Ranko Popović

Ranko Popović
Popović with St. Pölten in 2019
Personal information
Full name Ranko Popović
Date of birth (1967-06-26) 26 June 1967 (age 57)
Place of birth Peć, SR Serbia, SFR Yugoslavia
Height 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in)
Position(s) Defender
Youth career
Budućnost Peć
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
198x–198x Kneževac
1988–1989 Beograd
1989–1991 Partizan 2 (0)
1989–1990 → Leotar (loan) 13 (0)
1992–1994 Spartak Subotica 58 (11)
1994 Ethnikos Piraeus 10 (0)
1995 Spartak Subotica 14 (2)
1995–1997 Almería 16 (0)
1997–2001 Sturm Graz 74 (9)
2002–2004 TuS FC Arnfels 25+ (6+)
2004–2006 SV Pachern[1] 25+ (4+)
Total 237+ (32+)
Managerial career
2002–2004 TuS FC Arnfels (player-manager)
2004–2006 SV Pachern (player-manager)
2006–2007 Sanfrecce Hiroshima (assistant)
2008 Horgoš
2008–2009 Spartak Subotica
2009 Oita Trinita
2011 Machida Zelvia
2012–2013 FC Tokyo
2014 Cerezo Osaka
2014–2015 Zaragoza
2016–2017 Buriram United
2017–2018 Pune City
2018–2019 St. Pölten
2020–2022 Machida Zelvia
2023 Vojvodina
2024 Kashima Antlers
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Ranko Popović (Serbian Cyrillic: Ранко Поповић; born 26 June 1967) is a Serbian football manager and former player. He was most recently the manager of J1 League side Kashima Antlers.

Playing career

Born in Peć, SAP Kosovo, SR Serbia, Popović started out at local club Budućnost.[2][3] He moved to Belgrade in 1985 due to compulsory military service and played for Kneževac in the Belgrade Zone League.[2] In the 1988–89 season, Popović played for fellow Belgrade Zone League club Beograd.[2]

In the summer of 1989, Popović was acquired by Yugoslav First League side Partizan.[2] He was later loaned to Yugoslav Second League club Leotar during the 1989–90 season.[4] After returning to Partizan, Popović made two appearances in the 1990–91 Yugoslav First League.[5]

In 1992,[6] Popović switched to Spartak Subotica.[2] He spent two and a half years there, before moving abroad to Greece and joining Ethnikos Piraeus in the summer of 1994.[2] Six months later, Popović returned to Spartak Subotica until the end of the season.[2]

After playing for two years at Segunda División club Almería, Popović joined Austrian side Sturm Graz in the summer of 1997, aged 30. He spent the next four seasons with the club, winning back-to-back championships in 1998 and 1999. In addition, Popović made 11 appearances in the UEFA Champions League.

Managerial career

Austria and Japan

Between 2002 and 2006, Popović served as player-manager of Austrian lower league sides TuS FC Arnfels and SV Pachern.[3] He subsequently moved to Japan in the summer of 2006, assisting his compatriot Mihailo Petrović at Sanfrecce Hiroshima for over a year.[3]

Serbia

In early 2008, Popović returned to his homeland to take charge of Serbian League Vojvodina club Zlatibor Voda. He led them to promotion to the Serbian First League, before they merged with Spartak Subotica.[3] In May 2009, Popović was replaced by Slavko Vojičić.

Return to Japan

Popović with FC Tokyo in 2012

In July 2009, Popović accepted an offer to coach J League club Oita Trinita, which had experienced 14 consecutive defeats in the season. In his first six matches, the team only won once, but in the last 10 matches of the season, it did not lose once (five wins and five draws). This result earned him an offer to coach the team for the next season, but the team nearly went bankrupt and his contract had to be canceled.

In December 2010, Popović was appointed manager of Machida Zelvia. He subsequently went on to become manager of some of the most recognized clubs in Japan, including FC Tokyo and Cerezo Osaka.

