Dušan Tadić

Dušan Tadić (, ; born 20 November 1988) is a Serbian professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder or forward for Eredivisie club NEC Nijmegen.

Tadić spent his youth at hometown club AIK Bačka Topola and Vojvodina, eventually playing in the UEFA Europa League with the latter. After two seasons with Groningen he joined Twente in 2012, where he earned a move to Southampton of the Premier League. After four years in England, he returned to the Netherlands in 2018 with Ajax. With the club, Tadić went on to win three Eredivisie and two KNVB Cup titles, the 2018–19 Eredivisie golden boot, and the 2020–21 Eredivisie Player of the Season award. He left Ajax with 105 goals and 112 assists in 241 matches, joining Fenerbahçe in 2023.

Internationally, Tadić made a record 111 appearances for Serbia, having made his international debut in 2008; he represented the country at the Olympics in that year, as well as at the FIFA World Cup in 2018 and 2022, and the UEFA European Championship in 2024.

Club career Vojvodina Tadić is a youth product of his hometown club, AIK Bačka Topola. Eventually, he signed a professional contract with Vojvodina and played his first competitive matches in the Meridian SuperLiga at the age of 18. While playing for Vojvodina, he gained invaluable experience playing against various top flight teams – including Atlético Madrid – and playing almost four full seasons without any major injuries or incidents. In the 2009–10 UEFA Europa League qualifying phase, he scored a goal against Austria Wien.

Groningen

In 2010, Vojvodina sold Dušan Tadić to Groningen for the equivalent of €1.23 million. On 8 August 2010, Tadić made his official debut for the club in an Eredivisie match against Ajax, playing the full match and providing the assist for Tim Matavž's goal in a 2–2 home draw. On 18 December 2010, Tadić scored his first goal for Groningen, against Excelsior in a 2–2 away draw. On 30 January 2011, he scored twice and provided one assist in a 1–4 away league victory against Heerenveen. Tadić finished the 2010–11 season with 7 goals, and 22 assists in 41 matches. He had the third highest number of assists in Europe for the 2010–11 season. Only Mesut Özil (26) and Lionel Messi (28) registered more assists. Tadić played for Groningen from 2010 to 2012 before being transferred to Twente.

Twente On 10 April 2012, it was announced that Tadić had signed for Twente in a €7.7 million move from Groningen. In his debut match on 12 August, he scored two goals against his former club. He finished his debut season as the team's second-highest scorer with 16 goals in all competitions, two less than Nacer Chadli. He made his competitive debut on 17 August in their first match of the Premier League season, playing 74 minutes of a 2–1 defeat against Liverpool, only to be replaced by fellow debutant Shane Long. Tadić assisted Southampton's goal in a 1–2 victory with goalscorer Nathaniel Clyne.

Tadić scored his first Southampton goal on 23 September with a penalty against Arsenal in a 2–1 League Cup victory at Emirates Stadium. On 18 October, he scored his first league goal in an 8–0 victory against Sunderland on 18 October, in which he assisted four others, equalling the Premier League record for the most assists in a single match.

On 13 December, Tadić's penalty was saved by Tom Heaton as Southampton went on to lose 1–0 away against Burnley. He scored in a 2–0 win over Arsenal on 1 January 2015, and ten days later scored the only goal as Southampton defeated Manchester United at Old Trafford and rose into third position at their expense. This marked Southampton's first league victory at Old Trafford since 1988. On 30 August 2015, Tadić scored twice in a 3–0 win against Norwich City for the Saints' first league win of the season.

On 23 April 2016, Tadić scored another brace in a 4–2 victory against Aston Villa, who were already relegated. In the next match, he provided three assists in a 4–2 victory against Manchester City, becoming only the fourth player to achieve three or more assists in more than one Premier League game.

Ajax

Tadić signed for Dutch club Ajax in June 2018. The club paid a transfer sum of €11.4 million, which could reach €13.7 million based on variables.

On 5 March 2019, Tadić's goal, two assists, and earning the Man of the Match performance helped knock Real Madrid out of the last 16 of the Champions League, as Ajax unexpectedly won 4–1 at the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium. The Spanish club had won the previous three Champions League titles and beaten Ajax 2–1 in the first leg in Amsterdam. Tadić's performance in the game resulted in him becoming the ninth player ever to receive a 10/10 rating from the French football newspaper L'Équipe. The arrival of Tadić was seen by some pundits as the single biggest reason for Ajax's improvement in the 2018–19 season.

