Miroslav "Ćiro" Blažević (; born 10 February 1935) is a Croatian former professional
football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...
manager
Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business.
Management includes the activities o ...
and
player
Player may refer to:
Role or adjective
* Player (game), a participant in a game or sport
** Gamer, a player in video and tabletop games
** Athlete, a player in sports
** Player character, a character in a video game or role playing game who ...
. His professional playing career spanned from 1954 to 1966, during which he played for
Dinamo Zagreb
Građanski nogometni klub Dinamo Zagreb ( en, Dinamo Zagreb Citizens' Football Club, link=yes, italics=yes), commonly referred to as GNK Dinamo Zagreb or simply Dinamo Zagreb (), is a Croatian professional football club based in Zagreb. Dinamo ...
,
Lokomotiva Zagreb,
FK Sarajevo
Fudbalski klub Sarajevo (; English: Sarajevo Football Club) is a professional football club based in Sarajevo, the capital city of Bosnia and Herzegovina and is one of the most successful clubs in the country.
Founded on 24 October 1946, FK Sara ...
,
HNK Rijeka
Hrvatski nogometni klub Rijeka ( en, Croatian Football Club Rijeka), commonly referred to as NK Rijeka or simply Rijeka, is a Croatian professional association football, football club from the city of Rijeka.
HNK Rijeka compete in Croatia's top ...
and Swiss clubs
FC Sion
Football Club de Sion, commonly known as simply FC Sion or Sion, is a Swiss football team from the city of Sion. The club was founded in 1909, and play their home matches at the Stade Tourbillon. They have won the Swiss Super League twice, and ...
and
FC Moutier
FC may refer to:
Businesses, organisations, and schools
* Fergusson College, a science and arts college in Pune, India
* Finncomm Airlines (IATA code)
* FranklinCovey company, NYSE stock symbol FC
* Frontier Corps, a paramilitary force in Paki ...
.
As a manager, his most successful period was with the
Croatia national team, which he led to the quarter-finals in the
1996 European Championship and won third place at the
1998 FIFA World Cup
The 1998 FIFA World Cup was the 16th FIFA World Cup, the football world championship for men's national teams. The finals tournament was held in France from 10 June to 12 July 1998. The country was chosen as the host nation by FIFA for the ...
. He also managed the following national teams:
Switzerland
). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...
,
Iran
Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...
,
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh, / , ), abbreviated BiH () or B&H, sometimes called Bosnia–Herzegovina and often known informally as Bosnia, is a country at the crossroads of south and southeast Europe, located in the Balkans. Bosnia and H ...
and
China Olympic. Blažević also had successful spells at
FC Vevey, FC Sion,
FC Lausanne-Sport
FC Lausanne–Sport (also referred to as LS) is a Swiss football club based in Lausanne in the canton of Vaud. Founded in 1896, Lausanne Sport played in the Swiss Super League in their most recent 2021-22 season, the highest tier of football ...
, HNK Rijeka, GNK Dinamo Zagreb,
Grasshopper Zürich
Grasshoppers are a group of insects belonging to the suborder Caelifera. They are among what is possibly the most ancient living group of chewing herbivorous insects, dating back to the early Triassic around 250 million years ago.
Grasshopp ...
,
FC Prishtina
Football Club Prishtina ( sq, Klubi Futbollistik Prishtina, ; sr, Фудбалски клуб Приштина, Fudbalski klub Priština), commonly known as Prishtina, is a professional football club based in Prishtina, Kosovo. The club play i ...
,
NK Osijek
Nogometni klub Osijek ( en, Osijek Football Club), commonly referred to as NK Osijek or simply Osijek (), is a Croatian professional football club from Osijek. Founded in 1947, it was the club from Slavonia with the most seasons in the Yugoslav F ...
,
NK Varteks,
NK Zagreb
Nogometni klub Zagreb (''Zagreb Football Club''), commonly known as NK Zagreb or simply Zagreb (), is a Croatian amateur football club based in the Croatian capital city of Zagreb. It currently competes in the fifth tier league competition of ...
,
Shanghai Shenhua
Shanghai Shenhua F.C. () is a Chinese professional football club that participates in the Chinese Super League under license from the Chinese Football Association (CFA). The term ''shen hua'' literally translates as "the Flower of Shanghai" in ...
and
FK Sloboda Tuzla
Fudbalski klub Sloboda Tuzla ( sh-Cyrl, Фудбалски клуб Слободa Tyзла; English: Football Club Sloboda Tuzla) is a Bosnian professional football club based in Tuzla, Bosnia and Herzegovina. The English translation of the tea ...
.
From 29 March 1993 to 23 February 1995 he was president of Dinamo Zagreb.
Blažević maintains a colourful public persona Croatia, where he is reverently known as "''trener svih trenera''" (the "coach of all coaches").
Early life
Blažević was born to a
Bosnian Croat
The Croats of Bosnia and Herzegovina (), often referred to as Bosnian Croats () or Herzegovinian Croats () are the third most populous ethnic groups in Bosnia and Herzegovina, ethnic group in the country after Bosniaks and Serbs of Bosnia and H ...
family in
Travnik
Travnik is a town and a municipality in Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is the administrative center of Central Bosnia Canton of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is situated in central Bosnia and Herzegovina, west of Sarajevo. As of 201 ...
,
Kingdom of Yugoslavia
The Kingdom of Yugoslavia ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Kraljevina Jugoslavija, Краљевина Југославија; sl, Kraljevina Jugoslavija) was a state in Southeast Europe, Southeast and Central Europe that existed from 1918 unt ...
, present day
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh, / , ), abbreviated BiH () or B&H, sometimes called Bosnia–Herzegovina and often known informally as Bosnia, is a country at the crossroads of south and southeast Europe, located in the Balkans. Bosnia and H ...
on 10 February 1935. In his teens he trained
skiing
Skiing is the use of skis to glide on snow. Variations of purpose include basic transport, a recreational activity, or a competitive winter sport. Many types of competitive skiing events are recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IO ...
.
Playing career
He began his youth career in local team
NK Travnik
NK Travnik ( bs, Nogometni Klub Travnik), commonly known as Travnik is a professional association football club from the city of Travnik that is situated in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Currently, Travnik plays in the First League of the Federation of ...
, after which he moved to Zagreb and joined Dinamo Zagreb. His career as a player was, by his own admission, average; therefore, he began his coaching career at a relatively early age. As a player, he played for
Dinamo Zagreb
Građanski nogometni klub Dinamo Zagreb ( en, Dinamo Zagreb Citizens' Football Club, link=yes, italics=yes), commonly referred to as GNK Dinamo Zagreb or simply Dinamo Zagreb (), is a Croatian professional football club based in Zagreb. Dinamo ...
,
Lokomotiva Zagreb,
Rijeka
Rijeka ( , , ; also known as Fiume hu, Fiume, it, Fiume ; local Chakavian: ''Reka''; german: Sankt Veit am Flaum; sl, Reka) is the principal seaport and the third-largest city in Croatia (after Zagreb and Split). It is located in Primor ...
