Mislav Oršić close to returning to Dinamo: an agreement has been reached, signing is expected next week
Mislav Oršić is expected to wear the shirt of Zagreb's Dinamo again, three and a half years after leaving Maksimir. According to Sportske novosti, the experienced winger has agreed on a return to the club where he achieved the greatest successes of his career and where he gained the status of one of the most recognizable players of Dinamo's more recent era. The same source states that Oršić is expected to sign the contract next week, after returning to Zagreb from vacation. Dinamo had not published official confirmation by May 26, 2026, so for now this is being described as an agreed deal that is still awaiting final formalization. If the announced outcome materializes, it will be one of the most high-profile returns to Croatian club football ahead of the new season.
The information about Oršić's return comes at a moment when Dinamo, under the leadership of Mario Kovačević and the club's management, is assembling the squad for the next competitive year. According to Dinamo's official announcement from June 2025, Kovačević took over the first team after a period at Slaven Belupo, and his task was to stabilize the play, renew the dressing room and return the team to the rhythm that results and European ambitions demand from Dinamo. The arrival of a player with Oršić's experience would fit into such a plan because it brings knowledge of the club, proven quality in European matches and the profile of an attacker who can play on the left wing, move into finishing positions and decide matches with shots from distance. According to tportal, which refers to the exclusive report by Sportske novosti, Oršić is expected to sign a one-year contract with an option to extend, in line with the club's new model for players older than 32. Such a contract leaves Dinamo room to gain short-term sporting value, and Oršić room to fight through the season for the continuation of the cooperation.
The return of a player who marked Dinamo's European era
Oršić's possible return cannot be viewed merely as just another transfer. This is a player whose first spell at Dinamo was marked by goals in major matches, continuity in the domestic championship and an important role in the Zagreb club's European breakthroughs. In Dinamo's shirt, he established himself as a player who thrives best in the space between the left touchline and the penalty area, with recognizable cuts onto his right foot and shots toward the far corner. In such a role, he became one of Dinamo's strongest weapons during a period in which the club regularly played in the group stages of European competitions and built a reputation as a team capable of defeating opponents from the strongest leagues.
The best-known moment of his first spell remains the second leg of the Europa League round of 16 against Tottenham on March 18, 2021. According to match reports, Dinamo won 3:0 at Maksimir after extra time and overturned the 0:2 defeat from London, with all three goals scored by Oršić himself. That hat-trick became part of the club's history because it took Dinamo into the Europa League quarter-finals and delivered one of the greatest European victories of the modern era. The third goal, scored after a run through the middle of the pitch, also remained in public memory as a symbol of an evening in which Oršić showed how dangerous he can be when given space and confidence.
His importance for Dinamo was not limited to a single match. During his first spell, Oršić was for years a player of big goals, from domestic derbies to European away matches, and the fans accepted him as a footballer who often took responsibility in important moments. That is precisely why the news of his return has a strong emotional dimension. Dinamo is not only getting an experienced attacker, but also a face connected with one of the most successful European periods in the club's history. At the same time, the return also carries sporting risk because Oršić comes to Zagreb after several seasons in which he did not have the continuity he had before leaving Croatia.
From leaving for the Premier League to seeking new momentum
Oršić left Dinamo in January 2023, when he moved to Southampton. The Premier League then announced that the Croatian international had signed a two-and-a-half-year contract and had arrived at the English club from Dinamo as Southampton's first reinforcement in the winter transfer window. At that moment, the transfer looked like a logical continuation of the career of a player who had strong European performances, appearances for the Croatian national team and a notable impact at the 2022 World Cup behind him. The English episode, however, did not develop as expected. Southampton had results problems that season, and Oršić failed to secure the stable role he had had at Dinamo.
After Southampton, his career took him to Trabzonspor, but the Turkish episode was also marked by difficulties. Oršić suffered a serious knee injury in Turkey, which slowed his return to competitive rhythm and significantly affected his playing time. Such injuries are especially serious for wingers because their game depends on explosiveness, changes of direction, a quick first step and repeated sprints. After the termination of his contract with Trabzonspor, a return to Croatia was mentioned, including Dinamo and Rijeka, but at that time a final agreement with the Maksimir club did not happen. In public appearances, Oršić then made it clear that Dinamo remained a special environment for him, but a concrete transfer was not realized.
In January 2025, he continued his career at Pafos. The Cypriot club officially announced his arrival on January 22, 2025, presenting him as a player with proven European experience and an important reinforcement for the club's ambitions. During that period, Pafos was building a team with several well-known names from Croatian and regional football, and Oršić's arrival was presented as a move intended to bring quality in the final third of attack. Although it was expected in Cyprus that a calmer environment would help him return to form, the current development of events suggests that the possibility is opening for him to return to the place where he left the deepest mark.
What Oršić can bring to Kovačević's team
From a sporting point of view, Oršić's return would bring Dinamo several clear elements. The first is experience in high-pressure matches. Dinamo generally enters the season with domestic ambitions and European qualifiers, and such a schedule demands players who adapt quickly to the rhythm of two matches per week and know how to react in moments when matches are being decided. Oršić has already shown that he can be decisive in such circumstances, especially when the team needs an individual move, a shot from outside the box or quick transition down the left side. In a squad that wants to retain control of the play, but at the same time have verticality, such a profile can be important.
