Ester Sokler (born 4 June 1999) is a Slovenian professional footballer who plays as a striker for Scottish Premiership club Aberdeen.
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | 4 June 1999 | ||
| Place of birth | Krško, Slovenia | ||
| Height | 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)[1] | ||
| Position(s) | Striker | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Aberdeen | ||
| Number | 19 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2007–2016 | Krško[2] | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2016–2020 | Krško | 55 | (5) |
| 2020–2021 | Brežice 1919 | 11 | (6) |
| 2021–2022 | Celje | 44 | (9) |
| 2022–2023 | Radomlje | 30 | (10) |
| 2023– | Aberdeen | 36 | (2) |
| International career | |||
| 2016 | Slovenia U17 | 3 | (0) |
| 2017 | Slovenia U18 | 7 | (1) |
| 2017 | Slovenia U19 | 2 | (0) |
| 2019 | Slovenia U21 | 1 | (0) |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 19:23, 9 November 2024 (UTC) | |||
Club career
editBorn in Krško,[3] Sokler started his playing career at the age of six, at the football school Nogobikci, before joining the youth sector of his hometown club Krško.[2] He came through the club's youth ranks, as he won the under-13 and under-15 national championship in 2012 and 2014, respectively.[2]
Having been promoted to the senior squad in 2016, aged 17,[2] Sokler made his Slovenian PrvaLiga debut on 26 November 2016, in a 4–0 defeat against Maribor.[4]
In July 2020, Sokler joined Slovenian Second League side Brežice 1919,[5] where he spent six months,[6] before returning to PrvaLiga in December 2020, having signed a contract with Celje until 2023.[7][8]
After two seasons at Celje,[6] Sokler joined fellow Slovenian top-tier club Radomlje on a permanent deal in July 2022.[3][9] He scored 10 goals in 31 games in his first season with Radomlje,[6] as they finished seventh in the league.[10]
On 16 June 2023, Sokler joined Scottish Premiership club Aberdeen for an undisclosed fee, signing a three-year deal.[6][10][11]
International career
editSokler was a Slovenian youth international,[12] and earned one cap for the under-21 national team in 2019.[1]
Personal life
editSokler hails from the small village of Brestanica, near Krško.[2] He cited Wayne Rooney as his football idol while growing up.[2]
In 2023, he claimed that he has often been mistaken for a woman, as Ester is actually a female given name in many countries, including Slovenia itself.[13] According to him, his parents likely chose to name him after Mi2's 1998 song "Moja teta Estera".[13]
Career statistics
edit| Club | Season | League | National cup[a] | League cup[b] | Continental | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Krško | 2016–17 | Slovenian PrvaLiga | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 3 | 0 | ||
| 2017–18 | 12 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 12 | 1 | ||||
| 2018–19 | 24 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 26 | 0 | ||||
| 2019–20 | Slovenian Second League | 16 | 4 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 17 | 4 | |||
| Total | 55 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 58 | 5 | ||
| Brežice 1919 | 2020–21 | Slovenian Second League | 11 | 6 | 1 | 3 | — | — | 12 | 9 | ||
| Celje | 2020–21 | Slovenian PrvaLiga | 14 | 3 | 4 | 0 | — | — | 18 | 3 | ||
| 2021–22 | 30 | 6 | 2 | 1 | — | — | 32 | 7 | ||||
| Total | 44 | 9 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 50 | 10 | ||
| Radomlje | 2022–23 | Slovenian PrvaLiga | 30 | 10 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 31 | 10 | ||
| Aberdeen | 2023–24[16] | Scottish Premiership | 26 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 7[c] | 1 | 40 | 4 |
| 2024–25 | Scottish Premiership | 10 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 5 | — | 17 | 6 | ||
| Total | 36 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 11 | 6 | 7 | 1 | 57 | 10 | ||
| Career total | 176 | 32 | 14 | 5 | 11 | 6 | 7 | 1 | 208 | 44 | ||
- ^ Includes Slovenian Football Cup, Scottish Cup
- ^ Includes Scottish League Cup
- ^ Two appearances in UEFA Europa League, five appearances and one goal in UEFA Europa Conference League
References
edit- ^ a b Evans, Anthony (13 June 2023). "Ester Sokler profiled as Slovenian striker close to agreeing Aberdeen switch". aberdeenlive.com. Archived from the original on 4 August 2023. Retrieved 26 June 2023.
- ^ a b c d e f "Ester Sokler: Potrkal je na vrata prve lige". Posavski obzornik (in Slovenian). 12 December 2020. Archived from the original on 26 June 2023. Retrieved 26 June 2023.
- ^ a b T. J. (14 July 2022). "Sokler iz Celja v Radomlje, Domžale okrepil prvi strelec hrvaške 2. lige" (in Slovenian). RTV Slovenija. Archived from the original on 24 June 2023. Retrieved 24 June 2023.
- ^ "Ester Sokler » PrvaLiga 2016/2017". worldfootball.net. Archived from the original on 4 August 2023. Retrieved 26 June 2023.
- ^ "Naš napadalec Ester Sokler". NK Brežice 1919 (in Slovenian). 5 September 2020. Archived from the original on 24 June 2023. Retrieved 24 June 2023.
- ^ a b c d "Ester Sokler: Aberdeen sign striker from Slovenian club Radomlje". BBC Sport. 16 June 2023. Archived from the original on 17 June 2023. Retrieved 17 June 2023.
- ^ "Ester Sokler ne gre v Olimpijo, podpisal je pogodbo z drugim klubom" (in Slovenian). Nogomania. 25 December 2020. Archived from the original on 26 June 2023. Retrieved 26 June 2023.
- ^ "Ester Sokler je novi nogometaš Celja!". NK Celje (in Slovenian). 25 December 2020. Archived from the original on 24 June 2023. Retrieved 24 June 2023.
- ^ "Radomljani imajo novo okrepitev v konici napada". NK Radomlje (in Slovenian). 14 July 2022. Archived from the original on 24 June 2023. Retrieved 24 June 2023.
- ^ a b Copeland, Robbie (16 June 2023). "Ester Sokler completes Aberdeen transfer as he pens three year deal". Daily Record. Archived from the original on 17 June 2023. Retrieved 18 June 2023.
- ^ "Dons Bolster Attacking Options with Sokler Signature". Aberdeen FC. 16 June 2023. Archived from the original on 19 June 2023. Retrieved 24 June 2023.
- ^ "Ester Sokler". Football Association of Slovenia (in Slovenian). Archived from the original on 4 August 2023. Retrieved 13 June 2023.
- ^ a b Nejedly, Gorazd (3 May 2023). "Odlični slovenski strelec dobil ime po znani pesmi". Slovenske novice (in Slovenian). Archived from the original on 26 June 2023. Retrieved 26 June 2023.
- ^ "Slovenia – E. Sokler – Profile with news, career statistics and history – Soccerway". soccerway.com. Archived from the original on 24 June 2023. Retrieved 28 June 2023.
- ^ "Ester Sokler – Nogometna zveza Slovenije". Football Association of Slovenia (in Slovenian). Archived from the original on 25 June 2023. Retrieved 28 June 2023.
- ^ "Games played by Ester Sokler in 2023/2024". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 26 October 2023.