On 23 April 2019, Ajax defeated Vitesse in an Eredivisie match by a score of 4–2. The four goals scored by Ajax secured their position as the first Dutch team in history to score 160 goals across all competitions in a single season. Through 51 matches played at the time, Tadić had directly contributed to 53 of the club's goals in all competitions: 34 goals and 19 assists. He eventually led Ajax to the Champions League Semi-Finals, while earning a spot on the UEFA Champions League Squad of the Season. He also was nominated for the 2019 Ballon d'Or. At the ceremony on 2 December 2019, it was announced that Tadić finished in 20th place.

On 2 May 2021, Ajax were crowned Eredivisie champions. Tadić had the honour of being awarded Dutch Footballer of the Year. On 3 September 2022, he played his 200th match for Ajax in a 4–0 victory against Cambuur.

On 19 February 2023, Tadić scored his 100th goal with Ajax in a 4–0 win over Sparta Rotterdam. On 14 July 2023, his contract was terminated by mutual agreement. He left Ajax with 105 goals and 112 assists in 241 matches.

Fenerbahçe On 16 July 2023, Tadić signed a two-year contract with Süper Lig side Fenerbahçe. On 26 July, he made his debut in the Conference League in a 5–0 victory against Zimbru at the Şükrü Saracoğlu Stadium. On 1 August, he scored his first goal for the club in the second leg against the same opponent in a 4–0 victory at the Zimbru Stadium. On 13 August, he made his Süper Lig debut in a 2–1 win against Gaziantep.

On 28 March 2025, Tadić made his 100th appearance in all competitions for Fenerbahçe against Bodrumspor in a 2-4 Süper Lig away win.

Al Wahda On 8 August 2025, following weeks of transfer speculation, Tadić signed a one-year contract with UAE Pro League club Al Wahda.

NEC Nijmegen On 27 July 2026, it was announced that he had signed a two-year contract with Eredivisie club NEC Nijmegen.

International career Youth and early senior career Tadić was a regular member of Serbia's under-19 and under-21 teams, taking part at both the 2007 UEFA European Under-19 Championship and the 2009 UEFA European Under-21 Championship. He also represented Serbia at the 2008 Summer Olympics, appearing in all three group stage matches.

On 14 December 2008, Tadić debuted for the Serbian senior squad in a 0–1 friendly loss against Poland. On 12 September 2012, he scored his first senior national team goal in his eighth appearance, a 6–1 victory against Wales in the 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification.

2018 and 2022 FIFA World Cups Tadić was one of Serbia's most influential players during the 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification, scoring four goals and helping them win their group. playing all three group stage matches.

In November 2022, he served as captain of Serbia at the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar. He played in all three group stage matches, against Brazil, Cameroon, and Switzerland. He provided two assists, one in a match against Cameroon, and another one against Switzerland as Serbia finished fourth in the group.

100 appearances and retirement On 10 September 2023, Tadić played his 100th international match in a 3–1 away win against Lithuania during the Euro 2024 qualifying.

On 28 May 2024, he was named in the Serbia squad for UEFA Euro 2024. He appeared as a substitute for Aleksandar Mitrović in the team's opening match of the tournament against England, playing the last 29 minutes of the 1–0 loss. He also played in group stage matches against Slovenia and Denmark. Serbia finished fourth in the group. 18 July, Tadić announced his retirement from international football.

Career statistics Club Premier League

2015–16 Premier League

2016–17 Premier League

2017–18 Premier League

2018–19 Eredivisie

2019–20 Eredivisie

2020–21 Eredivisie

2021–22 Eredivisie

2022–23 Eredivisie

2023–24 Süper Lig

2024–25 Süper Lig

Al Wahda 2025–26 UAE Pro League

NEC 2026–27 Eredivisie

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International

Scores and results list Serbia's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Tadić goal. KNVB Cup: 2018–19, 2020–21 Johan Cruyff Shield: 2019

Individual Serbian SuperLiga Team of the Season: 2009–10 Groningen C1000 Player of the Year: 2010–11 Eredivisie Team of the Year: 2013–14, 2018–19, 2020–21, 2022–23 Eredivisie top scorer: 2018–19 (shared with Luuk de Jong) Serbian Footballer of the Year: 2016, 2019, 2021 UEFA Champions League Squad of the Season: 2018–19 UEFA Champions League top assist provider: 2018–19 UEFA Europa League Squad of the Season: 2020–21 Eredivisie Player of the Season: 2020–21 Eredivisie Player of the Month: March 2019 Ajax Player of the Year (Rinus Michels Award): 2020–21 Dutch Footballer of the Year: 2020–21