,
Sarajevo
Sarajevo ( ; cyrl, Сарајево, ; ''see Names of European cities in different languages (Q–T)#S, names in other languages'') is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a population of 275,524 in its a ...
, and
Sion
Sion may refer to
* an alternative transliteration of Zion
People
* Sion (name) or Siôn, a Welsh and other given name and surname, including a list of people and fictional characters with the name
* Shion or Sion, a Japanese given name
Pl ...
. He ended his career at
Moutier
Moutier () is a municipality in Switzerland. Currently, the town belongs to the Jura bernois administrative district of the canton of Bern. On 28 March 2021, the population voted to secede from the canton of Bern and join the Canton of Jura; the ...
in 1966 after gaining promotion to
LNA.
Managerial career
Coaching in Switzerland
He started as a coach where he ended his playing days in Switzerland. He first led
FC Vevey (1968–71) then his former team
FC Sion
Football Club de Sion, commonly known as simply FC Sion or Sion, is a Swiss football team from the city of Sion. The club was founded in 1909, and play their home matches at the Stade Tourbillon. They have won the Swiss Super League twice, and ...
(1971–76),
FC Lausanne-Sport
FC Lausanne–Sport (also referred to as LS) is a Swiss football club based in Lausanne in the canton of Vaud. Founded in 1896, Lausanne Sport played in the Swiss Super League in their most recent 2021-22 season, the highest tier of football ...
(1976–79) and finally
Switzerland's national team (as
interim
An interim is a period of temporary pause or change in a sequence of events, or a temporary state, and is often applied to transitional political entities.
Interim may also refer to:
Temporary organizational arrangements (general concept)
*Provis ...
coach for two games in 1976).
With Sion he won the
Swiss Cup
The Swiss Cup (; ; ; ) is a football cup tournament that has been organised annually since 1925–26 by the Swiss Football Association. Since 1999 the winner earns the chance to qualify for the UEFA Europa League or the UEFA Europa Conference L ...
with club as a player and as manager in 1974.
NK Rijeka
Blažević returned to
Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia (; sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Jugoslavija, Југославија ; sl, Jugoslavija ; mk, Југославија ;; rup, Iugoslavia; hu, Jugoszlávia; rue, label=Pannonian Rusyn, Югославия, translit=Juhoslavija ...
in 1979 to coach
Rijeka
Rijeka ( , , ; also known as Fiume hu, Fiume, it, Fiume ; local Chakavian: ''Reka''; german: Sankt Veit am Flaum; sl, Reka) is the principal seaport and the third-largest city in Croatia (after Zagreb and Split). It is located in Primor ...
. Rijeka finished tenth in the
1979–80 season. Although not a very good league season the club got to the quarter-finals of
1979–80 European Cup Winners' Cup where they lost to
Juventus
Juventus Football Club (from la, iuventūs, 'youth'; ), colloquially known as Juve (), is a professional Association football, football club based in Turin, Piedmont, Italy, that competes in the Serie A, the top tier of the Italian football leagu ...
.
NK Rijeka's best
European
European, or Europeans, or Europeneans, may refer to:
In general
* ''European'', an adjective referring to something of, from, or related to Europe
** Ethnic groups in Europe
** Demographics of Europe
** European cuisine, the cuisines of Europe ...
placement.
Blažević also lost the
1979–80 Balkans Cup final to
Studențesc București.
Success with Dinamo
Blažević took over
Dinamo Zagreb
Građanski nogometni klub Dinamo Zagreb ( en, Dinamo Zagreb Citizens' Football Club, link=yes, italics=yes), commonly referred to as GNK Dinamo Zagreb or simply Dinamo Zagreb (), is a Croatian professional football club based in Zagreb. Dinamo ...
on 11 December 1980, one of Yugoslavia's big four clubs (the other three being
Hajduk Split
Hrvatski nogometni klub Hajduk Split, commonly referred to as Hajduk Split () or simply Hajduk, is a Croatian professional football club based in Split, that competes in the Croatian First League, the top tier in Croatian football. Since 1979, t ...
,
Red Star Belgrade
Fudbalski klub Crvena zvezda ( sr-Cyrl, Фудбалски клуб Црвена звезда, lit=Red Star Football Club, ), commonly known as Red Star Belgrade in English-language media, is a Serbian professional football club based in Bel ...
and
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 ...
) in 1980. After a mediocre first season, in which Dinamo finished fifth, Ćiro became an instant club legend in the 1981–82, winning the first Yugoslav league title for the Zagreb outfit after a 24-year drought.
Next year, Dinamo won the
Yugoslav Cup
The Yugoslav Cup ( hr, Pokal Jugoslavije; sr, Куп Југославије; sl, Pokal Jugoslavije, mk, Куп на Југославија), officially known between 1923 and 1940 as the King Alexander Cup ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, Kup kralja Aleksandra, ...
and led a long battle with Partizan and Hajduk in the league. Partizan became
1983 champions and Blažević left Dinamo for the first time.
Grasshopper and Prishtina
Blažević went back to Switzerland, winning the Swiss Championship with
Grasshopper-Club Zurich in 1984. He advanced to the second round of
1984–85 European Cup
The 1984–85 season of the European Cup club football tournament was overshadowed by the Heysel Stadium disaster that happened prior to the final match. That edition was won for the first time by Juventus in a 1–0 win against defending champio ...
where he lost to
Juventus
Juventus Football Club (from la, iuventūs, 'youth'; ), colloquially known as Juve (), is a professional Association football, football club based in Turin, Piedmont, Italy, that competes in the Serie A, the top tier of the Italian football leagu ...
. After a less than expected second season Blažević left Grasshopper mid-season.
In 1985, Ćiro was once again in Yugoslavia, this time as manager of
Kosovo
Kosovo ( sq, Kosova or ; sr-Cyrl, Косово ), officially the Republic of Kosovo ( sq, Republika e Kosovës, links=no; sr, Република Косово, Republika Kosovo, links=no), is a partially recognised state in Southeast Euro ...
's
KF Prishtina. Under Ćiro's command Prishtina achieved
First Division status. To this day he is noted as a club legend
Second stint at Dinamo, Nantes and PAOK
In the same year he became Dinamo Zagreb's coach for second time; during this period he failed to accomplish any significant results and therefore left again in 1988. His next team was
FC Nantes
Football Club de Nantes (; Gallo: ''Naunnt''), commonly referred to as FC Nantes or simply Nantes (), is a French professional football club based in Nantes in Pays de la Loire. The club was founded on 21 April 1943, during World War II, a ...
of France; Ćiro was there until 1990. After Nantes he spent a season in
Greek
Greek may refer to:
Greece
Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe:
*Greeks, an ethnic group.
*Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family.
**Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...
club
PAOK FC
P.A.O.K. FC ( el, ΠΑΕ ΠΑΟΚ, Πανθεσσαλονίκειος Αθλητικός Όμιλος Κωνσταντινουπολιτών, '' Panthessaloníkios Athlitikós Ómilos Konstadinoupolitón'', "Pan-Thessalonian Athletic Club of ...
.
Croatia tenure
In the 1990s, with
Croatia
, image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg
, image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg
, anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, capit ...
gaining independence, Ćiro joined the
Croatian Democratic Union
The Croatian Democratic Union ( hr, Hrvatska demokratska zajednica, lit=Croatian Democratic Community, HDZ) is the major conservative, centre-right political party in Croatia. It is one of the two major contemporary political parties in Croa ...
(HDZ) and became President
Tuđman's admirer and close friend. For the third time he became Dinamo (then named NK Croatia Zagreb) coach and president at the same time. Ćiro won the 1993 Croatian Championship and 1994 Croatian Cup, but then left his favorite club once more, citing his reasons for doing so as needing to focus on managing the
Croatian national team.
Ćiro was national team manager from 1994 on a part-time basis, but only a year later it became a full-time job as Croatia faced its first qualifying cycle for the European Championship. Croatia won the first place in qualifying group, sensationally ahead of
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...
and directly entered
Euro 96
The 1996 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as Euro 96, was the 10th UEFA European Championship, a quadrennial football tournament contested by European nations and organised by UEFA. It took place in England from 8 to 30 ...
in England. Blažević was about to gain some worldwide fame.
From January to June 1996 Blažević took up a position as an advisor at
HNK Rijeka
Hrvatski nogometni klub Rijeka ( en, Croatian Football Club Rijeka), commonly referred to as NK Rijeka or simply Rijeka, is a Croatian professional association football, football club from the city of Rijeka.
HNK Rijeka compete in Croatia's top ...
to help newly appointed coach
Nenad Gračan
Nenad Gračan (born 23 January 1962) is a Croatian football manager and former player who played as a midfielder. He is the coach of the Croatia women's national football team.
Club career
Born in Rijeka, SFR Yugoslavia, Gračan started playin ...
save his former club from relegation.
Croatia passed group stage with wins against
Turkey
Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...
and current European champions
Denmark
)
, song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast")
, song_type = National and royal anthem
, image_map = EU-Denmark.svg
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark
...
and loss to
Portugal
Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...
, to face
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
in quarter-finals. Germany won 2–1 and went on to win the event, but Ćiro and Croatians claimed that the
Swedish
Swedish or ' may refer to:
Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically:
* Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland
** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...
referee
Leif Sundell
Leif Sundell (born February 15, 1958 in Borlänge) is a retired Swedish association football referee. Sundell refereed a total of 262 Allsvenskan games, the Swedish top tier in football, in 22 years. He also refereed 100 international games dur ...
was somewhat biased towards the Germans.
However, greatest things lay ahead, as Croatia was trying to qualify to the
1998 FIFA World Cup
The 1998 FIFA World Cup was the 16th FIFA World Cup, the football world championship for men's national teams. The finals tournament was held in France from 10 June to 12 July 1998. The country was chosen as the host nation by FIFA for the ...
in France. They won second place in the qualifying group behind Denmark and ousted
Ukraine
Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...
in a play-off for the tournament.
The Croatian squad of 1998 was full of accomplished players who played for top European clubs, including the likes of
Zvonimir Boban
Zvonimir "Zvone" Boban (; born 8 October 1968) is a Croatian former footballer who currently works at UEFA as the Chief of Football. Boban played as a midfielder and was usually deployed as an attacking midfielder. He played most of his professi ...
,
Davor Šuker
Davor Šuker (; born 1 January 1968) is a Croatian football administrator and former Association football, footballer who played as a Striker (association football), striker. He served as president of the Croatian Football Federation from 2012 t ...
and
Slaven Bilić
Slaven Bilić (; born 11 September 1968) is a Croatian professional football manager and former player. He is the current manager of EFL Championship side Watford.
Bilić, who played as a defender, began his career in 1988 with his hometown c ...
, and they were well led by Blažević. In France they created one of the greatest all-time World Cup sensations by winning the third place play-off. In the group stage, Croatia eliminated
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 ...
and
Jamaica
Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of His ...
, suffering a non-significant loss to
Argentina
Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...
in the final game. In the knockout stages they passed by
Romania
Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, S ...
, winning 1–0 from a penalty kick. This prepared them for a quarter-final against Germany. Ćiro and the Croatians got their revenge with a shocking 3–0 win that stunned the world. However, Croatia were stopped by the hosts
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
in semis; a somewhat undeserved 2–1 defeat to the eventual champions. Blažević made a critical coaching decision in that semi-final as he failed to insert his most talented player
Robert Prosinečki
Robert Prosinečki (; born 12 January 1969) is a Croatian professional football manager and former player who played as a midfielder.
Early in his career, he was part of the Red Star Belgrade team that won three Yugoslav First League titles and ...
when the game was in the balance at 1–1. Instead he opted for
Silvio Marić to replace the injured Boban after halftime and Croatia eventually lost the game 2–1. In the third-place match, Prosinečki started and immediately made his presence felt by scoring the first goal and delivering a wonderful defence splitting pass which resulted in Croatia's second goal. Croatia won against the
Netherlands
)
, anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands
, established_title = Before independence
, established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
2–1 to claim the bronze. Just like in 1982, Ćiro was again the national hero and number one.
The rest of his stint as Croatian manager was not so successful. Croatia failed to qualify for
Euro 2000
The 2000 UEFA European Football Championship, also known as Euro 2000, was the 11th UEFA European Championship, a football tournament held every four years and organised by UEFA, the sport's governing body in Europe.
The finals tournament was ...
, after finishing a disappointing third in a qualifying group behind
FR Yugoslavia
Serbia and Montenegro ( sr, Cрбија и Црна Гора, translit=Srbija i Crna Gora) was a country in Southeast Europe located in the Balkans that existed from 1992 to 2006, following the breakup
A relationship breakup, breakup, or ...
and
Ireland
Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...
. Ćiro retained his position and began to build a new team, filled with younger players for the
2002 FIFA World Cup
The 2002 FIFA World Cup, also branded as Korea Japan 2002, was the 17th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial Association football, football world championship for List of men's national association football teams, men's national teams organized by ...
. However, after Croatia opened the qualifiers with two draws, he was forced to resign in autumn 2000.
