Mladen Krstajić ( sr-cyr, Младен Крстајић, ; born 4 March 1974) is a Serbian professional

football manager ''Football Manager'' (also known as ''Worldwide Soccer Manager'' in North America from 2004 to 2008) is a series of football management simulation video games developed by British developer Sports Interactive and published by Sega. The game bega ...

and former

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 is ...

who played as a

centre-back In the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield position whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring. Centre-backs are usually positioned in pairs, with one full-back on either s ...

. He represented

Serbia and Montenegro 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 of the Socialist Federal Republic of ...

at the

2006 FIFA World Cup The 2006 FIFA World Cup, also branded as Germany 2006, was the 18th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international football world championship tournament. It was held from 9 June to 9 July 2006 in Germany, which had won the right to host th ...

. From January 2015 until March 2020, Krstajić served the role of chairman of the board of

Bosnian Premier League The m:tel Premier League of Bosnia and Herzegovina ( bs, m:tel Premijer liga Bosne i Hercegovine / м:тел Премијер лига Босне и Херцеговине), also known as Liga 12, is the top tier football league in Bosnia and Herz ...

club Radnik Bijeljina. Krstajić became head coach of

Maccabi Tel Aviv Maccabi Tel Aviv ( he, מכבי תל אביב) is one of the largest sports clubs in Israel, and a part of the Maccabi association. Many sports clubs and teams in Tel Aviv are in association with Maccabi and compete in a variety of sports, such ...

in December 2021. He is the current manager of the

Bulgaria national football team The Bulgaria national football team ( bg, Български национален отбор по футбол, Bǎlgarski natsionalen otbor po futbol) represents Bulgaria in men's international football and is administered by the Bulgarian F ...

Club career

Early career

Krstajić was born and raised in Zenica,

SFR Yugoslavia The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, commonly referred to as SFR Yugoslavia or simply as Yugoslavia, was a country in Central and Southeast Europe. It emerged in 1945, following World War II, and lasted until 1992, with the breakup of Yu ...

, 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 ...

to a

Bosnian Serb The Serbs of Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sr-Cyrl, Срби у Босни и Херцеговини, Srbi u Bosni i Hercegovini) are one of the three constitutive nations (state-forming nations) of the country, predominantly residing in the politi ...

mother from

Bijeljina Bijeljina ( sr-cyrl, Бијељина) is a city and municipality in Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is the provincial center of Semberija, a geographic region in the country's northeast. Administratively, Bijeljina is part of the Republika Srpska ...

and a father from

Žabljak Žabljak (Serbian / Montenegrin: Жабљак, ) is a small town in northern Montenegro. It has a population of 1,723. Žabljak is the seat of Žabljak Municipality (2011 population: 3,569). The town is in the centre of the Durmitor mountain ...

Montenegro ) , image_map = Europe-Montenegro.svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Podgorica , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , official_languages = ...

. After playing in the youth teams of Čelik Zenica, Krstajić moved to

Kikinda Kikinda ( sr-Cyrl, Кикинда, ; hu, Nagykikinda) is a city and the administrative center of the North Banat District in Serbia . The city urban area has 38,069 inhabitants, while the city administrative area has 59,453 inhabitants. The ...

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 of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yu ...

, present day

Serbia Serbia (, ; Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia ( Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Basin and the Balkans. It shares land borders with Hu ...

in April 1992, following the breakout of the

Bosnian War The Bosnian War ( sh, Rat u Bosni i Hercegovini / Рат у Босни и Херцеговини) was an international armed conflict that took place in Bosnia and Herzegovina between 1992 and 1995. The war is commonly seen as having started ...

. He started playing with

Senta Senta ( sr-cyrl, Сента, ; Hungarian: ''Zenta'', ; Romanian: ''Zenta'') is a town and municipality located in the North Banat District of the autonomous province of Vojvodina, Serbia. It is situated on the bank of the Tisa river in the g ...

for six months. He then moved to OFK Kikinda, at that time a first league club. At some point of a successful career as a Serbian football player, there comes the time, to decide, whether one wants to play for Partizan or for

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 Be ...

, and Krstajić decided to take the move to Partizan in 1996. According to Krstajić himself, Red Star was interested in him, but as he comes from a family that cheers for Partizan, he decided to sign a contract with his favourite club. His four and a half years at Partizan were more than successful, winning the national championships three times (1996, 1997, 1999) and also the national cup in 1998.

