Born on 19 April 1989 in Vienna, Marko Arnautović grew up in the working-class district of Floridsdorf, a patchwork of tower blocks and football pitches where kids learned to play with passion before polish. His father, Tomislav, hailed from Serbia, and his mother, Gabriela, from Austria. That mixture of Balkan fire and Austrian discipline shaped a boy who could score goals, argue with referees, and laugh about it all ten minutes later.
PART ONE
Marko Arnautović began kicking a ball at Floridsdorfer AC, alongside his brother Danijel, who would later become his agent and occasional babysitter in the professional world. But, as is often the case with great talents, he found trouble as easily as he found the net. Between 1998 and 2006, he changed clubs as often as some lads changed boots — FK Austria Wien, First Vienna FC, Rapid Wien, and back to Floridsdorfer again. Coaches adored his ability but despaired at his attitude.
However, talent, like cream, always rises to the top. Dutch scouts from FC Twente saw in the 17-year-old not a problem child but a potential phenomenon. In 2006, Arnautović packed his bags and headed to Enschede — a small town that would witness the beginning of a career both dazzling and defiant.
At FC Twente, Arnautović discovered a footballing culture that celebrated flair but demanded discipline. Under the pragmatic but progressive management at De Grolsch Veste, he began to mature — a little. He starred for Jong FC Twente, scoring an astonishing 27 goals in 32 games, and by the 2008–09 season, he was no longer just a youth prospect.
Indeed, that season he burst into life with 14 goals in 41 matches, helping Twente finish second in the Eredivisie and secure a place in European competition. What’s more, he was becoming a showman, a player who could glide past defenders with the ease of a man crossing a quiet street.
However, every rise in Arnautović’s career seems to come with a little turbulence. In March 2009, after a fiery match against Willem II, he was accused of racially abusing Ibrahim Kargbo. The Dutch FA investigated but found no evidence, clearing him. Yet, the episode hinted at what would become a recurring theme: Marko’s mouth occasionally moved faster than his mind.
Still, Twente fans adored him, and big clubs took notice. Among them was Inter Milan, then one of Europe’s powerhouses. But, as so often with Arnautović, fate decided to complicate things — a stress fracture in his right foot threatened to derail the move.
Nevertheless, on 6 August 2009, the deal was sealed: Arnautović joined Inter Milan on loan, with a potential permanent deal on the horizon. The move made headlines. Here was a brash 20-year-old Austrian joining José Mourinho’s star-studded side — a dressing room containing Samuel Eto’o, Diego Milito, Wesley Sneijder, and Javier Zanetti.
Arnautović’s time in Milan was brief — just three Serie A appearances — but it was memorable for all the wrong reasons. He made his debut on 6 January 2010, coming on in a 1–0 win over Chievo, and later featured against Siena and Atalanta. The problem wasn’t ability — Mourinho saw that in training — it was attitude. Arnautović, used to being indulged, found himself benched behind world-class stars and didn’t take it well.
As a result, Inter decided against making the move permanent. Yet, he left Milan having shared a dressing room with treble winners — and, perhaps more importantly, having learned that talent alone wasn’t enough to thrive at the top.
In June 2010, Arnautović signed for Werder Bremen in the Bundesliga, hoping Germany’s more open footballing style would suit him better. It did — eventually. But, of course, there were bumps along the way.
Before he’d even kicked a ball, Bremen’s captain Torsten Frings branded him “arrogant.” Arnautović shrugged. “I am who I am,” he said, and then proved it by scoring twice against Köln in just his second league game.
During his first season, he managed five goals in 34 appearances, showing flashes of brilliance but still lacking consistency. Still, his goals in the Champions League, notably against his old clubs Twente and Inter Milan, were sweet revenge.
In 2011–12, he added six more goals, but his campaign was cut short when he tore knee ligaments — reportedly while playing with his dog. It was the kind of absurd footnote that seemed to follow him.
Nevertheless, by the 2012–13 season, Arnautović was becoming the complete forward. On 2 December 2012, he scored a sensational hat-trick against Hoffenheim, curling one free-kick into the top corner like a man who’d decided physics was optional. However, discipline issues returned. In April 2013, both he and teammate Eljero Elia were suspended for reckless driving.
Consequently, Werder Bremen decided enough was enough. The Austrian maverick was on the move again — and his next stop would define him.
PART TWO
On 2 September 2013, Marko Arnautović joined Stoke City for £2 million. He made his debut in a 0–0 draw against Manchester City, and his first goal came in spectacular fashion — a 25-yard free-kick against Manchester United in a thrilling 3–2 defeat on 26 October 2013. His mix of flair, aggression, and physical strength quickly endeared him to the Stoke faithful.
He ended his debut season with five goals in 35 appearances, as Stoke finished ninth — their best Premier League finish at the time. The following season, he struggled early on but regained his rhythm towards the end, scoring a dramatic 95th-minute equaliser against West Ham in April 2015.
However, it was the 2015–16 season when Arnautović truly became a Premier League star. On 15 August 2015, he scored against Tottenham, then followed it up with goals against Chelsea, Manchester City, and Everton, where he coolly dispatched a late penalty in a wild 4–3 win at Goodison Park.
He finished that campaign as Stoke’s top scorer with 12 goals, driving the Potters to yet another ninth-place finish. The Britannia faithful adored his swagger, his stepovers, his occasional tantrums — everything that made him human, unpredictable, and utterly watchable.