Iran tenure and return to Croatia
Well known throughout the football world for his 1998 World Cup sensation, Ćiro accepted an offer to lead the
Iranian national team midway through the 2002 World Cup
qualification
Qualification is either the process of qualifying for an achievement, or a credential attesting to that achievement, and may refer to:
* Professional qualification, attributes developed by obtaining academic degrees or through professional exper ...
process. Coming in ahead of the final qualifying round, he quickly developed a following among many of the Iranian fans. Ćiro kept the 3–5–2 formation that Iran had played with previously in the 96 Asian Cup, in which
Iranian national team had won third place. He also introduced new players to
Team Melli
) ''(the national team)' other nicknames''
, Badge = Flag_of_Iran.svg
, Badge_size = 190px
, Association = Football Federation Islamic Republic of Iran
, FIFA Trigramme = IRN
, FIFA Rank ...
such as
Rahman Rezaei
Rahman Rezaei ( fa, رحمان رضايی, born 20 February 1975) is an Iranian football coach and former player. A centre-back, he also represented the Iran national team.
Club career
He was originally discovered by Iranian manager, Nass ...
,
Javad Nekounam
Javad Nekounam ( fa, جواد نکونام; born 7 September 1980) is an Iranian retired professional association football, footballer who played as a central midfielder and is the current manager (association football), manager of Foolad F.C., F ...
, and
Ebrahim Mirzapour
Ebrahim Mirzapour ( fa, ابراهیم میرزاپور; born 1978) is a retired Iranian football goalkeeper, who played most of his career for Foolad F.C .
Club career
Foolad
He started his professional IPL career, playing for Foolad, and was ...
. Known as loudmouth and showman, Blažević stayed true to form by claiming he would hang himself from the goalposts if Iran failed to beat
Ireland
Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...
in the deciding
qualification playoff for the
2002 World Cup
The 2002 FIFA World Cup, also branded as Korea Japan 2002, was the 17th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial Association football, football world championship for List of men's national association football teams, men's national teams organized by ...
. Ireland won 2–1 on aggregate, the defeat that marked the end of Blažević's time in Iran as his assistant
Branko Ivanković
Branko Ivanković (; born 28 February 1954) is a Croatian former footballer who played as a midfielder, and the current manager of the Oman national team. After a 12-year playing career at Varteks, Ivanković started his coaching career at the ...
took over.
Ćiro then came back in Croatia, first saving
NK Osijek
Nogometni klub Osijek ( en, Osijek Football Club), commonly referred to as NK Osijek or simply Osijek (), is a Croatian professional football club from Osijek. Founded in 1947, it was the club from Slavonia with the most seasons in the Yugoslav F ...
from relegation and then again in Dinamo. In his fourth term as Dinamo coach, Blažević won the Croatian Championship in 2003, but left again same year after clashing with his long-time friend, Dinamo's vice president
Zdravko Mamić
Zdravko Mamić (born 16 July 1959) is a Croatian former football administrator and sports agent. From 2003 to 2016, he was the executive director of Croatian football club GNK Dinamo Zagreb.
Mamić also worked as an advisor at NK Lokomotiva a ...
.
Ćiro then led Slovenian
NK Mura
Nogometni klub Mura ( en, Mura Football Club), commonly referred to as NK Mura or simply Mura, was a Slovenian association football club based in Murska Sobota. The club was founded on 16 August 1924 as one of the first clubs in the Prekmurje re ...
for few months before becoming the coach of Croatian side
NK Varteks, a post he held until 31 May 2005. While at Varteks
Zlatko Dalić
Zlatko Dalić (; born 26 October 1966) is a Croatian professional football manager and former player. He is the manager of the Croatia national team since 2017 and led them to a runners-up finish at the 2018 FIFA World Cup and third place at the ...
was his assistant coach.
Short stint at Hajduk
Ćiro controversially announced that he was going to coach
Hajduk Split
Hrvatski nogometni klub Hajduk Split, commonly referred to as Hajduk Split () or simply Hajduk, is a Croatian professional football club based in Split, that competes in the Croatian First League, the top tier in Croatian football. Since 1979, t ...
in
2005–06, having expressed his desire to coach the southern Croatian side for decades; many fans were sceptical due to his association with Hajduk's arch-rival Dinamo. Not surprisingly, his arrival caused a great deal of controversy; Hajduk fans had differing opinions, with a significant number seeing Ćiro as a miracle worker that would help Hajduk regain its former glory.
Those expectations weren't met; Hajduk under Ćiro's leadership immediately got eliminated from European competitions, following an 8–0 aggregate defeat at the hands of
Hungarian side
Debreceni VSC; the 5–0 second leg drubbing being the most humiliating result for the Split club at
Poljud
Gradski stadion u Poljudu ( en, City Stadium in Poljud), better known as Stadion Poljud ( en, Poljud Stadium) or simply Poljud, is a multi-use stadium in Split, Croatia, which has been the home ground of Hajduk Split football club since 1979. Th ...
stadium. The opening stages of the new league campaign brought about another series of humiliations, finally forcing Ćiro to resign on 18 September, followed by
Igor Štimac
Igor Štimac (; born 6 September 1967) is a Croatian football coach and former player who played as a centre back. He is the current head coach of the Indian national team.
In his playing career, Štimac had three spells with Hajduk Split and ...
, former Hajduk player and one of his main supporters in club administration.
Neuchâtel and NK Zagreb
In October 2005, he went back to Switzerland and coached
Neuchâtel Xamax
, neighboring_municipalities= Auvernier, Boudry, Chabrey (VD), Colombier, Cressier, Cudrefin (VD), Delley-Portalban (FR), Enges, Fenin-Vilars-Saules, Hauterive, Saint-Blaise, Savagnier
, twintowns = Aarau (Switzerland), Besançon (France ...
, replacing
Alain Geiger
Alain Geiger (born 5 November 1960) is a Swiss international football manager and a former defender. He is the current manager for Servette FC.
He played mainly as a centre-back despite being only 1.80m in a career that lasted 20 years, and mad ...
in an attempt to save the club from relegation after they had won just one out of their first ten games of the season. Although Ćiro achieved some memorable victories with Neuchâtel against Swiss powerhouses
FC Basel
Fussball Club Basel 1893, widely known as FC Basel, FCB, or just Basel, is a Swiss football club based in Basel, in the Canton of Basel-Stadt. Formed in 1893, the club has been Swiss national champions 20 times, Swiss Cup winners 13 times, and ...
and
FC Zurich
FC may refer to:
Businesses, organisations, and schools
* Fergusson College, a science and arts college in Pune, India
* Finncomm Airlines (IATA code)
* FranklinCovey company, NYSE stock symbol FC
* Frontier Corps, a paramilitary force in Pakis ...
, they finished the season in ninth place (in a ten-club league) and went to relegation playoff. They were eventually relegated after losing to another Swiss team Ćiro had managed 35 years earlier,
FC Sion
Football Club de Sion, commonly known as simply FC Sion or Sion, is a Swiss football team from the city of Sion. The club was founded in 1909, and play their home matches at the Stade Tourbillon. They have won the Swiss Super League twice, and ...
, 3–0 on aggregate, and his tenure there ended in June 2006.
Once again, he returned to Croatia, this time to take over
NK Zagreb
Nogometni klub Zagreb (''Zagreb Football Club''), commonly known as NK Zagreb or simply Zagreb (), is a Croatian amateur football club based in the Croatian capital city of Zagreb. It currently competes in the fifth tier league competition of ...
