, 2021 - Andrej Kramaric has surpassed Ivica Olic to become the top Croatian scorer in Bundesliga!
Croatia national team player Andrej Kramaric scored two goals in Sunday's (3-0) Hoffenheim victory against Cologne, resulting in a stellar 74 Bundesliga goals - the most of any Croatian footballer in the German league, reports Index.hr.
Kramaric scored both goals from penalty kicks, the first in the 7th and the second in the 75th minute. Goalkeeper Timo Horn flew in the wrong direction on both penalties, and Kramaric scored his 11th and 12th Bundesliga goals of the season. Kramaric played for Hoffenheim only 19 times in the new season, and in addition to the goals, he also recorded two assists.
Kramaric has thus become the top Croatian scorer in the Bundesliga 74 goals, two more than Ivica Olić.
Ivica Olic scored 72 in his Bundesliga career, followed by Mario Mandzukic (53), Mladen Petric (51), and Ivan Klasnic (50). However, while the legendary Olic needed 238 games for 72 goals, Kramaric reached 74 goals in only 146 matches.
"Even before the game, I knew that with one goal, I would reach Ivica Olic and become the most successful Croatian scorer in the history of Bundesliga. I never thought in my career that I would achieve something like that, this is a great honor for me, and I am very proud of this success," said Andrej Kramarić (29), for 24 Sata.
"I have to admit, I was motivated by Ivica Olic's figure, I really wanted to reach him. I play all the time for Hoffenheim, while Olic and Mandzukic had the opportunity to play in much bigger clubs like Bayern, so I reached this number with a lot fewer games played. I believe that all this adds value and even more importance to my success. None of them have congratulated me on this record yet, but I know the guys will get back to me soon."
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