Miljan Miljanić

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Miljan Miljanić
Miljanić as Red Star Belgrade manager in 1971
Personal information
Full name Miljan Miljanić
Date of birth (1930-05-04)4 May 1930
Place of birth Bitola, Kingdom of Yugoslavia
Date of death 13 January 2012(2012-01-13) (aged 81)
Place of death Belgrade, Serbia
Position(s) Defender
Youth career
1946–1951 Red Star Belgrade
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1951–1952 Red Star Belgrade 1 (0)
Managerial career
1965–1966 Yugoslavia
1966–1974 Red Star Belgrade
1973–1974 Yugoslavia
1974–1977 Real Madrid
1979–1982 Yugoslavia
1982–1983 Valencia
1983–1984 Qadsia
1984–1986 Al Ain
1992 Yugoslavia
Medal record
Men's Football
Representing  Yugoslavia
Universiade
Gold medal – first place 1953 Dortmund Team
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Miljan Miljanić (Serbian Cyrillic: Миљан Миљанић; 4 May 1930 – 13 January 2012) was a Yugoslav and Serbian football administrator, coach and player who played as a defender.

Born in

SFR Yugoslavia and eventually present day North Macedonia
.

During his colourful career, Miljanić coached

1982 World Cups
.

He is equally known as the all-powerful president of the Football Association of FR Yugoslavia (FSJ), a post he occupied for years before leaving in 2001.

His influence on the game of football in Yugoslavia is huge as an entire generation of coaches including

Toza Veselinović
, etc. came up under his tutelage. In addition to admirers, Miljanić has his share of detractors who feel his trademark cautious and defensive tactics, as well as reliance on older players, contributed to the Yugoslavia national team's poor results and unattractive play throughout the 1970s and 1980s.

In 2002, for his contributions to association football, Miljanić became the recipient of the FIFA Order of Merit — the highest honour awarded by FIFA.[1]

Early life

Miljanić was born in 1930 in Bitola, a town his

geometer father Akim Miljanić had moved the family to two years earlier in 1928 after finding employment there.[2] Previously, in 1922, Akim had arrived to Belgrade from Montenegro's Banjani region in order to study at the newly opened Geodesy School. The family also consisted of mother Zorka and sisters Mira and Nada.[2]

In 1941, with Nazi Germany invading, conquering, and dismembering Kingdom of Yugoslavia into territories administered by newly established local collaborationist regimes or neighbouring Axis powers states, the Miljanićs were forced into fleeing Bitola by the occupying Bulgarian force that had been handed the territory of Vardar Banovina by the Nazis.[2] The fleeing family first settled in the town of Jagodina followed by relocating to Kragujevac,[2] a city reeling from the October 1941 massacre of more than 2,700 civilians committed by the Wehrmacht force.

In 1944, in Kragujevac, 14-year-old Miljanić reportedly joined the Yugoslav Partisans.[2]

Following the end of World War II, the family moved to Belgrade in 1946.[2]

Coaching career

Yugoslavia national team

Miljanić had three stints as the head coach of the Yugoslavia national football team, 1965–66, 1973–74 and 1979–82. He coached the national team at the 1974 FIFA World Cup and the 1982 FIFA World Cup.

By the year of 1992, the team was coached by Bosnian

31 May, with the squad already in Sweden, the ban was confirmed, just ten days before the opening match.[6]

Real Madrid

Miljanić's arrival to Real during the summer 1974 transfer window came on the heels of a

US$150,000 in salary compensation (US$900,000 in 2022)[8] over the agreed period.[7] Other coaches Bernabéu reportedly considered for the job at this time included Inter Milan's head coach Helenio Herrera.[7] The news of Yugoslavia head coaching commission leader Miljanić's signature with Real only a few months before World Cup was not received particularly well at home with certain press outlets calling for his sacking from the national team coaching commission.[7]
He would be allowed to stay, however, and lead the national team in West Germany.

Molowny completed the

emphatically 4–0 against biggest rivals FC Barcelona. Miljanić, for his part, led Yugoslavia at the 1974 FIFA World Cup, managing to make it out of the first round group before losing each of the three matches in the next round group
.

On 5 July 1974, three days after ending his World Cup participation in West Germany with a loss against Sweden, Miljanić was presented as Real Madrid's new head coach.

Antonio Ruiz
.

1974–75 season: league-cup double

Incoming Miljanić initiated a number of innovative changes in the training methods at Real.

Amancio Amaro, West German midfielder Günter Netzer, newly signed defenceman from Bayern Paul Breitner, and young defender from the youth system José Antonio Camacho
.

Despite facing fan criticism over unattractive play, Real won the league and cup double in his first season as coach.

In the

Spanish State under the regime of Francisco Franco played a role in Miljanić's decision.[17] Instead, the coach invited journalists to watch the game with him on television in Madrid. Going into the return leg Real had a 2–0 first leg lead, however, led by Antonio Ruiz
who stepped in for Miljanić that night, los merenegues lost 2–0 in Belgrade and then got eliminated in the penalty shootout.