. The club experienced a successful
2006–07 season which saw them finish third behind Dinamo and Hajduk and earned them a spot in
Intertoto Cup 2007. However, in the
following season the team made for an early exit, losing against their first Intertoto opponent
Vllaznia on
away goals
The away goals rule is a method of tiebreaking in association football and other sports when teams play each other twice, once at each team's home ground. Under the away goals rule, if the total goals scored by each team are equal, the team that ...
. After
Ivica Vrdoljak and
Mario Mandžukić
Mario Mandžukić (; born 21 May 1986) is a Croatian football coach and a former player who is an assistant coach of the Croatia national team. As a player, he played as a forward and became known for his aggressiveness, defensive contribution ...
were transferred to city rivals
Dinamo Zagreb
Građanski nogometni klub Dinamo Zagreb ( en, Dinamo Zagreb Citizens' Football Club, link=yes, italics=yes), commonly referred to as GNK Dinamo Zagreb or simply Dinamo Zagreb (), is a Croatian professional football club based in Zagreb. Dinamo ...
at the beginning of the season, the team saw a string of mediocre results before finishing the season sixth. Immediately after the last game of the season, Ćiro announced that his stint at NK Zagreb had come to an end by mutual consent between him and the club's chairman.
Bosnia and Herzegovina
On 10 July 2008, Ćiro was appointed head coach of
Bosnia and Herzegovina national football team
The Bosnia and Herzegovina national football team ( bs, Nogometna/Fudbalska reprezentacija Bosne i Hercegovine; sr, Фудбалска репрезентација Боснe и Херцеговинe, Fudbalska reprezentacija Bosne i Hercegovi ...
replacing
Meho Kodro
Mehmed "Meho" Kodro (born 12 January 1967) is a Bosnian professional football manager and former player who played as a forward.
He spent most of his 16-year senior career in Spain, mostly with Real Sociedad (four seasons) and Tenerife (three) ...
who had been dismissed two months earlier by the
Bosnian FA (FSBiH) officials after reportedly refusing to take charge of the national team for a friendly against
Iran
Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...
. Since Kodro's dismissal was seen by many fans as the latest in a series of problematic decisions by the much-maligned FA leadership, Blažević was thus, by proxy, not welcomed with open arms by certain sections of the public upon his arrival. With the national team in complete disarray and many players refusing to even answer call-ups by interim head coach
Denijal Pirić
Denijal Pirić (; born 27 September 1946) is a Bosnian former football manager and player.
Club career
Born in the small mining town of Živinice, Pirić started playing football at local side Slaven. Former Slaven manager Vlatko Konjevod then l ...
, the appointment of Blažević was seen by many fans as FA's desperate makeshift solution designed to appease the public in the wake of the ongoing two-month fiasco by bringing in a fairly established name. However, combining his carefully crafted showman public persona with some decent initial results on the pitch, Blažević quickly managed to charm most of the public into getting behind him. By his own admission, Blažević had already been close to getting the Bosnia-Herzegovina national team job six years earlier in 2002, but ended up not getting hired due to influential FSBiH executive
Jusuf Pušina who considered Blažević unsuitable for the job because of the coach's association with the Croatian wartime president
Franjo Tuđman
Franjo Tuđman (; 14 May 1922 – 10 December 1999), also written as Franjo Tudjman, was a Croatian politician and historian. Following the country's independence from Yugoslavia, he became the first president of Croatia and served as p ...
and his
political party
A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in a particular country's elections. It is common for the members of a party to hold similar ideas about politics, and parties may promote specific political ideology ...
.
Staying true to all the staples of his coaching style from his previous places of employment, seventy-four-year-old Blažević quickly became the media favourite in Sarajevo. Always ready for a
sound bite
A sound bite or soundbite is a short clip of speech or music extracted from a longer piece of audio, often used to promote or exemplify the full length piece. In the context of journalism, a sound bite is characterized by a short phrase or sentence ...
, he gave bombastic interviews, cheekily delivering bold statements and sweeping promises.
Bosnia under Blažević has qualified for the
2010 FIFA World Cup
, image = 2010 FIFA World Cup.svg
, size = 200px
, caption = ''Ke Nako. (Tswana and Sotho for "It's time") Celebrate Africa's Humanity'It's time. Celebrate Africa's Humanity'' (English)''Dis tyd. Vier Afrika se mensd ...
qualifier playoffs, playing a game against Portugal.
In Lisbon, Portugal, Bosnia lost 1–0, with a goal scored by
Bruno Alves
Bruno Eduardo Regufe Alves (; born 27 November 1981) is a Portuguese former footballer who played as a central defender, currently being sporting director of Super League Greece club AEK Athens.
He began and spent most of his professional ...
. In Zenica, Bosnia lost 1–0 against Portugal, with a goal scored by
Raul Meireles
Raul José Trindade Meireles (; born 17 March 1983) is a Portuguese former footballer who played as a midfielder.
After starting out at Boavista, he signed with Porto in 2004, going on to appear in 198 official games and win ten major trophies ...
. He was appointed as manager to the
Bosnia-Herzegovina team on 10 July 2008
and announced on 11 December 2009 his demission. His dismissal was preceded by criticism from Bosnian fans and journalists following Blažević's attack on fan-favorite
Zvjezdan Misimović
Zvjezdan Misimović (, ; born 5 June 1982) is a Bosnian former professional footballer who most notably played for Bayern Munich, VfL Wolfsburg, Galatasaray, Dynamo Moscow, and Beijing Renhe as an attacking midfielder. Misimović is the fourth m ...
, blaming him for the defeat against Portugal.
Shanghai Shenhua
After his recession as head coach of the
Bosnia and Herzegovina national football team
The Bosnia and Herzegovina national football team ( bs, Nogometna/Fudbalska reprezentacija Bosne i Hercegovine; sr, Фудбалска репрезентација Боснe и Херцеговинe, Fudbalska reprezentacija Bosne i Hercegovi ...
signed one day later on 12 December 2009 for
Shanghai Shenhua
Shanghai Shenhua F.C. () is a Chinese professional football club that participates in the Chinese Super League under license from the Chinese Football Association (CFA). The term ''shen hua'' literally translates as "the Flower of Shanghai" in ...
. He finished the
2010 Chinese Super League season in a high third-place position qualifying for the
AFC Champions League
The AFC Champions League (abbreviated as ACL) is an annual continental club football competition organised by the Asian Football Confederation, and contested by Asia's top-division football clubs. It is the most prestigious club competition ...
.
China Olympic
He was appointed manager of the
Chinese Olympic team on 30 November 2010. He was resigned from his position in June 2011 after failed to qualified to the
2012 Summer Olympics
The 2012 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012) was an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...
.
