Zoran Filipović

Zoran Filipović (Serbian Cyrillic: Зоран Филиповић, pronounced [zǒran filǐːpoʋitɕ, - fǐli-]; born 6 February 1953) is a former Montenegrin football coach and former player, best known for his playing stints with Red Star Belgrade and S.L. Benfica.

Zoran Filipović
Personal information
Full name Zoran Filipović
Date of birth (1953-02-06) 6 February 1953
Place of birth Titograd, FPR Yugoslavia
Height 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in)
Playing position(s) Striker
Club information
Current team
 Serbia
Youth career
Budućnost Titograd
1967–1970 Red Star Belgrade
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1970–1980 Red Star Belgrade 212 (88)
1980–1981 Club Brugge 21 (8)
1981–1984 Benfica 56 (26)
1984–1986 Boavista 49 (15)
Total 338 (137)
National team
1969–1970 Yugoslavia U20 6 (3)
1972–1973 Yugoslavia U21 2 (1)
1971–1977 Yugoslavia 13 (2)
Teams managed
1986–1988 Boavista (assistant)
1988–1993 Salgueiros
1993–1994 Beira-Mar
1994–1996 Benfica (assistant)
1995 Benfica (ad interim)
1997 Boavista
1997–1998 FR Yugoslavia (assistant)
1998 Vitoria Guimarães
1999 Sampdoria (assistant)
1999–2000 FR Yugoslavia (assistant)
2000 Panionios
2001–2003 Red Star Belgrade
2003–2004 Al-Shaab
2005–2007 Serbia and Montenegro (technical director)
2007–2010 Montenegro
2010 Ceahlăul Piatra Neamţ
2010–2011 Golden Arrows
2011–2012 Atyrau
2016– Serbia (assistant coach and head scout)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only

Playing career

Filipović, born 6 February 1953, in Titograd, SR Montenegro, FPR Yugoslavia, made his name in Yugoslavia as a potent striker with Red Star Belgrade, during more than ten seasons at the club (5 June 1969 to 29 June 1980). He played a total of 520 games for the club scoring 302 goals. He was the Yugoslav First League top scorer in 1976–77 season with 21 goals. He also still holds the club record for most goals in European competitions – scoring 28 goals for Red Star in European Cup, Cup Winners' Cup and UEFA Cup.

His first stop abroad was a season at Club Brugge in Belgium, scoring eight goals in 21 league matches. In the summer of 1981, 28-year-old Filipović joined the reigning Portuguese champions S.L. Benfica where over the following three seasons he scored 28 goals in 54 league matches. Zoran Filipović also guided the club Benfica to the 1983 UEFA Cup Final against R.S.C. Anderlecht, being the top scorer of that season's competition and scoring memorable goals for the Portuguese in the quarterfinal against AS Roma and in the semifinal against Universitatea Craiova. Filipović ended his career with Boavista FC (1984–1986) when he became the assistant coach at the same club.

On an international level, Zoran Filipović played 13 matches for the Yugoslav national team scoring 2 goals. His debut for Yugoslavia was at the age of 18, on 9 May 1971 against East Germany (1–2) in Leipzig. His last national team game came on 16 November 1977 against Greece (0–0) in Thessaloniki.

Coaching career

He got his first head coaching job at S.C. Salgueiros in 1988 and stayed with the club for five seasons. He orchestrated the club's most notable moments in history by becoming Second League champion in 1989–90 and achieving UEFA Cup participation through best placement in club's history immediately in the next season. In 1993, he moved to S.C. Beira-Mar where he coached for a season. In 1994, he returned to S.L. Benfica for a two-year spell where he was the assistant coach and interim head coach winning one Portuguese Cup in 1996, and participating in the UEFA Champions League. During 1997 he coached Boavista.

From mid-1990s Zoran Filipović was on the FR Yugoslavia national team coaching staff as an assistant to head coach Slobodan Santrač. He was part of Yugoslav coaching staff at the World Cup 1998, leaving the post together with Santrač right after the tournament. After joining as their head coach for a short spell, he left to work as part of Sampdoria coaching staff. Vujadin Boškov called him on to become his assistant during the second part of the 1998 season.

Zoran Filipović's next stop was Vitória S.C. in the Portuguese league.

However, Zoran Filipović re-joined the FR Yugoslavia national team in 1999 continuing his collaboration with Vujadin Boškov when he took over. Filipović was the assistant at the Euro 2000. Following Euro 2000, he briefly coached Panionios in Greece. In 2001 Zoran Filipović returned to coach Red Star Belgrade in Serbia until 2003 with which he won the 2001–02 FR Yugoslavia Cup title and is remembered for launching young players such as Nemanja Vidić, Boško Janković, Nikola Žigić, Aleksandar Luković amongst others. In 2003 Zoran Filipović went to the United Arab Emirates when coaching Al-Shaab with which he was defeated in the Cup finals. After the Emirates experience, he became the technical director of the Football Association of Serbia and Montenegro A and u21 squads participating in the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany and the 2006 U21 European Championship in Portugal.

On 1 February 2007 he was appointed the first coach of the newly created Montenegro national team. His first game in charge was a friendly against Hungary on 24 March 2007 where they won their debut match with 2–1. The record in the newly formed Montenegro national team was more than positive for a team rated always as underdogs – of a total of 23 matches played, 8 victories were achieved, 8 draws and 7 defeats. The FA president Dejan Savićević commented when Zoran Filipović's contract expired in January 2010 – "Filipović did an enormously good job. He formed a great group of players and worked with great enthusiasm." Zoran Filipović left the Balkan newcomers in an astonishing 73rd position in the FIFA ranking when he departed from this historical role. Only two months after leaving the helm of Montenegro national team he assumed a 3-month coaching job contract in Romanian club FC Ceahlăul Piatra Neamţ.

In July 2010 he was hired by South African club Golden Arrows from Durban. With only three months left in the championship and with relegation imminent, Zoran Filipović arrived in FC Atyrau to save the team from relegation. He stayed on to sign a one-year contract for season 2012.

In May 2016 it was announced by Serbia that Zoran Filipović will return to national team football in a new role.

Coaching statistics
Team From To Record
G W D L Win %
Red Star Belgrade 5 October 2001 June 2003 78 47 20 11 060.26
Montenegro 1 February 2007 January 2010 23 8 8 7 034.78
Total 101 55 28 18 054.46

Honours

Player
Red Star Belgrade
S.L. Benfica

Manager
S.L. Benfica (as an assistant)
S.C. Salgueiros
Red Star Belgrade

Individual

Trivia

Zoran Filipović still has the goal record in European competitions for Red Star Belgrade – 28 goals. Zoran Filipović is ranked the 3º Top goalscorer for Red Star – 502 games/302 goals. Zoran Filipović in season 1982–83 he contributed to Benfica's European good campaign – 12 games/8 goals (hat trick against AS Roma, and also the decisive goal against Universitatea Craiova).

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