Born in
Graz, Pogatetz's career started at
Sturm Graz, before going to
Kärnten, and later to
Bayer Leverkusen. After a loan spells at
Aarau,
Grazer AK and
Spartak Moscow, he joined
Middlesbrough. He had also been tracked by
Fulham, but during his final match on loan at
Spartak Moscow, he tackled
Yaroslav Kharitonskiy, leaving the Russian with a
double leg fracture. Although initially banned for 24 weeks by the
Russian Football Union, the suspension was later reduced to eight weeks after Pogatetz attended a personal hearing in Moscow. As the ban commenced in June and was specified as a length of time rather than a number of matches, he ended up missing only three games for his new club Middlesbrough.
Middlesbrough Signed by manager
Steve McClaren for £1.8 million, his Middlesbrough debut came on 25 August 2005 against
Charlton Athletic. With Pogatetz coming on in the second half for
Franck Queudrue, Middlesbrough lost 3–0. On 30 March 2006, during the first leg of Middlesbrough's 2–0
UEFA Cup quarter-final defeat against
Basel, Pogatetz broke his
nose,
jaw and
cheekbone in an accidental clash of heads with
Mladen Petrić and was later warned against returning to full training for three months, for fear of losing his eyesight. He underwent successful surgery to have the fractures reset and Dr. Douglas Bryan declared himself "delighted" with Pogatetz's progress. "It is anticipated he will make a full recovery and be back with his team-mates for pre-season training," said Middlesbrough head physio Grant Downie. "The only disappointing thing for Manny [Pogatetz] is he won't be able to play football, and he was desperate to get back involved. But another blow to his face would risk severe trauma and a potentially eyesight-threatening injury." After the 2007–08 season, Pogatetz was given the captain's armband on a full-time basis, following his taking up of the role towards the end of the season. Already known for his disciplinary problems having been booked 20 times in his first two seasons with Middlesbrough, in September 2008 he was involved in a challenge on
Manchester United's
Rodrigo Possebon in a
League Cup game which resulted in Possebon being stretchered from the pitch and having to spend the night in hospital. United manager
Alex Ferguson said of the incident "It was an absolutely terrible tackle. Pogatetz should have just walked off the field." Pogatetz was
sent-off and served a three match ban. Pogatetz returned in the 2009–10 season after a long injury layoff, on 31 October in a 1–0 loss to
Plymouth Argyle, only to suffer a recurrence of his cheekbone fracture with the scores tied at 0–0. He made his return to the first team against
Nottingham Forest on 21 November in a 1–1 draw. He had to wear a protective mask because of his cheekbone fracture which he picked up in the Plymouth game. He received a bang to the head in the Forest game and had to receive stitches at half time, he still completed the full 90 minutes.
Hannover 96 On 2 June 2010, he signed for
Hannover 96 on a three-year contract making his debut on 21 August in a 2–1 home win against
Eintracht Frankfurt.
Wolfsburg On 20 June 2012, Pogatetz signed for
VfL Wolfsburg. He made his debut on 18 August 2012 in a 5–0 away win at
Schönberg 95, assisting the fourth goal by
Bas Dost.
West Ham United (loan) On 28 January 2013, Pogatetz signed, on loan until the end of the
season, with
West Ham United. His West Ham debut came on 2 February in a 1–0 home win against
Swansea City when he came on as a 90th-minute substitute for
Kevin Nolan. He played five more times, before returning to Wolfsburg.
1. FC Nürnberg On 2 July 2013, Pogatetz signed with
1. FC Nürnberg in a swap deal that saw
Timm Klose go to Wolfsburg. He made 23 league appearances for the side, scoring once.
Columbus Crew On 9 September 2014, Pogatetz signed a three-and-a-half-year deal with the
Columbus Crew of
Major League Soccer. After a string of "subpar performances" in the beginning of the 2015 season, Pogatetz was benched for
Tyson Wahl, which lead to Pogatetz venting his frustrations on his Facebook account, claiming that he was fit enough to play and that head coach
Gregg Berhalter and the club did not “value and respect my experience.” He was released at the end of the 2015 season.
Union Berlin On 5 January 2016, Pogatetz signed with
Union Berlin until the end of the season. Having made only six appearances during the 2016–17 season, his contract was not extended.
LASK In May 2017, Pogatetz announced his decision to return to his native Austria and to join
LASK. ==International career==