Albert Nađ (, , ; born 29 October 1974) is a Serbian professional
football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...
manager and a former player who played as a
defensive midfielder
In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. ...
. At international level, Nađ represented
Serbia and Montenegro
The State Union of Serbia and Montenegro or simply Serbia and Montenegro, known until 2003 as the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and commonly referred to as FR Yugoslavia (FRY) or simply Yugoslavia, was a country in Southeast Europe locate ...
at
UEFA 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 ...
(as FR Yugoslavia) and the
2006 FIFA World Cup
The 2006 FIFA World Cup was the 18th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international Association football, football world championship tournament. It was held from 9 June to 9 July 2006 in Germany, which had won the right to FIFA World Cup hosts ...
and earned a total of 45 caps, scoring 3 goals.
Club career
Nađ was born in
Zemun
Zemun ( sr-cyrl, Земун, ; ) is a Subdivisions of Belgrade, municipality in the city of Belgrade, Serbia. Zemun was a separate town that was absorbed into Belgrade in 1934. It lies on the right bank of the Danube river, upstream from downtown ...
to a
Hungarian father and a Serbian mother.
He started out at his local club
Teleoptik. He later joined the youth system of
Partizan, making his senior debut in the title-winning
1992–93 campaign. Subsequently, Nađ was one of the team's most regular players in the
1993–94 season, as they won
the double. He spent another two years in the country, collecting one more
domestic league title in
1996
1996 was designated as:
* International Year for the Eradication of Poverty
Events January
* January 8 – A Zairean cargo plane crashes into a crowded market in the center of the capital city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo ...
, while captaining the side. In total, Nađ made 111 league appearances and scored eight goals for Partizan under manager
Ljubiša Tumbaković
Ljubiša Tumbaković (, ; born 2 September 1952) is a Serbian professional football manager.
He is the most successful coach in the history of Serbian powerhouse Partizan which he led to six national championship titles and three national cup w ...
between 1992 and 1996.
In July 1996, Nađ moved abroad to Spain and signed with
Betis. He made 30 league appearances in his
debut season in
La Liga
The Campeonato Nacional de Liga de Primera División, commonly known as the Primera División or La Liga, and officially known as LaLiga EA Sports for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Spain and the highest ...
, as the club finished in fourth place. Nađ stayed at Betis for one more season, before moving on loan to
Oviedo
Oviedo () or Uviéu (Asturian language, Asturian: ) is the capital city of the Principality of Asturias in northern Spain and the administrative and commercial centre of the region. It is also the name of the municipality that contains th ...
in the summer of 1998. He was eventually acquired by Oviedo in July 1999. However, Nađ made only 16 appearances in the 1999–2000 season. He was later loaned to
Segunda División
The Campeonato Nacional de Liga de Segunda División, commonly known as Segunda División or La Liga 2, and officially known as LaLiga HyperMotion for sponsorship reasons, is the men's second professional association football division of the Spa ...
club
Elche
Elche (, ; , , , ; officially: ''/'' ) is a city and Municipalities of Spain, municipality of Spain, belonging to the province of Alicante, in the Valencian Community. According to 2024's data, Elche has a population of 234,800 inhabitants, until the end of the
2000–01 campaign. After returning from loan, Nađ spent another season with Oviedo, before leaving the club due to unpaid wages in August 2002.
In September 2002, Nađ officially returned to his parent club Partizan, penning a one-year deal. He won the national league in his
comeback season. In early 2004, Nađ signed an 18-month extension to his contract with the club. He was also a member of the squad that won the title with an unbeaten record in
2005
2005 was designated as the International Year for Sport and Physical Education and the International Year of Microcredit. The beginning of 2005 also marked the end of the International Decade of the World's Indigenous Peoples, Internationa ...
. Shortly after, Nađ signed a three-year extension to his contract with Partizan. He eventually left the club by mutual agreement in July 2007.