Werder Bremen and Schalke 04

In 2000, Krstajić joined German

Bundesliga The Bundesliga (; ), sometimes referred to as the Fußball-Bundesliga () or 1. Bundesliga (), is a professional association football league in Germany. At the top of the German football league system, the Bundesliga is Germany's primary footb ...

club

Werder Bremen Sportverein Werder Bremen von 1899 e. V. (), commonly known as Werder Bremen (), Werder or simply Bremen, is a German professional sports club based in Bremen, Free Hanseatic City of Bremen. Founded on 4 February 1899, they are best known for the ...

who paid a DM 1.8 million (about €950,000) transfer fee to Partizan. At Werder Bremen he was initially deployed at

left-back In the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield position whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring. Centre-backs are usually positioned in pairs, with one full-back on either s ...

in his first season but became one of the best central defenders in the Bundesliga, winning the

double A double is a look-alike or doppelgänger; one person or being that resembles another. Double, The Double or Dubble may also refer to: Film and television * Double (filmmaking), someone who substitutes for the credited actor of a character * ...

of Bundesliga and

cup A cup is an open-top used to hold hot or cold liquids for pouring or drinking; while mainly used for drinking, it also can be used to store solids for pouring (e.g., sugar, flour, grains, salt). Cups may be made of glass, metal, china, cl ...

with Werder in 2004. In 2004 he joined

Schalke 04 Fußballclub Gelsenkirchen-Schalke 04 e. V., commonly known as FC Schalke 04 (), Schalke 04 (), or abbreviated as S04 (), is a professional German football and multi-sports club originally from the Schalke district of Gelsenkirchen, North Rhine ...

, where he was named the new captain on 17 March 2009.

Partizan

On 5 June 2009, Krstajić signed a two-year contract with his former club Partizan. In January 2010, after the departure of

Nenad Đorđević Nenad Đorđević ( sr-cyr, Ненад Ђорђевић; born 7 August 1979) is a Serbian former professional footballer who played as a defender. At international level, Đorđević represented Serbia and Montenegro at the 2006 FIFA World Cup. ...

, he was named the new Partizan captain. After two very successful seasons, Krstajić played his last professional match on 21 May 2011.

International career

Krstajić was a part of the Serbia and Montenegro national team "Famous Four" defence, which conceded just one goal during the qualifying for the

. The other members of the famous four were

Ivica Dragutinović Ivica Dragutinović (Serbian Cyrillic: Ивица Драгутиновић, ; born 13 November 1975) is a Serbian former professional footballer. Mainly a central defender, he could also operate as a defensive left back. After nearly one decade ...

Goran Gavrančić Goran Gavrančić (Serbian Cyrillic: Горан Гавранчић; born 2 August 1978) is a former Serbian professional footballer who played as a defender. He represented Serbia and Montenegro at the 2006 FIFA World Cup. Club career His care ...

and

Nemanja Vidić Nemanja Vidić ( sr-Cyrl, Немања Видић, ; born 21 October 1981) is a Serbian former professional footballer who played as a centre-back. He is best known for his time at Manchester United, was part of the Serbia national team, and ...

. Between 1999 and 2008 he made 58 international appearances scoring 2 goals. He represented three senior national sides:

(1992–2002; 20 appearances, 2 goals),

(2002–2006; 27 appearances), and

(2006–2008; 11 appearances).

Managerial career

Serbia

Krstajić began his managerial career as assistant coach of the Serbia national team for the 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifiers. In October 2017 after head coach

Slavoljub Muslin Slavoljub Muslin ( sr-Cyrl, Славољуб Муслин, ; born 15 June 1953) is a Serbian football manager and former player. Muslin began his head coaching career in 1988 and has since had stints in France, Morocco, Serbia, Bulgaria, Ukraine ...

's dismissal, Krstajić succeeded him as head coach of the Serbia national team, initially as

caretaker Caretaker may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * ''The Caretaker'' (film), a 1963 adaptation of the play ''The Caretaker'' * '' The Caretakers'', a 1963 American film set in a mental hospital * Caretaker, a character in the 1974 film '' ...

. Krstajić led the team on the Asian tour where Serbia defeated

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, most populous country, with a Population of China, population exceeding 1.4 billion, slig ...

(2–0) and drew with

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and sharing a Korean Demilitarized Zone, land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed ...

(1–1). In December, it was announced he would take on the role permanently and at least until the end of the

2018 FIFA World Cup The 2018 FIFA World Cup was the 21st FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for men's national football teams organized by FIFA. It took place in Russia from 14 June to 15 July 2018, after the country was awarded the hosting righ ...

. On 13 June 2019, Krstajić was sacked from the position after a dismal 5–0 loss in a UEFA Euro 2020 qualifier against

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 inva ...

TSC

Krstajić became head coach of

TSC TSC may refer to: Organizations * Technology Service Corporation, a US engineering company * Terrorist Screening Center, a division of the National Security Branch of the US Federal Bureau of Investigation * The Shopping Channel, a Canadian televi ...

in January 2021. He left the club in October.

Maccabi Tel Aviv

On 9 December 2021, Krstajić was appointed manager of

Israeli Premier League The Israeli Premier League ( he, ליגת העל, ''Ligat Ha`Al'', ), is a professional association football league which operates as the highest division of the Israeli Football League – the state's league of Israel. The league is contested b ...

club

Bulgaria

On 21 July 2022, Krstajić was named head coach of the Bulgaria national team until 2024.

