Adrian Segecic

Adrian Segecic (born 1 June 2004) is an Australian professional soccer player who plays as a midfielder for Australian A-League Men club Sydney FC. Segecic spent most of his youth years with Lidcombe Waratah and Parramatta FC before joining Sydney FC in October 2016. He has represented Australia at youth level since 2019.

Early life
Born in Westmead and raised in Lidcombe, Adrian Segecic developed a passion for football from a young age, idolising Argentine footballer Lionel Messi who he bases his playing style from. Segecic received his education at Trinity Catholic College, a prominent educational institution located in New South Wales (NSW). His father played a significant role when Adrian played football, watching every game he played and providing help and feedback after each game to aid his development. Segecic is of Croatian descent, through his grandparents who originated from the country.

He trialed for multiple clubs in Europe with the likes of Liverpool, Manchester City, Leeds, Chelsea, Wolves, Ajax, Dinamo Zagreb and Rangers. During his trial with Rangers, a leaked photo showed him walking onto the pitch at Ibrox Stadium while being announced on the big screen. Many fans speculated that he was a new signing, even though the club did not make an official announcement.

Sydney FC
After winning the MVP award at a football camp, Segecic made a strong impression on Sydney FC, who subsequently invited him to join the academy squad. In October 2016, he accepted and was officially announced as part of the squad list on 29 January 2016. In January 2020, He featured briefly for Sydney FC Youth in the final round of the A-League Youth against Canberra United. He was called up again in August after turning 16 a month before, making his NPL NSW debut against North Shore Mariners.

Segecic earned his first call-up to the A-League squad in the Finals series semi final against Adelaide United. He was on the bench in the Grand Final against Melbourne City. By the end of the 2020–21 campaign, Segecic won the club's Rising Star Award. On 26 December 2021, Segecic made his professional league debut against Macarthur FC, coming off the bench in the 76th minute in a 3–0 away win. He made his AFC Champions League debut in a play-off match against Kaya. On 7 April 2022, Sydney FC announced Segecic among the ten youth players registered for the AFC Champions League ahead of the group stage. After featuring in a number of games at the age of 17, on 9 May 2022, he was offered his first professional contract that was set to expire in 2025.

Segecic made his first start for Sydney FC in a match against Central Coast Mariners in the Round of 32 of the Australia Cup. In this match, he contributed an assist to Adam Le Fondre for the team's third goal, helping them secure a 3–3 draw and a win in the penalty shoot-out. His performance from last match earnt him a starting place in the next round against Bentleigh Greens, scoring his first senior goal for the club in a 2–1 win by full time. He would score again against Oakleigh Cannons, but only a consolation goal as his side lost in a 2–1 upset and getting knocked out of the competition. Segecic made his Big Blue debut in the opening round of the 2022–23 A-League season playing in front of 21,840 fans as his side lost 3–2 at home. On 29 October, Segecic scored his first league goal, being on the receiving end of a cross by Jaiden Kucharski to make it 3–1 against Macarthur. The final score was 3–2 at Campbeltown. After an impressive display against Newcastle Jets, Segecic assisted a goal to contribute a 2–0 victory and received Player of the match.

Loan to Dordrecht
On 30 August 2023, Segecic joined Dutch club Dordrecht on loan with an option to buy.

Youth
In July 2019, Segecic received his first call-up to the Australia U15 for the 2019 AFF U-15 Championship hosted in Thailand. He would feature in all group matches, scoring a goal in a 3–0 win against Laos.

In September 2022, Segecic was called up to the Australia U20 for the U-20 Costa Cálida Supercup in Spain. He would make his debut in a 3–0 loss against England. Segecic would remain with Australia squad, alongside teammate Jake Girdwood-Reich, to play in the 2023 AFC U-20 Asian Cup in hopes of qualifying to the U-20 World Cup. On 4 March 2023, he scored two goals, one being a free-kick, in a 3–2 victory against Iran in their second match of the tournament. Australia progressed to the quarter-finals of the AFC Championship but were knocked out by Uzbekistan in a penalty shoot-out. After the shoout-out led 5–4, Segecic missed the deciding penalty, leading to his team missing out on a place in the U-20 World Cup.