Michael John "Mile" Jedinak (; ; born 3 August 1984) is an Australian former professional footballer who served as the captain of the Australia national team. He is currently an assistant coach at Tottenham Hotspur.
Jedinak was born and raised in Sydney, and played youth football with Sydney United before starting his senior career at the club. Following loan spells at Varteks and South Coast United, Jedinak moved to Central Coast Mariners in 2006. He next played in Turkey, for Gençlerbirliği and Antalyaspor on loan before joining Crystal Palace and subsequently playing a role in the club earning promotion to the Premier League. In 2016, he joined Aston Villa, where he played until 2019, helping them achieve promotion back to the Premier League, before retiring and later transitioning into a coaching role there.
Jedinak made 79 appearances for the Australian national team from 2008 to 2018, and was Captain over 25 times since 2014. This includes participation in the 2010, 2014 and 2018 FIFA World Cups. He has also played at two AFC Asian Cups, including captaining Australia to victory on home soil in the 2015 edition.
Club career
Jedinak began playing when he was chosen to be part of the PDSSSC – a competition between Catholic schools within the Parramatta Diocesan – where he played for St Agnes Catholic High, the same school compatriot Željko Kalac attended. He also played for Loyola Senior High School, Mount Druitt in the Jesuit Cup. As captain, Jedinak led the team to success, winning the competition. He began his career at Sydney United, and spent some time in the early years of his career at Croatian club Varteks (later renamed Varaždin), making one competitive appearance for the Croatian side in a 2003–04 UEFA Cup qualifier against Levadia Maardu. He was part of the Sydney United side that won the NSW Premier League title for 2006, playing a role in midfield that earned him a trial with the Mariners.
Central Coast Mariners
Jedinak was first added to the Mariners' squad in the week leading up to their 2006 Pre-Season Cup play-off against Newcastle Jets, and subsequently was called into the squad for the last ten games of the 2006–07, where he made eight appearances.
Jedinak achieved success at the Central Coast Mariners, helping them to a Premiers' Plate in the 2007–08 season of the A-League and scoring some spectacular goals along the way including a 25-metre free-kick in the 5–4 loss in Round 15 to Sydney FC. He was the club's second highest goalscorer in the 2008–09 season, with six goals.
Gençlerbirliği
On 25 December 2008, Jedinak signed a two-and-a-half-year deal with Turkish club Gençlerbirliği effective January 2009.
On 24 January 2009, he made his competitive debut for Gençlerbirliği in their 3–1 victory over Kayserispor, playing the full match. Jedinak's first goal for Gençlerbirliği was scored in a 1–0 win over Fenerbahçe.
Crystal Palace
With one year remaining on his contract at Gençlerbirliği, Jedinak announced he was leaving the club in June 2011, with the hopes of finding a new club in a different country. A month later, he signed for Crystal Palace in England. Jedinak became a fans' favourite at Selhurst Park during the 2012–13 season. In light of regular club captain Paddy McCarthy's injury spell that season, Jedinak was handed the captain's armband first by manager Dougie Freedman and later by Ian Holloway. Jedinak scored an 89th-minute winner on the final day of the 2012–13 season in a 3–2 win against Peterborough United at Selhurst Park to secure a playoff place for Palace, then captained Palace to win the playoffs and gain promotion to the top-flight Premier League. Jedinak was voted Crystal Palace's 2012–13 player of the season.
On 3 December 2013, Jedinak signed a new three-and-a-half year contract which was set to expire in the summer of 2017. He scored his first Premier League goal from a penalty kick against West Ham United in April 2014, choosing not to celebrate the goal to pay respect for compatriot Dylan Tombides, who was being honoured that match following his death. Jedinak came close to playing every minute of Palace's 2013–14 Premier League season (a rarity for an outfield player, even captains), but injured himself in the second half of the 2–2 draw with Fulham; he was replaced by Kagisho Dikgacoi with just over 30 minutes left to play.