Administrative career

Immediately after retiring from playing, Krstajić was appointed as the new

director of football A sporting director, or director of sport, is an executive management position in a sports club. The role is well known as a manager role for European football clubs, which are sometime also "sports clubs", offering many types of sports. The sport ...

of FK Partizan on 1 June 2011. During the mid-season break, Krstajić attacked club president Dragan Đurić through the media, following Đurić's claim that Krstajić and head coach

Aleksandar Stanojević Aleksandar Stanojević ( sr-Cyrl, Александар Станојевић, ; born 28 October 1973) is a Serbian professional football manager and former player. Playing career Stanojević started his playing career in Partizan youth squad. ...

were solely responsible for the unsuccessful campaign in UEFA competitions for the 2011–12 season. Krstajić stated that he and Stanojević did not have full control over the sale and acquisition of players during the summer transfer window, which affected the results on the field. On 26 December 2011, after less than six months as director of football, he was sacked. Before becoming a manager, Krstajić became the new chairman of the board of

club Radnik Bijeljina on 23 January 2015. During his time as club chairman, Radnik became a stable Bosnian Premier League club, finishing almost always in the top five or six. It won its first ever national and major trophy, the

Bosnian Cup The Bosnia and Herzegovina Football Cup ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Kup Bosne i Hercegovine, Куп Босне и Херцеговине) is a knock-out football competition contested annually by clubs from Bosnia and Herzegovina. The winner ...

in the 2015–16 season and thus qualified for its first ever UEFA competition, the 2016–17 UEFA Europa League qualifying rounds. In the 2018–19 Bosnian Premier League season, Radnik finished in fifth place, but as fourth placed Željezničar did not get an UEFA license to compete in the following season's

UEFA Europa League The UEFA Europa League (abbreviated as UEL, or sometimes, UEFA EL), formerly the UEFA Cup, is an annual football club competition organised since 1971 by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European football clubs. ...

, Radnik was qualified by default to the 2019–20 UEFA Europa League qualifying rounds for a second time in its history. On 27 December 2019, Krstajić unexpectedly decided to leave Radnik, stating that it was time for someone new to lead the club. He officially left the club on 28 March 2020, with Predrag Perković succeeding him as chairman.

Career statistics

Club

International

Managerial statistics

Honours

Player

Partizan *

Serbian SuperLiga The Serbian Super League ( sr, Супер лига Србије / Super liga Srbije), referred to as the Mozzart Bet Super League ( sr, Моцарт Бет Супер лига / Mozzart Bet Super liga) for sponsorship reasons, is a Serbian profes ...

: 1995–96, 1996–97, 1998–99, 2009–10,

2010–11 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1. ...

Serbian Cup The Serbian Cup ( Serbian: Куп Србије, Kup Srbije) is the national football cup of Serbia. The winner of the competition gets a spot in the UEFA Europa League qualifying round. From 2006 to 2010, the competition was known as the Lav Cup ...

: 1997–98,

Werder Bremen *

: 2003–04 *

DFB-Pokal The DFB-Pokal ( is a German knockout football cup competition held annually by the German Football Association (DFB). Sixty-four teams participate in the competition, including all clubs from the Bundesliga and the 2. Bundesliga. It is considered ...

: 2003–04 Schalke 04 *

DFB-Ligapokal The DFL-Ligapokal (, officially Premiere Ligapokal , previously DFB-Ligapokal ) or the ''German League Cup'' was a German football competition that took place before the start of the Bundesliga season, featuring the top five teams of the previous ...

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 discover ...

UEFA Intertoto Cup The UEFA Intertoto Cup (from la, Inter, 'between' + german: toto, ' betting pool'),Most precisely, from ( football pool); cf. often abbreviated and more known in the German-speaking world as UI Cup and originally called the International Fo ...

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight ...

Notes

References

External links

*
Mladen Krstajić
at reprezentacija.rs * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Krstajic, Mladen 1974 births Living people Sportspeople from Zenica Serbs of Bosnia and Herzegovina Serbian footballers Association football defenders Serbia and Montenegro international footballers Serbia international footballers Serbian people of Montenegrin descent 2006 FIFA World Cup players FK Senta players OFK Kikinda players FK Partizan players Serbian SuperLiga players SV Werder Bremen players FC Schalke 04 players Bundesliga players Serbia and Montenegro expatriate footballers Serbia and Montenegro footballers Serbian expatriate footballers Serbia and Montenegro expatriate sportspeople in Germany Expatriate footballers in Germany Serbian expatriate sportspeople in Germany FK Partizan non-playing staff Serbian football chairmen and investors Serbian football managers Serbia national football team managers FK TSC Bačka Topola managers 2018 FIFA World Cup managers Bulgaria national football team managers