Ex-Middlesbrough and Leeds United star who scored 92 PL goals has completely different life now | OneFootball

Mark Viduka has had a huge change in his life after leaving the Premier League where he starred for Leeds United and Middlesbrough...

Middlesbrough are trying to get into the Premier League and to join Leeds United there, with Daniel Farke's side winning the title last season and Luke Ayling's side in a title race this season.

Ayling is just one of the players who has featured for Leeds United and Middlesbrough, with Jonathan Woodgate, Adam Forshaw, Danny Mills, Jonny Howson, and Patrick Bamford among the others.

Bamford has scored more goals in his career for Leeds (60) and Boro (33) but he is not the only striker to perform well for both clubs. Among the others is Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink, with the Dutchman eventually replaced at Leeds by Mark Viduka.

He would then go on to play with the Australian at Boro, with the pair arriving at The Riverside in the same summer following their League Cup win in 2004. They qualified for the UEFA Cup and added real firepower to their ranks.

Viduka joined Middlesbrough from Leeds, going on to score 42 goals in 101 games for the club. During his time in West Yorkshire, Viduka scored 72 and assisted 19 for the Whites in 166 appearances. His life has changed dramatically since then.

Middlesbrough and Leeds legend Mark Viduka's life after football

In the end, 85 of Viduka's 92 Premier League goals came for Leeds or Middlesbrough, with the Australian legend scoring a further seven for Newcastle United before retiring back in 2009 after their relegation to the Championship.

What is perhaps not known about Viduka is that his father Joe immigrated to Australia from Croatia in the 1960s, and also that Croatia's legendary captain and Ballon d'Or winner Luka Modric is his cousin.

The 50-year-old was a fearsome striker who tormented Premier League defences and is counted among the greatest Australian footballers of all time. However, per The Mirror, he now spends his days running a coffee shop.

It's a far cry from some of the heights he hit as a footballer, including a number of unforgettable performances. That includes that memorable four-goal haul in Leeds' 4-3 win over Liverpool in 2000.

But, hot beverages are his way of life now. With Viduka telling ESPN: "It's great to do something different. You make a bad coffee, you throw it in the bin. I try and make the best coffee as I can, though. I think I've become pretty good at it."

He and his wife run a modest cafe called Non Plus Ultra in Croatia. It reportedly sits quietly in the Zagreb hills, serving locals, tourists, but also occasionally a high-profile customer or two. Many Leeds fans have even made the pilgrimage to meet him in his new home.

In fact, one of his regular customers is former tennis great and Wimbledon winner Goran Ivanisevic. Some footballers go into punditry while others go into management, but Viduka went for something far more left-field in his father's home country.

Is Mark Viduka Australia's best ever player over Harry Kewell and Tim Cahill?

Debating Australia’s greatest ever player inevitably brings up a lot of the same names, including Mark Schwarzer, Tim Cahill, Hary Kewell, and Viduka. Schwarzer’s longevity and 109 caps make him the benchmark for consistency.

Others deserve honourable mentions — Lucas Neill for leadership, Mile Jedinak for midfield authority, Brett Emerton for consistency as well — but for complete profile in their position and influence at club and international level, one answer edges the debate.

A goalkeeper is rarely a country's best ever, which leaves the other three. Cahill’s clutch goals — particularly at World Cups — cement his iconic status. Kewell, at his peak with Leeds and Liverpool, was arguably the most naturally gifted Socceroo of his generation.

But if you lean toward pure centre-forward pedigree, Viduka has a compelling case. A title-winner with Celtic and a Premier League force with Leeds and Middlesbrough, he combined brute strength with A velvet touch and elite link-up play.

He captained Australia at the 2006 World Cup, leading the line as the Socceroos reached the knockout stages for the first time. He was a legend for his country and in the Premier League.