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On August 8, 2012, Canadian under-20 international Stefan Cebara signed a two-year deal with Slovenian First Division side NK Celje. Cebara (the c is pronounced like the ts in tsunami) last played with Hungarian First Division side Zalaegerszegi TE where he was the youngest player on the team. Cebara was born April 12, 1991 in Zadar, Croatia to a Serbian father and a Croatian mother. He moved to Canada at the age of 6. The young striker was close to signing for Serie A side Udinese Calcio after arriving in Udine on July 6th for a 10-day trial. He was overlooked however due to not having a European Union passport.
“There is still the chance that at some point, I go back to Udinese as Croatia will be joining the EU in 2013,” said Cebara in an email interview from Slovenia. “I really wanted to play for Udinese but what can you do. I just need to start playing. I have to have a positive attitude. I’ve been through a lot this past year – from my last club not giving me my release then getting injured in Ukraine (when I was close to signing for Karpaty Lviv). As soon as I can play, I need to make this season mine.”
"Celje is a young squad and an ambitious team with a great coach
who hopefully will give me the chance to showcase my talent. I'm happy
to be there and of course help contribute to the team's success."
Cebara also commented a bit more on his time in Hungary.
“Playing in Hungary was good at the start but when I got back from the U-20 World Cup qualifiers, the club started to go downhill financially. I had problems cancelling my contract in Hungary so I wasn’t able to play anywhere for six months. It was a good experience though. Taught me a lot.”
Before signing for Zalaegerszeg, Cebara spent a year in Belgrade, Serbia and played for FK Rad’s U-19 team. While playing for Rad, Cebara played alongside Canadian national team keeper Milan Borjan in a few exhibition matches with the first-team. Cebara was also part of the Canadian U-20 side that reached the quarterfinals of the 2011 CONCACAF U-20 Championship.
His new club Celje currently sits in second place (out of ten teams) in the Slovenian League just two points behind Slovenian giant Maribor.
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