Mes Kerman
On 28 August 2011,
Iran Pro League
The Persian Gulf Pro League ( fa, لیگ برتر خلیج فارس, ''Lig-e Bartar-e Xalij-e Fârs''), formerly known as the Iran Pro League ( fa, links=no, لیگ برتر ایران, ''Lig-e bartar-e Irân''), is the highest division of profe ...
side
Mes Kerman
Mes Kerman Football Club ( fa, باشگاه فوتبال صنعت مس کرمان, ''Bashgah-e Futbal-e Sân't-e Mes Kârman'') is an Iranian professional association football, football team based in Kerman, Iran.
They were promoted to Iran's top ...
announced that they will sign a contract with Blažević to replace
Samad Marfavi
Abdolsamad Marfavi ( fa, صمد مرفاوی , born May 18, 1964 in Khorramshahr, Iran) is an Iranian football coach and former player.
Club career
He played the majority of his playing career for IPL giants Esteghlal.
International career
...
who had resigned two days earlier. On 31 August 2011, he returned to
Iran
Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...
after ten years and signed a one-year contract with Mes. On 9 September 2011, his side plays a match against
Damash Gilan
Sport Club Damash Gilan ( fa, باشگاه ورزشی داماش گیلان, ''Bashgah-e Vârzeshi-ye Damash Gilân''), commonly known as Damash Gilan, also spelled Damash Guilan, is an Iranian football club based in Rasht, Gilan, that competes ...
with a 1–1 draw. He was started his career in the club successfully, but after the weeks, Mes returned to the relegation zone. He was sacked as club's head coach on 14 February 2012 and was appointed as technical director of the club.
NK Zagreb
In November 2012 he returned to NK Zagreb to help the club stay in the
Prva HNL
The Hrvatska nogometna liga () ( en, Croatian football league), also known as HNL or for sponsorship reasons the SuperSport HNL, is the top Croatian professional football league competition, established in 1992. Previously, it was called Prva H ...
since they were in the relegation zone. In the beginning he started to have decent results like defeating
Dinamo Zagreb
Građanski nogometni klub Dinamo Zagreb ( en, Dinamo Zagreb Citizens' Football Club, link=yes, italics=yes), commonly referred to as GNK Dinamo Zagreb or simply Dinamo Zagreb (), is a Croatian professional football club based in Zagreb. Dinamo ...
on home ground but later his team started to decline in results. In December 2012 he almost left the club because he had a serious argument with the NK Zagreb chairman but he decidet to stay. In May 2013 after NK Zagreb failed to secure a place in the
Prva HNL
The Hrvatska nogometna liga () ( en, Croatian football league), also known as HNL or for sponsorship reasons the SuperSport HNL, is the top Croatian professional football league competition, established in 1992. Previously, it was called Prva H ...
and finished at the bottom of the league he announced his retirement from professional football at the end of the season.
Sloboda Tuzla
In January 2014, after refusing to take over the
Croatian Second Football League
The Druga nogometna liga ( eng, Second football league), commonly Druga NL or 2. NL) is the third tier of the football league system. The league was established in 1991 following the dissolution of the Yugoslav League. It is operated by the Cro ...
club
NK Solin
NK Solin is a Croatian football club based in the town of Solin, near Split, playing in the 2. HNL, the Croatian second division.
History
Arguably the team's greatest success was winning the 1980–81 Croatian league, which earned Solin promot ...
, Blažević signed with the Bosnian
Sloboda Tuzla playing in the
second level Bosnian League. He took over the club while it was second on the league table and agreed to lead the club until the end of the season with the goal to reach the
top level Bosnian league, He succeeded, with Sloboda winning 13 and drawing 1 of his 15 matches in charge to win the First League of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina with a record total of 71 points from their 30 league games in the season.
Zadar
On 2 September 2014, after
Sloboda Tuzla, he was named the manager of
Croatian First Football League
The Hrvatska nogometna liga () ( en, Croatian football league), also known as HNL or for sponsorship reasons the SuperSport HNL, is the top Croatian professional football (soccer), football league competition, established in 1992. Previously, i ...
club
NK Zadar
Nogometni klub Zadar ( en, Football Club Zadar), commonly referred to as NK Zadar or simply Zadar, was a Croatian football club based in Zadar, a city on the Adriatic coast, best known for playing in the top flight of Croatian football for alm ...
, but he parted ways with the club and finished his coaching career on 2 January 2015.
Playing statistics
*Incomplete
Managerial statistics
Club statistics
: *Dates of first and last games under Blažević; not dates of official appointments
National teams statistics
Personal life
Blažević married Zdenka Đorđević in 1962. The couple have three children and five grandchildren.
Blažević is a
Bosnian Croat
The Croats of Bosnia and Herzegovina (), often referred to as Bosnian Croats () or Herzegovinian Croats () are the third most populous ethnic groups in Bosnia and Herzegovina, ethnic group in the country after Bosniaks and Serbs of Bosnia and H ...
. Apart from Croatian, he also holds Swiss citizenship.
Political engagement
Ćiro is an admirer of
Franjo Tuđman
Franjo Tuđman (; 14 May 1922 – 10 December 1999), also written as Franjo Tudjman, was a Croatian politician and historian. Following the country's independence from Yugoslavia, he became the first president of Croatia and served as p ...
with whom he maintained a friendship as well. Ćiro was even a member of late Croatian president Tuđman's party
HDZ
The Croatian Democratic Union ( hr, Hrvatska demokratska zajednica, lit=Croatian Democratic Community, HDZ) is the major conservative, centre-right political party in Croatia. It is one of the two major contemporary political parties in Cro ...
, but he publicly disagreed with his successor, the pro-
European
European, or Europeans, or Europeneans, may refer to:
In general
* ''European'', an adjective referring to something of, from, or related to Europe
** Ethnic groups in Europe
** Demographics of Europe
** European cuisine, the cuisines of Europe ...
HDZ leader
Ivo Sanader
Ivo Sanader (born 8 June 1953) is a former Croatian politician who served as Prime Minister of Croatia from 2003 to 2009.
He is to date the second longest-serving prime minister since independence, holding the office for over five and a half yea ...
. Because of this, Ćiro left the party in 2000 shortly after Tuđman's death, and then decided to run for
President of Croatia
The president of Croatia, officially the President of the Republic of Croatia ( hr, Predsjednik Republike Hrvatske), is the head of state, commander-in-chief of the military and chief representative of the Republic of Croatia both within the ...
as an independent candidate.
Polls predicting the
2005 presidential election results usually gave him 1–2% of the vote. In the end he received 17,847 votes (0.80%) and was eliminated in the first round of the election.
Following the presidential elections debacle he quit politics, until he appeared once again four years later at the
2009 Zagreb local elections where he successfully ran as HDZ candidate for the city council. He claimed that prime minister
Ivo Sanader
Ivo Sanader (born 8 June 1953) is a former Croatian politician who served as Prime Minister of Croatia from 2003 to 2009.
