Jovan Pajović

At 194 centimetres, Jovan Pajović is built for the role he plays at centre-back. He won the Montenegro Second League title in the 2017/2018 season, before two spells at Mornar Bar either side of a season at FK Podgorica and a run at FK Jezero.

In July 2023 he moved to Malta to join Birkirkara FC, where he was a runner-up in the Malta Super Cup that year. From there he moved east: a free transfer to Kazakhstan in March 2024 brought him to Kaysar Kyzylorda, and since then he has moved on almost annually, to Turan and then FK Ulytau, before joining Zhetysu Taldykorgan on another free transfer.

That pattern of free-agent moves has defined the last few years of his career, as has the range of leagues he has passed through without ever settling for long in one place. There is no senior Montenegro cap on his record, despite his passport, and no individual honours to speak of beyond that early league title with Mornar Bar. What stands out instead is the sheer distance the journey has covered — from the Montenegrin coast to Malta and on to Kazakhstan — for a player still establishing himself at centre-back.