Kristijan Ipša (born 4 April 1986) is a Croatian footballer of Slovenian heritage who plays as a central defender. He is a former Croatian youth international.[1]
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Kristijan Ipša | ||
| Date of birth | (1986-04-04) 4 April 1986 (age 36) | ||
| Place of birth |
Poreč, SR Croatia SFR Yugoslavia | ||
| Height | 1.86 m (6 ft 1 in) | ||
| Position(s) | Centre-back | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Funtana | |||
| Jadran Poreč | |||
| 2000–2004 | Varteks | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2004–2007 | Varteks | 63 | (6) |
| 2007–2008 | Energie Cottbus | 4 | (0) |
| 2008–2013 | Midtjylland | 89 | (2) |
| 2013–2014 | Reggina | 28 | (0) |
| 2014–2015 | Petrolul Ploiești | 21 | (1) |
| 2016 | Piast Gliwice | 4 | (0) |
| National team‡ | |||
| 2002 | Croatia U16 | 8 | (1) |
| 2002–2003 | Croatia U17 | 6 | (1) |
| 2003–2005 | Croatia U19 | 20 | (0) |
| 2006–2007 | Croatia U20 | 5 | (0) |
| 2005–2008 | Croatia U21 | 16 | (0) |
|
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 30 September 2016 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 8 December 2014 | |||
Born in Poreč, Ipša started his professional career in the youth ranks of NK Varteks. He became a regular in the Varteks squad in 2004 at just 18 years of age. His stellar defensive play was noticed and in the summer of 2007 he made a move to FC Energie Cottbus, thought to be worth around 500 thousand Euros. In January 2016 he signed half-year contract with Piast Gliwice with option of extending for one more year.[2]
Ipša has represented the youth ranks of the Croatian national team at the U17, U19 and U21 levels, and has been capped a total of 41 times, scoring two goals. He was a regular at the Croatian national under-21 team.