An unsung ‘champion’ at his peak

A decade later when a majority of football fans will be sitting down to have a discussion about the best strikers of the present generation, the name of Edin Dzeko will be hardly spoken about. Even today, when a football fan is asked about who is the best striker of the generation, they would mostly come up with the names of Karim Benzema, Luis Suarez, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Robert Lewandowski, Sergio Aguero and so on, but the striker from Bosnia who has graced the romantic game will remain unsung.

While there would be a million voices to drowse the few who take Edin Dzeko’s name in the debate of the best strikers in Europe, one thing on which all can agree is that the Inter Milan striker is one of the most underrated players of this generation.

At 37 years of age, Dzeko has a chance to become one of the elite classes by winning the Champions League. Fame might be surrounding him with all the glossy cameras once he is on the other side of the finishing line, but his story will always be of immense hard work, passion and love for the beautiful game.

Numerous players have come and gone over the years, worthy of winning the much-coveted Champions League title. Dzeko might become one of them or he will join the elite and either way; the Bosnian’s story is a tale for the ages and might be one of the most underrated stories in world football. It is an account of the striker who scored 323 goals with an assist count of 145. Yet, he has remained unheard of for most parts of his career.

Being too tall in stature, Dzeko’s childhood club Željezničar in Sarajevo had to discard him from the position of a midfielder. The then-manager of the club Jiří Plíšek was the one to identify his lack of technical ability but saw the player’s potential in heading and clinical situations. When it was becoming uncertain for Dzeko to start at his youth club, Czech side Teplice bought him on the recommendation of the coach. With 13 goals during the 2006-07 season, Dzeko came second in the goalscoring league standings, which earned him a €4 million transfer to Wolfsburg.

Dzeko’s arrival in the Bundesliga wasn’t an eye-catching affair but this event ultimately led to a historic goalscoring record in the league. The Bosnian became the league’s top scorer in Wolfsburg history with 59 goals in 96 games. Apart from his own personal tally, Dzeko formed a formidable partnership with Grafite upfront and the duo’s haul of 54 goals combined during the 2008-09 season became the highest-ever outcome of goals from an out-and-out strike partnership in Bundesliga history. It was the season in which Wolfsburg won the league for the first time since their existence.

Signing with Manchester City in the 2010-11 season helped Dzeko receive the deserved spotlight but he was mostly left in the shadow of first-choice striker Sergio Aguero and, to an extent, Mario Balotelli as well. Even with limited game-time, the striker could net 72 times and assist 38 over the course of 189 official appearances with Manchester City. Two Premier League titles with an F.A. Cup and a Community Shield were the accolades he could muster with the Cityzens. The fans need to value him more as he was the one who initiated the comeback against Queens Park Rangers before that Sergio Aguero moment which led to City winning their first league title in 2011. This single episode is enough to typify Dzeko’s career; he didn’t receive the recognition he deserves. While performing the duties of a no-nonsense striker, Dzeko could develop efficiency in holding the ball in the final third of the pitch and release it to one of his teammates to score. Even today, this trait of his can be seen in almost every match he plays.

Following a loan season with Roma, his performances were convincing enough to compel the Giallorossi to sign Edin Dzeko on a permanent deal in 2015-16. This is where he truly developed as a player and this new experience in Italy helped him add more to his playing style by extending his resume for something bigger in the future.

119 goals with 54 assists marked Dzeko’s 5-season stay in the Italian capital where he couldn’t win any silverware but played a first-choice role. Through a display of immense hard work and resilience, the Bosnian won the hearts of Roma supporters and while his goalscoring records already could speak for themselves, he still lacked the limelight which many strikers below his capability enjoyed. Former Roma manager Luciano Spalletti described him as “strong, tall, fast for his height, combative, aggressive and has good technique.”

Following their 2020-21 Serie A win and the departure of Romelu Lukaku to Chelsea, Inter Milan brought in Dzeko to replace the Belgian striker who had a marvellous season. Acting as Lautaro Martinez’s partner up front, Edin Dzeko continued his stellar consistent form since coming to Italy. Over the course of two seasons, he has featured 97 times and has scored 31 goals. The Bosnian doesn’t score in every match now but plays a vital role in creating and utilising space, the most beautiful thing about him is that he is now 37 years of age and looks far from stopping.

Edin Dzeko is now in the twilight of his career and only lacks a Champions League title to his name to cap off his glorious underrated football life. He won’t be staying around for long and while Inter winning the Champions League would mean a revitalising influence for Italian Football, Dzeko’s story would finally reach the pinnacle of the sport as one of the best strikers of this generation.

Having scored four goals in Inter’s Champions League campaign this season, Dzeko will look to increase that tally in the much-coveted final of the biggest stage in European club football. After so much hard work, humility, generosity in attack and volatility in his career, if anyone deserves the Champions League gold medal, it’s Dzeko.

Views expressed are personal