Niki Budalić

Niki Budalic

Personal information
Full name	Nikola Budalic
Date of birth	(1978-08-01) August 1, 1978
Place of birth	Kitchener, Ontario
Height	5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)
Playing position	Attacking Midfielder
Youth career
2000–2001	Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2001	Glen Shields Sun Devils
2002	Toronto Lynx	22	(12)
2003	Örebro[1]	5	(0)
2004	Montreal Impact	9	(0)
2004–2005	Haugesund	31	(2)
2006–2009	Serbian White Eagles	31	(6)
2013–2014	K-W United	2	(0)
Teams managed
2010–2011	Serbian White Eagles
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only.

Nikola “Niki” Budalic (born August 1, 1978) is a retired Canadian soccer player. As of February 2016, he is the assistant general manager of Orlando City SC.

Club career

Before turning pro he played college soccer with the James Madison University, in 2001 he was selected by the Toronto Lynx in the first round of the USL First Division 2001 College Draft, but decided to continue his education back home at Wilfrid Laurier University where he led the Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks to the CIS championship. In order to maintain his CIS eligibility he did not turn pro that year but instead played for Glen Shields in the Canadian Soccer League.

Budalić would sign with the Lynx in 2002, making his debut on April 20, 2002 against the Pittsburgh Riverhounds. He scored his first goal on April 26 against Richmond Kickers in a 1-1 draw. Budalić had an astonishing rookie season nearly helped the Lynx make the playoffs, but a tie in the final game of season against Atlanta Silverbacks made the Charlotte Eagles take the final playoff spot. He finished his rookie season with twelve goals, was named Team of the Week three times. And the Club recognized Budalić with their Best Offensive Player Award and, was also named 2002 A-League Rookie of the Year.

Just weeks before the start of the 2003 season, the Lynx announced Budalić had been transferred to Örebro SK in the Swedish First Division,^[2] where he was re-united with former Lynx player Chris Pozniak. The same year he was named to the Canada national soccer team roster for a friendly against Germany, but did not feature in the match.

In 2004 Budalić returned to the USL First Division to sign with Montreal Impact,^[3] where he faced stiff competition with well-established strikers, gaining Budalić difficulty getting sufficient playing time with the club. He was later transferred to F.K. Haugesund where he and fellow former Lynx players Milan Kojić, Chris Pozniak, and Kevin De Serpa helped the team win promotion to the Adeccoligaen in 2005. In 2006, he was released by Haugesund. After his release, Budalić signed with newly expansion Serbian White Eagles of the Canadian Soccer League. With the Serbian White Eagles he reached the final of the Rogers Cup but lost to the Italia Shooters by a score of 1:0.

On September 17, 2007, Budalić played a game for the Toronto FC reserve team against the Real Salt Lake reserve team, and scored a goal in the 22nd minute.

Budalić was named team captain of the Serbian White Eagles for the 2008 season.

References