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*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 1 August 2024 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 15:32, 28 October 2022 (UTC)
Libor Kozák (born 30 May 1989) is a Czech professional footballer who plays as a striker for Opava.[3]
Club career
SFC Opava
Kozák started his career in 2001 with Czech club Slezský FC Opava, first playing with its youth teams before being promoted to the first team in 2007. Considered a promising talent, Kozák was a prolific goalscorer in the Czech Second Division with Opava. In October 2007, he scored his first hat-trick, coming in a 5–1 Opava win against FC Zenit Čáslav in the second division.[4]
In January 2008, Kozák went on trial with English Premier League club Portsmouth, however he did not join Pompey.[5]
Lazio
Kozák joined Lazio in July 2008, signing a five-year contract, with rumours that Lazio club president Claudio Lotito paid a €1.2 million ($1.8 million) transfer fee.[6] He later went on loan to Serie B side Brescia in the 2009–10 Serie B to gain experience and regular playing time.[citation needed] On 26 September 2009, Kozák scored his first goal in Italy against Grosseto.[7]
At the end of his loan spell, Kozák returned to Lazio and scored his first goal for the Biancocelesti on 18 September 2010, which turned out to be the winner against Fiorentina. On 16 January 2011, he netted the deciding goal against Sampdoria after coming on as a 77th-minute substitute,[8] before scoring two goals on his full club debut two weeks later, again against Fiorentina.[9] Having achieved four goals in nine starts for Lazio of which four goals came in January, Michal Bílek, manager of the Czech Republic, called Kozák up to the national team and announced he would make a special trip to the Stadio Olimpico to watch his game against A.S. Bari.[10]
Under coach Vladimir Petković in the 2012–13 Serie A, Kozák experienced a two-faced season by failing to score in 19 appearances in Serie A, but finished the season as the leading goalscorer in the Europa League with eight goals.[11] He scored his first club hat-trick against VfB Stuttgart in Rome on 14 March 2013, helping his team reach the last eight by an aggregate score of 5–1.[12]
Aston Villa
On 2 September 2013, Kozák signed a four-year contract with English side Aston Villa for a €6.5 million transfer fee,[11] being assigned the number 27 shirt.[13] On 14 September 2013, he made his Aston Villa debut at Villa Park, but could not prevent the side from losing 2–1 to Newcastle United. On 21 September 2013, he scored his first goal for Villa, seconds after replacing Christian Benteke, against Norwich City which proved to be the winning goal in a 1–0 victory.[14] The same year on 21 December 2013, he scored the only goal for Villa in a 2–1 loss to Stoke City at the Britannia Stadium.[15]
On 2 January 2014, Villa announced that Kozak had broken his right leg in a training ground collision with teammate Ciaran Clark, and would miss the rest of the 2013–14 season.[16] Complications and further injuries saw him miss the entire 2014–15 season too.[17] He eventually made his comeback 15 months after the initial leg break in March 2015 in an under-21 match against Wolverhampton Wanderers.[18] He made his first team comeback in July 2015 in a 3–1 pre-season defeat to Fulham, scoring for the first time since December 2013.[19] In February 2017, with Kozak's contract running out at the end of season, Aston Villa announced that he would miss the rest of the season undergoing surgery on his ankle.[20] Kozák was released by Aston Villa at the end of the 2016–17 season.[21]
Later career
On 30 August 2017, Kozak joined Serie B team Bari.[21] He signed with Livorno on 16 July 2018.[22] On 28 May 2019, Kozák returned to his homeland and signed with Sparta Prague.[23]
On 8 August 2023, Kozák joined Arezzo in the Italian Serie C.[27] He left by mutual consent on 31 January 2024.[28] On 23 July 2024, Kozák signed a one-year contract with Opava.[29]