The second element is the dressing room. Returnees with strong status at a club can often have an important role in passing standards on to younger players, but only if they clearly fit into the hierarchy of the team and accept the current demands of the coach. Oršić's arrival will therefore also be important for Kovačević, who must find a balance between respect for a player with major merits and the need for the team to function according to current criteria. If the contract really is for one year with an option to extend, that suggests the club wants to retain flexibility, but also that it expects a concrete reaction from the player already in the first season of his return.
The third element concerns Dinamo's depth in attack. Oršić can play as a left winger, he can move into finishing positions as a second striker in certain phases of play, and he can also be useful in situations when Dinamo has to break through closed defenses. His game has never been based only on speed, but also on the timing of his runs into shooting zones, a sense for the second wave of attack and the ability to set himself up for a shot from an apparently closed situation. That is precisely why his return makes sense even if he is no longer at the physical peak from the period before his departure to England. The key question will be his level of readiness after recent seasons and his ability to consistently withstand the demands of Dinamo's schedule.
National-team mark and experience of big matches
Oršić would not bring only club experience to Dinamo. According to data from the Croatian Football Federation, he has made 28 appearances and scored two goals for Croatia's senior national team, and he made his first appearance on September 9, 2019. His most important national-team moment came at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, when he scored in the third-place match against Morocco. Croatia won 2:1 and claimed the bronze medal, and Oršić's precise strike near the end of the first half remained one of the key moments of that match. Such national-team capital further explains why his return is drawing major interest.
It is also important for Dinamo that Oršić knows the demands of European matches well, from qualifiers to knockout stages. In European duels, details often decide the outcome: experience in positioning without the ball, the ability to conserve energy, recognizing the moment to break into a counterattack and composure in the final phase. Oršić played such matches regularly during his first spell at Dinamo, and his performance against Tottenham is only the most visible example of a broader pattern. Such experience could be valuable to Dinamo in summer and autumn matches, especially if the team goes through a reconstruction of the squad.
At the same time, it should be emphasized that reputation by itself does not guarantee performance. If he signs, Oršić will have to show that the injury is behind him and that he can once again respond to the rhythm of competitive football. Dinamo will expect a contribution from him, but probably not necessarily the same volume of play he had in the best seasons of his first spell. A more realistic scenario could be gradual management of his playing time, especially in the opening part of the season, with the aim of extracting maximum quality in matches in which his experience and finishing can make the difference.
A transfer that also carries the symbolism of Dinamo's new policy
According to information carried by tportal, citing Sportske novosti, Oršić's arrival is also linked to the club's new model for older players, namely a one-year contract with the possibility of extension. Such an approach reflects a broader logic of squad management in which the club wants to avoid long-term obligations toward players in the later stage of their careers, but does not want to give up on quality and experience when they can bring immediate benefit. For Dinamo, this is a particularly sensitive issue because the club must at the same time develop younger players, maintain its level of results and remain competitive in Europe. In that sense, Oršić's return would be a combination of nostalgia and a pragmatic sporting decision.
In the club context, the role of Zvonimir Boban is also important, as according to media reports he is involved in shaping Dinamo's new sporting strategy. In September 2025, HRT reported that Boban had been officially confirmed as club president after the first fully democratic elections at Dinamo, opening a new period of club management. The return of a player like Oršić can be interpreted as a move intended to connect sporting continuity with the new organizational framework. Still, until the club officially confirms the signing, caution should be maintained in assessing the final status of the transfer.
For Dinamo fans, Oršić is a name that carries a strong emotional charge, but for the club the more important question is what he can bring on the pitch. If he manages to come close to the level of his best Dinamo days, Kovačević will get a player who can immediately raise the quality of the attacking rotation. If the return requires more time, his role could be gradual, with emphasis on specific matches, experience and influence on younger teammates. In both cases, the announced signing would mark one of Dinamo's most interesting moves ahead of the new season and the return of a player whose name has already been written into the history of the Maksimir club.
Sources: - Sportske novosti / Jutarnji list – report on the agreed return of Mislav Oršić to Dinamo and the expected signing of the contract next week (link) - tportal – transfer of information from Sportske novosti on Oršić's return, the contract model and the context of Dinamo's squad (link) - GNK Dinamo – official announcement on the appointment of Mario Kovačević as Dinamo's head coach (link) - Croatian Football Federation – official profile of Mislav Oršić with national-team appearances and goals (link) - Premier League – official announcement on Oršić's transfer from Dinamo to Southampton in January 2023 (link) - Pafos FC – official announcement on the arrival of Mislav Oršić at the Cypriot club in January 2025 (link) - HRT – report on the official confirmation of Zvonimir Boban as Dinamo president in September 2025 (link) - ZGportal – report on the Dinamo - Tottenham 3:0 match and Oršić's hat-trick in the Europa League in 2021 (link)