Mato Jajalo is a Bosnian professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Italian club Udinese and the Bosnia and Herzegovina national team. Jajalo started his professional career at Slaven Belupo, before joining Siena in 2009. In 2010, he had a loan spell with 1. FC Köln, and signed with them permanently the following year. He was loaned to Sarajevo in 2014. Later that year, he was transferred to Rijeka. A year later, he moved to Palermo. Four years later, he switched to Udinese. A former Croatian youth international, Jajalo even made his senior international debut for Croatia, only to switch his allegiance to Bosnia and Herzegovina in 2016, earning 11 caps since.
Club career
Early career
Due to Bosnian War, Jajalo's family fled to Germany in 1990 when he was just two years old. He grew up in Offenbach and started playing football at a local club DJK Eiche Offenbach. When he was eleven years old, the family moved again, settling down close to Koprivnica in Croatia. Jajalo rose through the ranks of Slaven Belupo and made his professional debut against Osijek on 22 July 2007 at the age of 19. On 5 August, he scored his first professional goal against Zagreb. In June 2009, Jajalo joined Italian team Siena. In July 2010, he was sent on a season-long loan to German side 1. FC Köln, with an option to make the transfer permanent, which was activated the following year. In February 2014, Jajalo was loaned to Bosnian outfit Sarajevo until the end of season. In June 2014, he moved Rijeka.
Palermo
On 28 January 2015, Jajalo joined Palermo on a contract until June 2019. Three days later, he made his competitive debut for the club in a narrow win against Hellas Verona. On 24 May 2015, he scored his first goal for the team, in a defeat to Fiorentina. In spite of Palermo's relegation to Serie B in April 2017, Jajalo decided to stay at the club. On 3 April 2018, he played his 100th game for the team against Parma.
Udinese
On 11 June 2019, Jajalo signed a three-year deal with Udinese. He made his official debut for the club in Coppa Italia game against Südtirol on 18 August. A week later, he made his league debut in a triumph over Milan.
International career
After representing Croatia on various youth levels, Jajalo made his senior international debut in a friendly game against Argentina on 12 November 2014. He also served as captain of the under-21 team under coach Dražen Ladić. However, in March 2016, he decided that in the future he would play for Bosnia and Herzegovina, his country of birth. In July, his application to change sports citizenship from Croatian to Bosnian was approved by FIFA. Subsequently, in September, he received his first senior call-up, for 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifiers against Belgium and Cyprus. Jajalo debuted in an away loss to former on 7 October.
