Damir Čakar (

Cyrillic , bg, кирилица , mk, кирилица , russian: кириллица , sr, ћирилица, uk, кирилиця , fam1 = Egyptian hieroglyphs , fam2 = Proto-Sinaitic , fam3 = Phoenician , fam4 = G ...

: Дамир Чакар; born 28 June 1973) is a Montenegrin former professional footballer who played as either a

striker Striker or The Strikers may refer to: People *A participant in a strike action *A participant in a hunger strike *Blacksmith's striker, a type of blacksmith's assistant *Striker's Independent Society, the oldest mystic krewe in America People wi ...

or an attacking midfielder. He is mostly known for his powerful shots and set pieces.

Club career

Čakar started out at his local club

Rudar Pljevlja FK Rudar Pljevlja, commonly known as Rudar Pljevlja or simply Rudar, is a football club based in Pljevlja, Montenegro. It currently plays in the Montenegrin First League, the country's highest tier. Rudar have played in the First League since it ...

, before joining

Budućnost Titograd Budućnost means "the future" in many Slavic languages, and it may also refer to: *SD Budućnost Podgorica, a sports society from Podgorica, Montenegro ** KK Budućnost Podgorica, a professional basketball club FK Budućnost may refer to: * FK Bud ...

, aged 15. He made his senior debut for the side in the final 1991–92 edition of the Yugoslav First League. Afterwards, Čakar returned to Rudar Pljevlja for the 1992–93 Second League of FR Yugoslavia, helping them win promotion to the First League of FR Yugoslavia. He subsequently moved to Borac Čačak, spending the following year and a half at the club. In the 1995 winter transfer window, Čakar was transferred to

Partizan Partizan may refer to: Sport * JSD Partizan, a sports society from Belgrade, Serbia, which includes the following clubs: ** AK Partizan, athletics **Biciklistički Klub Partizan, cycling **Džudo Klub Partizan, judo ** FK Partizan, association fo ...

. He was the team's top scorer in 1995–96 and 1996–97, helping them win back-to-back championships. In the summer of 1997, Čakar was sold to French side Châteauroux. He scored three league goals in his debut season at the club, as they suffered relegation from the top flight. In the following 1998–99 campaign, Čakar appeared in only five league games, before eventually leaving Châteauroux. After two years abroad, Čakar returned to FR Yugoslavia and joined ambitious Sartid Smederevo. He however failed to make an impact there due to an injury, before terminating his contract by mutual agreement with the club's chairman. Subsequently, Čakar signed with

Sutjeska Nikšić Sutjeska may refer to: *Sutjeska (river), a river in Bosnia and Herzegovina *Sutjeska National Park, a national park in Bosnia and Herzegovina *Kraljeva Sutjeska, a settlement in Bosnia and Herzegovina *Sutjeska Nikšić, a multi-sport club from Ni ...

. He scored 19 league goals in 23 appearances in the

2000–01 First League of FR Yugoslavia The 2000–01 First League of FR Yugoslavia was the ninth season of the FR Yugoslavia's top-level football league since its establishment. It was contested by 18 teams, and Red Star Belgrade won the championship. Incidents Eternal derby abandoned ...

, securing him a return to his former club Partizan. In the following two seasons, Čakar added two more championship titles to his collection. He also helped Partizan reach the UEFA Champions League group stage in the 2003–04 campaign. In February 2005, Čakar was loaned to his parent club Rudar Pljevlja. In the summer of 2005, Čakar extended his contract with Rudar Pljevlja, helping the side win the Montenegrin Cup in its

first edition The bibliographical definition of an edition includes all copies of a book printed from substantially the same setting of type, including all minor typographical variants. First edition According to the definition of ''edition'' above, a b ...

. He subsequently moved to fellow Montenegrin First League club Mogren, winning his second national cup, before eventually retiring from the game.

International career

At international level, Čakar earned three caps for FR Yugoslavia. He made his national team debut on 31 March 1995, coming on as a substitute for Dejan Stefanović in a 1–0 friendly win over Uruguay. Six years later, Čakar received a call-up to the squad for the 2001 Kirin Cup. His final international was during that tournament in July 2001 against hosts

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

Post-playing career

In October 2015, Čakar was hired as a

scout Scout may refer to: Youth movement *Scout (Scouting), a child, usually 10–18 years of age, participating in the worldwide Scouting movement **Scouts (The Scout Association), section for 10-14 year olds in the United Kingdom **Scouts BSA, sectio ...

for Partizan under the newly appointed sporting director Ivica Iliev.

Personal life

Born in

Pljevlja Pljevlja ( srp, Пљевља, ) is a town and the center of Pljevlja Municipality located in the northern part of Montenegro. The town lies at an altitude of . In the Middle Ages, Pljevlja had been a crossroad of the important commercial roads and ...

, Čakar grew up in a footballing family. His father, Rasim, and his uncle, Safet, both played for

. They are considered among the greatest players in the club's history.

Honours

Club

;Partizan * First League of FR Yugoslavia: 1995–96, 1996–97, 2001–02, 2002–03 ;Rudar Pljevlja * Montenegrin Cup: 2006–07 ;Mogren * Montenegrin Cup: 2007–08

Individual

* Montenegrin First League Top Scorer: 2006–07

References

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Cakar, Damir 1973 births Living people Sportspeople from Pljevlja Association football forwards Association football midfielders Association football utility players Yugoslav footballers Serbia and Montenegro footballers Serbia and Montenegro international footballers Montenegrin footballers FK Budućnost Podgorica players FK Rudar Pljevlja players FK Borac Čačak players FK Partizan players LB Châteauroux players FK Smederevo players FK Sutjeska Nikšić players FK Mogren players Yugoslav First League players First League of Serbia and Montenegro players Ligue 1 players Ligue 2 players Second League of Serbia and Montenegro players Montenegrin First League players Serbia and Montenegro expatriate footballers Expatriate footballers in France Serbia and Montenegro expatriate sportspeople in France FK Partizan non-playing staff Bosniaks of Montenegro