Nikola Moro (; born 12 March 1998) is a Croatian professional footballer who plays as a defensive midfielder for club Bologna and the Croatia national team.
Club career Dinamo Zagreb Aged six, he started football, moving to Zagreb aged 11. A Hajduk Split fan in his early days in Solin, Nikola's father Miro yearned for him to contemplate a career at the Hajduk academy, but he went to the Dinamo Zagreb academy instead. Nikola joined the senior Dinamo Zagreb team from the youth academy in 2014.
Moro played a full 90 minutes in his league debut for his senior team versus Lokomotiva in May 2016. He made his Champions League debut on 7 December, in a 2–0 away defeat to Juventus. On 22 February 2017, he signed a new contract until 2022.
On 27 March 2018, in an international match against Moldova U21, he suffered a severe injury after tearing his anterior cruciate ligament. He came back to the team on 26 September for the Croatian Cup game against . He made his Europa League debut on 14 February 2019 in a 2–1 away defeat against Viktoria Plzeň.
On 6 November, in a decisive Champions League home match against Shakhtar Donetsk, he was sent off in the 74th minute with Shakhtar scoring a late equalizer for 3–3 to deny Dinamo a direct qualification for the knockout phase.
Dynamo Moscow
On 17 August 2020, Moro signed a five-year contract with Russian Premier League club Dynamo Moscow. He made his debut two days later in a 2–0 victory against Rostov, coming on for Daniil Fomin in the 69th minute. On 18 October, he scored his first goal for the club as Dynamo lost 3–1 against CSKA Moscow.
Bologna On 29 August 2022, Moro joined Bologna in Italy on loan until the end of the 2022–23 season, with an option to buy. On 2 July 2023, Bologna activated the buy option and made his transfer permanent.
International career Representing Croatia at U16, U17, and U19 levels, Moro made the quarter-finals of the 2015 FIFA U-17 World Cup – eventually losing against Mali. He also represented Croatia U21 at the 2019 and 2021 UEFA Under-21 Euros, captaining the team to the quarter-finals of the latter tournament for the first time in their history.
On 17 May 2021, Moro was named in the preliminary 34-man squad for the UEFA Euro 2020, but did not make the final 26. He earned his first call-up to the senior Croatia team on 16 August 2021, ahead of the September World Cup qualifiers against Russia, Slovakia and Slovenia. However, Moro did not debut until 29 March 2022, when he made an appearance in a 2–1 friendly victory against Bulgaria.
On 18 May 2026, Moro was selected in the 26-man squad for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
Career statistics Club
+ Appearances and goals by club, season and competitionClubSeasonLeagueNational cupEuropeOtherTotalDivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsDinamo Zagreb II2015–16Druga HNL120———1202016–17135———1352018–1952———52Total307———307Dinamo Zagreb2015–16Prva HNL1010——202016–171512010—1812017–182442040—3042018–191931040—2432019–20282309010412Total8710901801011510Dynamo Moscow2020–21Russian Premier League2432000—2632021–2228161——3422022–236000——60Total5848100—665Bologna (loan)2022–23Serie A26120——281Bologna2023–24Serie A23141——2722024–252203070—3202025–2630210110204422026–274000——40Bologna total1054101180201355Career total280252723603034627
International
+ Appearances and goals by national team and yearNational teamYearAppsGoalsCroatia202210202410202550202630Total100
Honours
Dinamo Zagreb Prva HNL: 2015–16, 2017–18, 2018–19, 2019–20 Croatian Cup: 2020–21 Croatian Super Cup: 2019
Bologna Coppa Italia: 2024–25
Individual
2015 UEFA European Under-17 Championship Team of the Tournament
References
External links
Profile at the Bologna FC 1909 website