He is to date the second longest-serving prime minister since independence, holding the office for over five and a half yea ...
had talked him into re-joining the party and running for office. He was at the time the oldest serving member of the
Zagreb City Council and a member of the city board for naming streets and squares.
During
World War II in Yugoslavia
World War II in the Kingdom of Yugoslavia began on 6 April 1941, when the country was swiftly conquered by Axis forces and partitioned between Germany, Italy, Hungary, Bulgaria and their client regimes. Shortly after Germany attacked the US ...
, Blažević's two brothers, Anto and Joso, were members of the
Ustaše
The Ustaše (), also known by anglicised versions Ustasha or Ustashe, was a Croats, Croatian Fascism, fascist and ultranationalism, ultranationalist organization active, as one organization, between 1929 and 1945, formally known as the Ustaš ...
, a
fascist
Fascism is a far-right, Authoritarianism, authoritarian, ultranationalism, ultra-nationalist political Political ideology, ideology and Political movement, movement,: "extreme militaristic nationalism, contempt for electoral democracy and pol ...
movement which ruled Croatia at the time. They were both killed in combat, aged seventeen. Speaking of his brothers, Blažević stated: "I will never try to justify what they did, just like my father never tried to justify it. No normal person can support that which goes against humanity and civilised behaviour".
Controversy
Robert Prosinečki
At the end of the
1986–87 season at
Dinamo Zagreb
Građanski nogometni klub Dinamo Zagreb ( en, Dinamo Zagreb Citizens' Football Club, link=yes, italics=yes), commonly referred to as GNK Dinamo Zagreb or simply Dinamo Zagreb (), is a Croatian professional football club based in Zagreb. Dinamo ...
, Blažević sent eighteen-year-old prospect
Robert Prosinečki
Robert Prosinečki (; born 12 January 1969) is a Croatian professional football manager and former player who played as a midfielder.
Early in his career, he was part of the Red Star Belgrade team that won three Yugoslav First League titles and ...
away from the club, famously stating he "would eat his coaching diploma if Prosinečki ever became a real
ualityfootball player". In the summer of 1987, Prosinečki moved to Yugoslav First League rivals
Red Star Belgrade
Fudbalski klub Crvena zvezda ( sr-Cyrl, Фудбалски клуб Црвена звезда, lit=Red Star Football Club, ), commonly known as Red Star Belgrade in English-language media, is a Serbian professional football club based in Bel ...
where he would go on to develop into one of the best players in Yugoslavia, winning
three league titles, one
cup trophy, and the
European Cup
The UEFA Champions League (abbreviated as UCL, or sometimes, UEFA CL) is an annual club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) and contested by top-division European clubs, deciding the competit ...
title over the course of the following four years followed by a prominent transfer to
Real Madrid
Real Madrid Club de Fútbol (, meaning ''Royal Madrid Football Club''), commonly referred to as Real Madrid, is a Spanish professional football club based in Madrid.
Founded in 1902 as Madrid Football Club, the club has traditionally wor ...
and later
Barcelona
Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within ci ...
.
During his head coaching tenure with
Croatia
, image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg
, image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg
, anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, capit ...
, Blažević frequently called up Prosinečki as the player became a crucial part of the team and the two seemingly mended fences.
Their ambivalent relationship took a turn for the worse again at Croatia's
1998 FIFA World Cup
The 1998 FIFA World Cup was the 16th FIFA World Cup, the football world championship for men's national teams. The finals tournament was held in France from 10 June to 12 July 1998. The country was chosen as the host nation by FIFA for the ...
semi-final match against
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
when Blažević did not let twenty-nine-year-old Prosinečki enter the contest until the 89th minute with Croatia down 1–2 after leading at the start of the second half and being tied until the 70th minute. Many sports journalists and supporters have claimed that
Croatia
, image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg
, image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg
, anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, capit ...
would have reached the final had Prosinečki been given meaningful playing time in the match. Blažević has since claimed that Prosinečki "feigned picking up an injury" during training the day before the match. Prosinečki commented on the match in 2014 by saying: "We are on good terms today, I appreciate him
laževićbecause he is unique. A man like him is born once in a lifetime, that's for sure. He has his flaws just like we all have, but he has his virtues too. For some reason, he always had problems with me. Had I played the match against France for at least half an hour I believe I would have, at the very least, been able to do something
ositive Maybe we could have been champions, I don't know! I'm not angry, that would not be an accurate description of my feelings
n this Let's just say that I think of it as his mistake that he has to deal with."
Affaire VA-OM
On 20 October 1995 at
Geneva Airport
Geneva Airport ,, german: Flughafen Genf, it, Aeroporto di Ginevra, rm, Eroport de Genevra formerly and still unofficially known as Cointrin Airport, is the international airport of Geneva, the second most populous city in Switzerland. It i ...
, while waiting to board a flight to
Brussels
Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...
, Blažević was taken into custody by the
French financial police on match-fixing and corruption accusations stemming from his time in
Nantes
Nantes (, , ; Gallo: or ; ) is a city in Loire-Atlantique on the Loire, from the Atlantic coast. The city is the sixth largest in France, with a population of 314,138 in Nantes proper and a metropolitan area of nearly 1 million inhabita ...
.
The arrest occurred as part of a wide-ranging football bribery scandal in France, known in the country as
Affaire VA-OM, and was based on former
Olympique Marseille
Olympique de Marseille (, ; oc, Olimpic de Marselha, ), also known simply as Marseille or by the abbreviation OM (, ), is a French professional men's football club based in Marseille, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur. Founded in 1899, the club pl ...
director
Jean-Pierre Bernès' July 1995 testimony, claiming that
FC Nantes
Football Club de Nantes (; Gallo: ''Naunnt''), commonly referred to as FC Nantes or simply Nantes (), is a French professional football club based in Nantes in Pays de la Loire. The club was founded on 21 April 1943, during World War II, a ...
head coach Blažević took a
₣420,000 bribe to fix the
Marseille
Marseille ( , , ; also spelled in English as Marseilles; oc, Marselha ) is the prefecture of the French department of Bouches-du-Rhône and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the camargue region of southern Franc ...
vs.
Nantes
Nantes (, , ; Gallo: or ; ) is a city in Loire-Atlantique on the Loire, from the Atlantic coast. The city is the sixth largest in France, with a population of 314,138 in Nantes proper and a metropolitan area of nearly 1 million inhabita ...
French Division 1 league match on 25 November 1989 that ended in a 0–0 draw.
Blažević was released from
Luynes Prison on 6 November 1995 on a ₣100,000 bail and was not called up again after giving his statement.
Referee incident
After his first match as manager of
Osijek
Osijek () is the fourth-largest city in Croatia, with a population of 96,848 in 2021. It is the largest city and the economic and cultural centre of the eastern Croatian region of Slavonia, as well as the administrative centre of Osijek-Baranja ...
on 6 March 2002 Blažević lost to
Dinamo Zagreb
Građanski nogometni klub Dinamo Zagreb ( en, Dinamo Zagreb Citizens' Football Club, link=yes, italics=yes), commonly referred to as GNK Dinamo Zagreb or simply Dinamo Zagreb (), is a Croatian professional football club based in Zagreb. Dinamo ...