In 2016–17, he scored seven goals in 35 appearances, including braces against Sunderland and Middlesbrough, and then, true to character, asked for a transfer.
In July 2017, West Ham United paid a club-record £20 million to bring Arnautović to London. Many doubted whether he’d deliver; after all, the Hammers were a club in transition. But Marko thrives on doubt.
He started badly — sent off for an elbow against Southampton after just two games — yet what followed was arguably the most productive spell of his career. When David Moyes replaced Slaven Bilić as manager, he reinvented Arnautović, shifting him from a winger to a central striker.
The move worked wonders. He scored his first goal for the club in a 1–0 win over Chelsea on 9 December 2017, then struck again a week later against his old team, Stoke City, celebrating with a theatrical smirk.
By season’s end, he had 11 league goals, becoming the first West Ham player to reach double figures since Bobby Zamora a decade earlier. He was named Hammer of the Year, and the East End faithful, usually unforgiving, warmed to him completely.
Nevertheless, success brought temptation. In January 2019, he flirted with a move to China, reportedly for £35 million. His brother and agent, Danijel, announced he wanted to go. West Ham refused. A few weeks later, he signed a new contract, his wages bumped to £120,000 per week.
But by summer, the inevitable happened. Shanghai SIPG (now Shanghai Port) made an offer of £22.4 million, and West Ham finally let him go. Arnautović’s record stood at 22 goals in 65 games, and while the manner of his exit divided fans, few could deny he had delivered both quality and entertainment — in the way only he could.
When Arnautović landed in Shanghai in July 2019, he joined a league filled with fading European stars seeking one last adventure — and perhaps a payday to match. On his debut against Chongqing Dangdai Lifan, he scored in a 2–2 draw, proving that even 5,500 miles from home, the net still rippled the same.
He played two seasons in China, scoring regularly, but the isolation — both geographical and emotional — eventually took its toll. He missed the intensity of Europe, the competition, the headlines. And so, when Bologna called in August 2021, Arnautović packed his bags once more.
At Bologna, he found something he’d never quite had before — consistency and peace. The move also carried sentimental value: his close friend Siniša Mihajlović, then Bologna’s manager, had convinced him to return to Europe.
He scored on his debut against Ternana in a 5–4 defeat, but his goal celebrations showed pure joy. Over two seasons, he became Bologna’s talisman, scoring crucial goals and mentoring younger players. Despite injuries and occasional squabbles, he rediscovered his love for football.
When Mihajlović passed away in 2022, Arnautović was visibly emotional. Later, he revealed a promise — that one day, he would play for Red Star Belgrade, Mihajlović’s beloved club.
In August 2023, fate completed its circle. Inter Milan, 13 years after his first spell, brought Arnautović back on loan. He wore the number 8, a nod to Zlatan Ibrahimović, the man he was once compared to.
His return wasn’t about being a star — it was about being a professional. He scored in the Champions League against Benfica after nearly 13 years without a goal in the competition, setting a record for the longest gap between Champions League strikes.
In February 2024, he netted the only goal in a 1–0 win over Atlético Madrid, proving he still had the instinct and the nerve for the big occasion. Later that summer, Inter made his deal permanent.
He played primarily as a backup to Lautaro Martínez and Marcus Thuram, yet his contributions were vital — nine goals and one assist across competitions, averaging a goal contribution every 76 minutes. Italian media, once sceptical, began to admire his maturity. Alessandro Altobelli called him “a veteran with the soul of a fighter.”
In July 2025, Arnautović signed a two-year contract with Red Star Belgrade. It was more than a transfer — it was a tribute. “This is for Siniša,” he said at his unveiling. “He told me I would one day wear this shirt, and I kept my promise.”
Now in his mid-thirties, Arnautović returned to his father’s homeland as both hero and elder statesman. Red Star fans greeted him like a prodigal son — and for once, he seemed content.
PART THREE
For Austria, Arnautović has been a constant since his debut on 11 October 2008 against the Faroe Islands. He scored his first international goals two years later, in a 3–0 win over Azerbaijan, and since then, he has been the beating heart of the national side.
He was pivotal during Austria’s Euro 2016 qualification, scoring against Montenegro and Liechtenstein, helping them qualify unbeaten. He then starred at Euro 2016, and despite Austria’s early exit, his drive and fire shone through.
He scored in qualifying for the 2018 World Cup, though Austria fell short, and then again at Euro 2020, where he netted in the 3–1 win over North Macedonia — a match remembered as much for his goal as for his fiery celebration and subsequent one-match ban for “insulting another player.”
Nevertheless, Arnautović bounced back, reaching 100 caps in 2022 against Denmark and surpassing Andreas Herzog’s record of 103 caps later that year. By October 2025, after scoring four goals in a 10–0 rout of San Marino, he became Austria’s all-time leading scorer with 45 goals, surpassing Toni Polster.
An enigma, indeed. Built like a heavyweight boxer but with the footwork of a ballet dancer, he could bully defenders one moment and glide past them the next. His hold-up play was exceptional, his ability to link up with midfielders sharp, and his knack for scoring from improbable angles made him a nightmare to mark.
Yet, his game was not just about power. There was intelligence — the way he drifted between lines, the subtle feints, the disguised passes. As a winger, he tormented full-backs; as a striker, he terrorised centre-halves.
Comparisons with Zlatan Ibrahimović were inevitable — both tall, confident, occasionally volatile forwards with Balkan blood and a flair for the dramatic. But while Zlatan demanded worship, Arnautović demanded respect — and eventually earned it.