Vítězslav Jaroš

Vítězslav Jaroš (born 23 July 2001) is a Czech professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for club Liverpool, and the Czech Republic national team. He has previously spent time on loan at St Patrick's Athletic, Notts County, Stockport County and Sturm Graz.

Early career
Jaroš started out with his local club FK Příbram where he played for three years before joining Slavia Prague in 2011. He spent six years there before signing for Liverpool in 2017, joining the club's Academy set-up and winning the FA Youth Cup in his second season with the side.

In the summer of 2019, he made his first appearance for the senior side in a pre-season friendly against Tranmere Rovers, playing the second half of a 6–0 win. Shortly after that he picked up an injury in training that halted his progress, taking a knock to his elbow from close range that tore a ligament off the bone and a little bit of the bone away, with the injury requiring surgery that caused him to miss several months.

Liverpool
Jaroš first involvement with the Liverpool first team squad in a competitive fixture came in February 2020, when he was named on the bench for their FA Cup Fourth Round replay against Shrewsbury Town. He signed a new long term contract with the club on 9 July 2020. The following season, Jaroš was on the bench again for three Champions League fixtures, at home and away against Ajax and away to FC Midtjylland, although he remained an unused substitute in all three.

Loan to St Patrick's Athletic
On 3 February 2021, it was announced that Jaroš had joined League of Ireland Premier Division side St Patrick's Athletic on loan for the duration of the 2021 season. This made him the second ever player from the Czech Republic to sign for the club, after fellow Příbram native Michal Macek. He made his debut for St Pats, and his senior competitive debut, on 19 March 2021, in a 1–1 draw with Shamrock Rovers in the Dublin derby at Tallaght Stadium. Jaroš' debut performance saw him draw high praise from his manager Stephen O'Donnell who stated "He’s shown tonight what he’s shown all pre-season. For a player so young, 19 years of age, to have such a good mentality and be so composed – if you were coming in and didn’t know his age, you’re saying: ‘That’s a seasoned veteran, that’s a real pro’." He kept the first clean sheet of his senior career on 3 April 2021, as his side won 1–0 away to Bohemians in the Dublin City derby at Dalymount Park to go top of the league. Jaroš went on to keep five clean sheets in six games as his side remained unbeaten after nine games, conceding just four goals. On 12 November 2021, Jaroš was named as the club's Player of the Year, as voted by the club's supporters following a debut season that saw him help his side to a 2nd place finish, their best since the club's 2013 title win. On 28 November 2021, Jaroš made his last appearance for the club in the 2021 FAI Cup Final, beating rivals Bohemians 4–3 on penalties following a 1–1 draw after extra time in front of a record FAI Cup Final crowd of 37,126 at the Aviva Stadium. He departed the club at the end of the season, waiting for guidance from Jürgen Klopp on where his next move would be, with the Liverpool manager stating "Vit was brilliant in Ireland", while Pat's manager Stephen O'Donnell stated he was the best 20 year old goalkeeper he had ever seen, including Kasper Schmeichel who was a teammate of his at Falkirk at the same age. On 26 January 2022, it was announced that Jaroš had been named SWI Goalkeeper of the Year as voted by Irish journalists.

Loan to Notts County
On 27 January 2022, it was announced that Jaroš had signed for National League side Notts County until the end of the season. He made his debut for the club on 1 March 2022 in a 3–1 loss away to Chesterfield. His first clean sheet for the club came on his fifth appearance for the club, in a 2–0 win over Eastleigh at Meadow Lane on 19 February 2022. He made a total of 15 appearances for the club during his loan spell, as they missed out on promotion to EFL League Two in the playoffs.

Loan to Stockport County
On 4 July 2022, Jaroš signed for EFL League Two club Stockport County on a season long loan. Jaroš made his debut for the club on 9 August 2022 in an EFL Cup tie away to Harrogate Town in which he kept a clean sheet in a 1–0 win. He followed that up by keeping another clean sheet in a 1–0 win four days later in a victory at home to Colchester United in his league debut for the club. On 23 August 2022, Jaroš kept a clean sheet in a 0–0 draw with Premier League side Leicester City in an EFL Cup tie, also saving a penalty from James Maddison in the shootout as his side were defeated 3–1 on penalties. He made 13 appearances for the club in all competitions during his loan spell.

Loan to Sturm Graz
On 9 January 2024, Jaroš signed a new contract with Liverpool and joined Austrian Bundesliga second-placed club Sturm Graz. He made the first European appearance of his career on 15 February 2024 in a 4–1 win over Slovan Bratislava in the UEFA Europa Conference League. On 1 May 2024, he was part of the side that won the 2023–24 Austrian Cup after 2–1 victory over Rapid Wien in the final. He made 21 appearances in all competitions during his loan spell which concluded with winning the 2023–24 Austrian Bundesliga to complete the double and end Red Bull Salzburg's 10 year long title winning streak.

International career
Jaroš has represented Czech Republic at various underage levels, with first call-up to the Czech Republic U21 team coming in September 2021. He debuted for said youth team in a 3–0 victory against Andorra U21 on 29 March 2022.

Jaroš was named in the senior Czech Republic squad for the first time for the March 2024 friendly matches against Norway and Armenia. In May 2024, he was named as part of the squad for the UEFA Euro 2024 tournament. Jaroš debuted on 7 June 2024 in a 7–1 friendly victory against Malta in Grödig, Austria. He substituted Matěj Kovář at half-time.

Honours
Liverpool Youth
 * FA Youth Cup: 2018–19

St Patrick's Athletic
 * FAI Cup: 2021

Sturm Graz
 * Austrian Bundesliga: 2023–24
 * Austrian Cup: 2023–24

Individual
 * St Patrick's Athletic Player of the Year: 2021