Robert Koren is a professional football player and was born on September 20, 1980 in Ljubljana, in Socialist Federal Republic (SFR) of Yugoslavia.
Robert Koren has represented Slovenia at the international level and this attacking midfielder has won thirty international caps for the national side with one international goal to his credit. He had also been a part of the country’s Under-21 team, and he had made twelve appearances for this team.
Robert Koren started his football career in 1996 by playing for NK Dravograd, for which he made 129 appearances as a midfielder scoring seventeen goals during his tenure till 2001. Following this, he made a move to NK Publikum, which is located in Celje, Slovenia and scored twenty two goals from seventy eight appearances. Robert Koren played for this club till 2004 before signing to Lillestrøm, which is a football club based in Norway.
Robert Koren displayed impressive performances for Lillestrom becoming one of the most highly rated players of the Norwegian Premier League and was said to be the play maker for Lillestrøm. He was considered by many as the best foreign player in the entire competition and was often compared to Zlatko Zahovic, who was his former idol. Robert Koren was a part of the team that finished as the runners-up in the 2005 Norwegian Cup, the 2006 Union of European Football Association (UEFA) Cup, and the 2006 Royal League. In 2006, he was announced as the winner of the Kniksen award for the Midfielder of the Year for his impressive record at the games that year. Robert Koren played with the club till 2007 and appeared in seventy five matches with nineteen goals to his credit.
After being linked with transfers to English clubs Leeds United and Manchester City, Robert Koren signed a contract with West Bromwich Albion on January 4, 2007. This transfer was carried out under a Bosman ruling and the contract period was eighteen months with a further year's option in the club's favor. Two days after his signing, Robert Koren made his first appearance for the club in the Football Association Challenge (FA) Cup third round match against Leeds United. He came on to the field as a late substitute and helped his club win the match with a 3-1 score. Robert Koren netted his first goal for the club in a match that saw West Bromwich Albion defeat Barnsley 7-0 on May 6, 2007, and this performance ensured that he had a place in the Championship promotion playoffs. He was given the chance to start in all three playoff games the club played, and his team reached the final by defeating Wolverhampton Wanderers in the two-legged semi-final.
In mid-September of the 2007-2008 season, Robert Koren signed a new two-year contract with Albion with a further year's option in the club's favour. In October 2007, he featured in a match against Southampton and scored two goals in the match, a feat that earned him a place in the Championship Team of the Week. The following year, this attacking midfielder featured in the team that won the Football League Championship. As of 2008, Robert Koren has made fifty seven appearances for Albion and has netted ten goals wearing the number 7 jersey.
