Milan Stepanov

Milan Stepanov

Personal information
Date of birth	(1983-04-02) 2 April 1983
Place of birth	Kisač, SFR Yugoslavia
Height
Position(s)	Centre back
Team information
Current team	Vojvodina
Number	TBA
Youth career
	Tatra Kisač
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2001–2006	Vojvodina	105	(6)
2006–2007	Trabzonspor	37	(1)
2007–2010	Porto	10	(0)
2009–2010	→ Málaga (loan)	12	(0)
2010–2012	Bursaspor	25	(2)
2012–2013	Mersin İdmanyurdu	26	(2)
2014–2015	Omonia	6	(0)
2015	Sarajevo	5	(0)
2016–	Vojvodina	0	(0)
International career
2006–2007	Serbia	6	(0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 12:00, 13 September 2015 (UTC)

Milan Stepanov (Serbian Cyrillic: Милан Степанов; born 2 April 1983) is a Serbian footballer who plays for Serbian club Vojvodina as a central defender.

Club career

Born in Kisač, Novi Sad, Serbia, Socialist Federative Republic of Yugoslavia, Stepanov came up through FK Vojvodina's ranks, making his first-team debut during the 2000–01 season and becoming team captain five years later. In the 2006 January transfer window, he transferred to Turkish club Trabzonspor.

In July 2007, Stepanov moved to FC Porto in Portugal for a reported €3.5 million. Initially on the substitutes bench he gradually made room for himself in the starting eleven but, on 28 November, in a UEFA Champions League match at Liverpool, his team lost 1–4, with him having a subpar performance and subsequently losing the starting place to veteran Pedro Emanuel; this situation was aggravated in his second year with the signing of Rolando (he would only play in the penultimate Primeira Liga game).

On 27 July 2009 Stepanov moved on loan to Spain's Málaga CF, with the Andalusians having a buying option at the season's end. He only made four La Liga appearances in the first half of the campaign, and was left out of the squad for almost three months, only playing again in a 0–0 home draw against Deportivo de La Coruña on 7 February 2010, where he started.

In late July 2010 Stepanov returned to Turkey, signing for Süper Lig champions Bursaspor for an undisclosed fee. In May 2012 the team decided to rescind the contract, and he joined fellow top-divisioner Mersin İdmanyurdu SK shortly after.

After Mersin İdmanyurdu, Stepanov had two short stays at Omonia and Sarajevo. After almost ten years away, Milan Stepanov returned to Vojvodina, signing a one-and-a-half year deal with the club.

International career

Stepanov was part of the Serbian and Montenegrin team that was knocked out in the first round of the 2004 Summer Olympics after finishing fourth in Group C behind eventual winners Argentina, Australia and Tunisia. He played against the first and the third teams in two losses.

In November 2005 Stepanov appeared in a two-match qualification playoff against Croatia for the 2006 UEFA European Under-21 Championship in Portugal, and scored in the second leg in a 2–1 away win, netting the winner in the 86th minute (5–2 on aggregate). He eventually helped the national side reach the semifinals in the final stages, with many pundits agreeing he was the team's most consistent performer with a string of confident defensive displays throughout the tournament.

Stepanov made his senior team debut in a friendly match against Czech Republic on 16 August 2006, in which he was sent off. In March 2007, during the nation's UEFA Euro 2008 qualifying campaign, he started in the 1–2 loss to Kazakhstan and was on the bench against Portugal.

Honours

Porto

• Primeira Liga: 2007–08, 2008–09
• Taça de Portugal: 2008–09

External links

• Milan Stepanov profile at ForaDeJogo
• Milan Stepanov profile at BDFutbol
• National team data (Serbian)
• Milan Stepanov at National-Football-Teams.com
• Milan Stepanov at Soccerway
• Stats at Footballdatabase