In August 2007, Nađ went abroad again and joined Russian side
Rostov, together with
Ivica Kralj
Ivica Kralj (, ; born 26 March 1973) is a Montenegrin former professional association football, footballer who played as a goalkeeper (association football), goalkeeper.
During his playing career, Kralj was best known for his time at FK Partizan ...
. They failed to help the club avoid relegation from the
Premier League
The Premier League is a professional association football league in England and the highest level of the English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Football Lea ...
, finishing bottom of the table. Eventually, Nađ left Rostov in December 2007, alongside Kralj and some other players.
In January 2008, Nađ signed a two-and-a-half-year contract with
Čukarički. He played his last career match for Čukarički in the final league fixture of the
2008–09 season, against his parent club Partizan on 30 May 2009. After being cheered by the
Grobari in the 68th minute, Nađ responded by lifting his Čukarički jersey to reveal Partizan's jersey underneath. He was substituted in the 76 minute, eventually ending his active playing career.
International career
Nađ made his international debut for
FR Yugoslavia
The State Union of Serbia and Montenegro or simply Serbia and Montenegro, known until 2003 as the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and commonly referred to as FR Yugoslavia (FRY) or simply Yugoslavia, was a country in Southeast Europe locate ...
in a 0–2 loss to
Brazil
Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...
on 23 December 1994. He scored his first national team goal in his second game, a 3–1 win over
Hong Kong
Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...
on 31 January 1995. After missing out on the
1998 FIFA World Cup
The 1998 FIFA World Cup was the 16th FIFA World Cup, the Association football, football world championship for List of men's national association football teams, men's national teams. The finals tournament was held in France from 10 June to 1 ...
, Nađ was named by
Vujadin Boškov
Vujadin Boškov ( sr-cyr, Вујадин Бошков, ; 16 May 1931 – 27 April 2014) was a Serbian association football, football player and manager (association football), manager.
A midfielder, he played 57 matches for the Yugoslavia nation ...
in the country's final
UEFA 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 ...
squad. He made two appearances in the group stage of the tournament, as they were eventually eliminated in the quarter-finals.
Almost four years later, Nađ made a comeback to the national team, playing the full 90 minutes in a 1–1 friendly draw against
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland ( ; ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, part of the United Kingdom in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It has been #Descriptions, variously described as a country, province or region. Northern Ireland shares Repub ...
on 28 April 2004. He was also selected by
Ilija Petković
Ilija Petković ( sr-Cyrl, Илија Петковић, ; 22 September 1945 – 27 June 2020) was a Serbian footballer and manager.
Petković was capped 43 times for Yugoslavia, participating in the 1968 European Football Championship, and in ...
to represent
Serbia and Montenegro
The State Union of Serbia and Montenegro or simply Serbia and Montenegro, known until 2003 as the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and commonly referred to as FR Yugoslavia (FRY) or simply Yugoslavia, was a country in Southeast Europe locate ...
at the
2006 FIFA World Cup
The 2006 FIFA World Cup was the 18th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international Association football, football world championship tournament. It was held from 9 June to 9 July 2006 in Germany, which had won the right to FIFA World Cup hosts ...
. Subsequently, Nađ made two appearances in
Group C
Group C was a category of sports car racing introduced by the FIA in 1982 and continuing until 1993, with ''Group A'' for Touring car racing, touring cars and ''Group B'' for Grand tourer, GTs.
It was designed to replace both Group 5 (motorspor ...
, including his last game for the national team on 21 June 2006. He came off the bench early into the match and received two yellow cards by the end of the first half of an eventual 2–3 loss to
Ivory Coast
Ivory Coast, also known as Côte d'Ivoire and officially the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire, is a country on the southern coast of West Africa. Its capital city of Yamoussoukro is located in the centre of the country, while its largest List of ci ...
.
Post-playing career
In December 2009, Nađ was named as the sports coordinator at his parent club Partizan. He was also responsible for the club's transfer windows between 2010 and 2012. In May 2013, Nađ was officially appointed as
sporting director
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 ...
of Partizan. He left the position at the end of his contract in May 2014.
