Happy Birthday Zivko!
Our goalkeeper Zivko Zivkovic turns 35 today, and PAOK FC would like to wish him many years of health, happiness and successes on both a personal and professional level.
Born on April 14th 1989 in Užice in Serbia, Zivko caught the football… bug from his father, who was a fanatical supporter of Partizan Belgrade. He grew up in a ‘Black and White’ household and from a young age had the desire to get involved with the game.
He took his first steps at his local team of Sloboda. He attracted the attention of Partizan’s radar in 2005 and it was then that his dreams began to turn into reality as he soon joined the club’s youth academy.
In 2007 he was elevated into the first team squad and signed his first professional contract. The road to establishing himself, however, was not an easy one by any stretch of the imagination.
He was first loaned out to Teleoptik. He returned, only to be loaned out again to Metalac Gornji Milanovac, with whom he celebrated promotion to the top flight with in the 2008-09 season. He helped the club remain in the top flight the following season as a member of the starting XI.
He returned to Belgrade after that but found himself third choice in the pecking order. After one full season without any action, he went out on loan again to Metalac.
The start of the 2012-13 campaign saw him move to Teleoptik, but injuries back at Partizan saw the club end his loan spell and he returned to the capital.
The Serbian keeper battled hard for a place in the starting XI. Despite the tough competition, he did not give up and in 2015 his efforts were vindicated. Zivko established himself as first choice, produced some exceptional performances and remained the No.1 for a year, before a change of coach meant that he became a ‘victim’ of the new regime and lost his place.
The end of the 2015-16 season saw his contract with Partizan expire and he decided to look for pastures new. He accepted a proposal from Xanthi and his career in Greek football began.
Zivkovic enjoyed an action-packed three-year spell with the Akrites, making 89 appearances and established himself as one of the top goalkeepers in the country.
In April 2019 it was announced via Social Media that he would not be continuing his career at Xanthi. PAOK did not hesitate to snap up the Serbian shot-stopper on a free transfer.
Since then the Serbian goalkeeper has made 62 appearances for the club and he has won one Greek Cup in the 2020-21 season.