. After the match he was accused of verbal abuse and assaulting the referee Ivan Novak.
Blažević was found guilty by disciplinary judge Krešimir Vlajčević and fined 6000kn and got a three-month suspension.
Filmography
Film
Television
Music videos
Source
Miroslav Blazevic IMDb
Honours
Player
Lokomotiva Zagreb
*
Yugoslav Second League
Yugoslav or Yugoslavian may refer to:
* Yugoslavia, or any of the three historic states carrying that name:
** Kingdom of Yugoslavia, a European monarchy which existed 1918–1945 (officially called "Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes" 1918–1 ...
: 1955–56
Sarajevo
*
Yugoslav Second League
Yugoslav or Yugoslavian may refer to:
* Yugoslavia, or any of the three historic states carrying that name:
** Kingdom of Yugoslavia, a European monarchy which existed 1918–1945 (officially called "Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes" 1918–1 ...
: 1957–58
Sion
*
Swiss Cup
The Swiss Cup (; ; ; ) is a football cup tournament that has been organised annually since 1925–26 by the Swiss Football Association. Since 1999 the winner earns the chance to qualify for the UEFA Europa League or the UEFA Europa Conference L ...
: 1965
Manager
Vevey
*
1. Liga: 1969–70
Sion
*
Swiss Cup
The Swiss Cup (; ; ; ) is a football cup tournament that has been organised annually since 1925–26 by the Swiss Football Association. Since 1999 the winner earns the chance to qualify for the UEFA Europa League or the UEFA Europa Conference L ...
: 1974
Dinamo Zagreb
*
Yugoslav First League
The Yugoslav First Federal Football League ( Serbian: Прва савезна лига у фудбалу / ''Prva savezna liga u fudbalu'', hr, Prva savezna liga u nogometu, sl, Prva zvezna nogometna liga, mk, Прва сојузна лига, ...
:
1981–82
*
Yugoslav Cup
The Yugoslav Cup ( hr, Pokal Jugoslavije; sr, Куп Југославије; sl, Pokal Jugoslavije, mk, Куп на Југославија), officially known between 1923 and 1940 as the King Alexander Cup ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, Kup kralja Aleksandra, ...
:
1982–83
*
Prva HNL
The Hrvatska nogometna liga () ( en, Croatian football league), also known as HNL or for sponsorship reasons the SuperSport HNL, is the top Croatian professional football league competition, established in 1992. Previously, it was called Prva H ...
:
1992–93,
2002–03
*
Croatian Cup:
1993–94
*
Croatian Super Cup
The Croatian Football Super Cup is a football match between the winners of the Croatian national top league and football cup. The Super Cup is always held at the beginning of a new football season, and is only held when different clubs win the t ...
: 2002
Grasshopper
*
Swiss Super League
The Swiss Super League (known as the Credit Suisse Super League for sponsorship reasons) is a Swiss professional league in the top tier of the Swiss football league system and has been played in its current format since the 2003–04 season ...
:
1983–84
Hajduk Split
*
Croatian Super Cup
The Croatian Football Super Cup is a football match between the winners of the Croatian national top league and football cup. The Super Cup is always held at the beginning of a new football season, and is only held when different clubs win the t ...
:
2005
File:2005 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf of Mexico; the Funeral of Pope John Paul II is held in Vatican City; "Me at the zoo", the first video ever to be uploaded to YouTube; Eris was discovered in ...
Sloboda Tuzla
*
First League of FBiH:
2013–14
Croatia
*
FIFA World Cup
The FIFA World Cup, often simply called the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of the ' ( FIFA), the sport's global governing body. The tournament ha ...
third place:
1998
1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''.
Events January
* January 6 – The '' Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for frozen water, in soil in permanently ...
Individual
*
Franjo Bučar State Award for Sport Franjo Bučar State Award for Sport ( hr, Državna nagrada za šport "Franjo Bučar") is the highest recognition that Republic of Croatia gives for extraordinary achievements and contributions of remarkable meaning for the development of sport in Cr ...
: 1998 (two awards), 2007
*
Bosnia and Herzegovina Manager of the Year:
2009
File:2009 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The vertical stabilizer of Air France Flight 447 is pulled out from the Atlantic Ocean; Barack Obama becomes the first African American to become President of the United States; 2009 Iran ...
Orders
*
Order of Danica Hrvatska with face of Franjo Bučar (1995)
*
Order of Duke Branimir with Necklace (1998)
References
External links
Miroslav Blaževićat zagreb.hr
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Blazevic, Miroslav
1935 births
Living people
People from Travnik
Croats of Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina emigrants to Croatia
Association football midfielders
Association football wingers
Yugoslav footballers
GNK Dinamo Zagreb players
NK Lokomotiva Zagreb players
FK Sarajevo players
HNK Rijeka players
FC Sion players
Yugoslav expatriate footballers
Expatriate footballers in Switzerland
Yugoslav expatriate sportspeople in Switzerland
Expatriate footballers in France
Yugoslav expatriate sportspeople in France
Yugoslav football managers
UEFA Euro 1996 managers
1998 FIFA World Cup managers
FC Vevey United managers
FC Sion managers
Switzerland national football team managers
FC Lausanne-Sport managers
HNK Rijeka managers
GNK Dinamo Zagreb managers
Grasshopper Club Zürich managers
FC Prishtina managers
FC Nantes managers
PAOK FC managers
Croatian football managers
Croatia national football team managers
Iran national football team managers
NK Osijek managers
ND Mura 05 managers
NK Varaždin managers
HNK Hajduk Split managers
Neuchâtel Xamax FCS managers
NK Zagreb managers
Bosnia and Herzegovina national football team managers
Shanghai Shenhua F.C. managers
Sanat Mes Kerman F.C. managers
FK Sloboda Tuzla managers
NK Zadar managers
Swiss Super League managers
Yugoslav First League managers
Ligue 1 managers
Super League Greece managers
Croatian Football League managers
Chinese Super League managers
Persian Gulf Pro League managers
Premier League of Bosnia and Herzegovina managers
Yugoslav expatriate football managers
Expatriate football managers in Switzerland
Expatriate football managers in France
Expatriate football managers in Greece
Yugoslav expatriate sportspeople in Greece
Croatian expatriate football managers
Expatriate football managers in Iran
Croatian expatriate sportspeople in Iran
Expatriate football managers in Slovenia
Croatian expatriate sportspeople in Slovenia
Croatian expatriate sportspeople in Switzerland
Expatriate football managers in China
Croatian expatriate sportspeople in China
Expatriate football managers in Bosnia and Herzegovina
Croatian expatriate sportspeople in Bosnia and Herzegovina
Croatian Democratic Union politicians
Candidates for President of Croatia
Franjo Bučar Award winners