In early 2017, Nađ became sporting director of
Serbian League Belgrade
Serbian League Belgrade ( Serbian: Српска лига Београд / Srpska liga Beograd) is one of four sections of the Serbian League, the third tier of professional football in Serbia. The other three sections are Serbian League East, Se ...
side
Rakovica while simultaneously taking over the managerial role at the club.
In August 2019, Nađ returned to Partizan and joined
Savo Milošević
Savo Milošević ( sr-Cyrl, Саво Милошевић, ; born 2 September 1973) is a Serbian professional Manager (association football), football manager and former Football player, player.
A former Forward (association football), forward, he ...
's staff as an assistant. He performed the role for less than three months, before replacing
Žarko Lazetić
Žarko Lazetić (; born 22 February 1982) is a Serbian football manager and former player who is currently manager of Israeli Premier League club Maccabi Tel Aviv.
Playing career
Throughout his career, Lazetić played as a forward. In Decemb ...
as manager of their affiliated club
Teleoptik.
In August 2022, he once again became the assistant coach of FK Partizan as
Gordan Petrić
Gordan Petrić (; born 30 July 1969) is a Serbian football manager and former player.
Club career
Petrić made his senior debut with OFK Beograd in the 1985–86 season, as the club suffered relegation from the top flight of Yugoslav football. ...
became head coach.
He remained in this position until 29 April 2024 when, with five matches left before the end of the
2023–24 season, he was appointed as head coach of Partizan, replacing the outgoing
Igor Duljaj
Igor Duljaj (; born 29 October 1979) is a Serbian retired footballer who played as a defensive midfielder. He is best remembered for his tenacious playing style and stamina.
During his footballing career, Duljaj played with only three clubs, nam ...
. He was sacked on 7 June 2024.
Career statistics
Club
International
Managerial statistics
''As of 7 June 2024 ''
Honours
;Partizan
*
First League of FR Yugoslavia
The First League of Serbia and Montenegro () was the top football league of Serbia and Montenegro, before the country's dissolution in 2006. The league was formed as the First League of FR Yugoslavia following the breakup of Yugoslavia in 1992, ef ...
:
1992–93,
1993–94,
1995–96,
2002–03,
2004–05
*
FR Yugoslavia Cup
The Serbia and Montenegro Cup was an association football knockout cup tournament of Serbia and Montenegro played between 1992 and 2006, after which Serbia and Montenegro became separate nations. The competition was the continuation of the old ...
:
1993–94
;Betis
*
Copa del Rey
The , commonly known as , or (in English) the Spanish Cup or King's Cup, and formerly known as Copa del Presidente de la República (1932–1936) and Copa del Generalísimo (1939–1976), is an annual knockout football competition in Spanis ...
: Runner-up
1996–97
References
External links
*
*
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Nad, Albert
1974 births
Living people
People from Zemun
Footballers from Belgrade
Serbian people of Hungarian descent
Men's association football midfielders
Yugoslav men's footballers
Yugoslavia men's under-21 international footballers
Serbia and Montenegro men's footballers
Serbia and Montenegro men's international footballers
UEFA Euro 2000 players
2006 FIFA World Cup players
Serbian men's footballers
FK Partizan players
Real Betis players
Real Oviedo players
Elche CF players
FC Rostov players
FK Čukarički players
First League of Serbia and Montenegro players
La Liga players
Segunda División players
Russian Premier League players
Serbian SuperLiga players
Serbia and Montenegro expatriate men's footballers
Expatriate men's footballers in Spain
Serbia and Montenegro expatriate sportspeople in Spain
Serbian expatriate men's footballers
Expatriate men's footballers in Russia
Serbian expatriate sportspeople in Russia
Serbian football managers
FK Teleoptik managers
FK Partizan managers
Serbian SuperLiga managers
FK Partizan non-playing staff
21st-century Serbian sportsmen