Stanislav Lobotka

Lobotka made his Corgoň Liga debut for AS Trenčín[3] against FK Dukla Banská Bystrica on 4 March 2012.

Lobotka joined AFC Ajax for the 2013–14 season on 30 June 2013 on a one-year loan with option to buy.[4][5] He played his first match for Ajax on 13 July 2013 in a pre-season friendly encounter against RKC Waalwijk. He came on as a 60th minute substitute for Christian Eriksen in the 5–1 win in Waalwijk at the Mandemakers Stadion.[6]

Stanislav Lobotka came to FC Nordsjælland in August shortly before the transfer window closed, and made his debut against Brøndby on 30 August 2015. Lobotka entered as a regular on the midfield, and in his first season has played all the matches except for one because of illness.

The 21-year-old Slovak was voted player of the year in his first season at the FCN Awards.[7] In 2017, he was again voted club's player of the year after another great season.[8]

On 15 July 2017, Lobotka joined Celta on a five-year deal.[9]

On 3 June 2019, Lobotka admitted that after Celta's unsuccessful season, he was open to a transfer, looking to find a club set to play in European competitions next season. According to Pravda he also claimed, that he was aware of an interest from other Spanish and German clubs.[10]

On 15 January 2020, Lobotka signed to Italian Serie A club S.S.C. Napoli,[11] for a reported €24m deal until 2024.[12]

Lobotka was benched in his first possible fixture against Fiorentina, on 18 January 2020, in a 0–2 defeat.[13] Instead, Lobotka made a brief, 22 minute appearance in Coppa Italia against Lazio, being featured in the starting line-up. He had to be replaced early due to tactical changes, following a red card to Elseid Hysaj. Still, Lobotka witnessed an early winning goal by Lorenzo Insigne in the 2nd minute.[14]

He made his league debut against table-leaders Juventus on 26 January 2020. Lobotka came on as a replacement for Diego Demme, who was booked with a yellow card in the first half. Napoli managed to earn an upset victory over the favourites, by winning 2–1, with goals scored by Piotr Zieliński and Lorenzo Insigne. Cristiano Ronaldo's stoppage time goal did not change the result.[15] He had his first league start in the next round, in a 4–2 away victory at Stadio Luigi Ferraris against Sampdoria. Lobotka played for over an hour and was replaced by Diego Demme, as Napoli led 2–1, after goals by Arkadiusz Milik and Elif Elmas. Demme went on to score the third goal and Dries Mertens sealed the win in stoppage time.[16]

Lobotka had also been added to Napoli's UEFA Champions League squad, thus making him eligible to participate in the Round of 16 fixtures against Barcelona.[17] The first competitive set of fixtures between the clubs was also dubbed, by some, the Maradona derby.[18]

By October 2018, Lobotka became a key player of Slovakia, commonly earning caps in start starting line-up. Lobotka was nominated for a double fixture against Czech Republic and Sweden on 13 October and 16 October 2018, respectively.[21] Lobotka played tin both games, but was also involved in the controversy, that had led to resignation of Ján Kozák, then Slovakia's longest-serving and most successful coach, who introduced him to the national team.

Lobotka violated the code of conduct of national team player, along with Martin Dúbravka, Michal Šulla, Milan Škriniar, Norbert Gyömbér, Ľubomír Šatka, Vladimír Weiss. On the night of 13 October 2018, after a loss in Slovakia's second UEFA Nations League fixture and a derby match against Czech Republic (1–2), they left the hotel and went out, missed the bedtime and violated the wellness policy, regarding regeneration and rehabilitation. They were allegedly noticed by Ján Kozák at about midnight, admitting to the incident and apologising the next day. Ján Kozák resigned from the national team in the afternoon of 14 October, revealing the details of his decision in a press conference on 18 October, to avoid distractions during the preparation for the fixture against Sweden, that was managed by his former assistant Štefan Tarkovič on a caretaker basis. Kozák cited his inability to work with the squad under such conditions as the primary reason, as about a third of the squad was involved, including players Kozák described as crucial for the future of Slovak football, with Lobotka among them. The President of SFZ, Ján Kováčik, said that the players will be punished by not receiving any financial rewards for any future nominations and performances in the national team during the upcoming qualification cycle. During the press conference, Kozák expressed disappointment about Lobotka's statements, when Lobotka allegedly told the press that "coaches come and go, we are professionals". Kozák felt that this is in a direct contrast with their conduct of the previous days, however he added, that he likes Lobotka and will continue to cheer for him. Kozák however also revealed, that upon inquiry why Lobotka engaged in such conduct, he allegedly told him that he has a busy timetable at Vigo and has no time to relax, to which Kozák sarcastically remarked, that Lobotka finds time to relax with Saturday - Tuesday fixture with national team, but not Saturday - Saturday match plan at Vigo.[22]

Only hours before the incident, Škriniar and Lobotka in particular faced criticism from Kozák during a post-match press conference, who described their performance as poor and commented on the need for these highly valued players, worth millions, to take responsibility, instead of relying on other more experienced players, like Martin Škrtel and Marek Hamšík.[23]

On 19 October, SFZ published a common statement of Škriniar and Lobotka, accepting Kozák's criticism as normal and justified, although disagreeing with the comments about their value and transfer rumours. They apologised to the fans, the FA and their team-mates, although claiming that they understand that no apology is sufficient enough. They also accepted the sanctions and expressed hope for continued support of the national team.[24]

As of match played 15 November 2020[27]