As his two-year contract at Real was set to expire, Miljanić began to be courted by Arsenal F.C. that was looking for a replacement for their manager Bertie Mee who had put the club on notice about resigning at the end of the current season.[18] After visiting London on 20 April 1976 and receiving a reportedly lucrative offer to manage the club starting from the 1976-77 season, Miljanić decided not to sign with Arsenal and eventually re-signed with Real.[19]

After ending the 1976–77 season without silverware, Miljanić started his fourth campaign as Real's coach in September 1977. However, after losing the opening match of the league season to Salamanca 1–2, Miljanić resigned his post.

Miljanić took a full year away from coaching after resigning from Real. Among the offers he considered during the period was

Bolton Wanderers.[21] Ultimately, not keen on fighting for survival in the English League Top Division, he opted not to join the club.[18]

Within weeks of returning from London, Miljanić was appointed manager of Yugoslavia's national team.

Personal life

Miljanić was married to Olivera "Vera" Reljić with whom he had two children: son Miloš Miljanić (former footballer and current manager of Alianza F.C. of El Salvador) and daughter Zorka.[22]

He died on 13 January 2012, aged 81, in

Real Mallorca
with Madrid players wearing black armbands.

Honours

Manager

Red Star Belgrade

Real Madrid

Individual

References

  1. ^ a b FIFA fact sheet at FIFA.com
  2. ^ a b c d e f Mitić, Milan (9 April 2015). "Zorka i Akim, rositelji Miljana Miljanića: Ode naš Milo u partizane sa 14 godina..." TV Novosti. Retrieved 28 October 2017.
  3. ^ "Yugoslavia releva al técnico para Suecia". Mundo Deportivo (in Spanish). 24 May 1992. Retrieved 5 June 2019.
  4. ^ a b "FIRENZE, UNA FINTA AMICHEVOLE: POCA GENTE E PROTESTE". La Repubblica (in Spanish). 28 May 1992. Retrieved 5 June 2019.
  5. ^ "Pancev también renuncia a la Eurocopa". Mundo Deportivo (in Spanish). 25 May 1992. Retrieved 5 June 2019.
  6. ^ "Yugoslav athletes banned". The New York Times. 1 June 1992. Retrieved 5 May 2019.
  7. ^ a b c d Krivokapić, Branko (20 November 2015). "Miljan Miljanić – trener od koga je učio Del Boske". Vijesti. Retrieved 13 April 2022.
  8. ^ 150,000 in 1974 adjusted for inflation in 2022
  9. ^ "Don Santiago Bernabéu presentación Miljan Miljanic". TDP. 5 July 1974. Archived from the original on 13 April 2022. Retrieved 13 April 2022.
  10. ^ Miljanic, el entrenador que revolucionó el Real Madrid con sus nuevos métodos;MARCA, 13 January 2012
  11. ^ Lara, Miguel Ángel (15 July 2019). "Miljan Miljanic, Real Madrid's revolutionary coach". Marca. Retrieved 25 March 2023.
  12. ^ Colino, Carmen (14 January 2012). ""Nos influyó para ser entrenadores"" (in Spanish). As. Archived from the original on 16 January 2012. Retrieved 25 March 2023.
  13. ^ Lara, Miguel Ángel (16 July 2019). "Miljanic sparked a revolution". Marca. Retrieved 25 March 2023.
  14. ^ R., M. (10 March 2013). "La llegada de Miljanic guarda un paralelismo con la de Mou" (in Spanish). As. Retrieved 25 March 2023.
  15. ^ Relaño, Alfredo (14 January 2012). "Paralelismo entre Miljanic y Mourinho" (in Spanish). As. Archived from the original on 15 January 2012. Retrieved 25 March 2023.
  16. ^ Martín, Agustín (14 January 2012). "Falleció Miljan Miljanic" (in Spanish). As. Archived from the original on 17 January 2012. Retrieved 25 March 2023.
  17. ^ Maričić, Slobodan (13 January 2021). "Srbija, fudbal i Miljan Miljanić: Patrijarh ili grobar jugoslovenskog fudbala". BBC na srpskom. Retrieved 13 April 2022.
  18. ^ a b c Jensen, Neil Fredrik (7 September 2018). "Great Reputations: Red Star Belgrade 1973-74 – the team that changed English football". Game of the People. Retrieved 2 May 2022.
  19. ^ "Soccer - Miljan Miljanic - Heathrow Airport". Getty Images. 20 April 1976. Retrieved 2 May 2022.
  20. ^ "Soccer - Miljan Miljanic - Heathrow Airport, London". Getty Images. 12 October 1978. Retrieved 2 May 2022.
  21. ^ "Soccer - League Division One - Chelsea v Bolton Wanderers - Stamford Bridge". Getty Images. 14 October 1978. Retrieved 2 May 2022.
  22. ^ Trener tiranin? Zar vam ja zaista tako izgledam?;Start, July 1969

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