Spain

On 24 November 2014, Popović was appointed at the helm of Spanish Segunda División side Zaragoza, replacing the fired Víctor Muñoz.[7] He led the team to the 2015 Segunda División play-offs, but fell short, losing to Las Palmas on the away goals rule.[8] While at Zaragoza, Popović was named the Segunda División Manager of the Month by the LFP in October 2015.[9] He was dismissed on 20 December 2015, after a 3–1 loss against Gimnàstic.[10]

Thailand and India

In August 2016, Thai League club Buriram United appointed Popović as the club manager to fill the vacant role after the dismissal of Afshin Ghotbi.[11] He left the position in June 2017 after receiving a three-month ban by the Thai FA (FAT) for slapping his team's physio after a league game earlier that month.[12]

In September 2017, Indian Super League side Pune City appointed Popović as new manager.[13] He parted ways with the club in May 2018.[14]

Vojvodina

On 11 August 2023, After spending three seasons in Machida Zelvia, Popović took over Serbian SuperLiga club Vojvodina, signing a deal until the end of the season 2023–24.[15]

Kashima Antlers

On 21 December 2023, after a brief half-season at Vojvodina, Popović joined J1 League club Kashima Antlers.[16] Popović has some mixed results at the start of the season but an 11 game unbeaten streak in the middle of the season saw Kashima solidly in the top 3 of the league. However, results started to drop off and in spite of a 4–0 league victory over Albirex Niigata, Popović was dismissed with Antlers sitting in 4th in the table and only 6 games left in the season.[17]

Personal life

Popović also holds Austrian citizenship.

Managerial statistics

As of match played 5 October 2024
Managerial record by team and tenure
Team From To Record
P W D L Win %
Horgoš 1 January 2008 31 June 2008 16 11 3 2 068.75
Spartak Subotica 1 July 2008 30 June 2009 24 10 7 7 041.67
Oita Trinita[18] 21 July 2009 31 January 2010 16 6 5 5 037.50
Machida Zelvia 1 February 2011 31 January 2012 35 19 7 9 054.29
FC Tokyo[18] 1 February 2012 31 January 2014 78 34 16 28 043.59
Cerezo Osaka[18] 1 February 2014 9 June 2014 13 4 4 5 030.77
Real Zaragoza 24 November 2014 21 December 2015 51 19 17 15 037.25
Buriram United 25 August 2017 13 June 2017 19 12 4 3 063.16
Pune City 25 September 2017 31 May 2018 21 9 4 8 042.86
St. Pölten 10 October 2018 13 June 2019 24 4 6 14 016.67
Machida Zelvia 1 February 2020 31 January 2023 127 46 34 47 036.22
Vojvodina 10 August 2023 23 December 2023 19 10 4 5 052.63
Kashima Antlers 1 February 2024 6 October 2024 38 19 8 11 050.00
Total 481 203 119 159 042.20

Honours

Player

Sturm Graz

Manager

Zlatibor Voda

Buriram United

References

  1. ^ "Einsätze 2005/06" (in German). fussballoesterreich.at. Retrieved 4 March 2020.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g "Ranko Popović - Posle 14 godina ponovo u Subotici" (in Serbian). subotica.info. 11 February 2008. Retrieved 30 March 2019.
  3. ^ a b c d "Trenerska karijera Ranka Popovića" (in Serbian). subotica.info. 26 October 2014. Retrieved 30 March 2019.
  4. ^ "Tempo Almanah Yu Fudbal 89-90" (in Serbian). yumpu.com. Retrieved 4 March 2020.
  5. ^ "Tempo Almanah Yu Fudbal 90-91" (in Serbian). yumpu.com. Retrieved 4 March 2020.
  6. ^ "Tempo Almanah Yu Fudbal 91-92" (in Serbian). yumpu.com. Retrieved 4 March 2020.
  7. ^ "El serbio Popovic, nuevo entrenador del Real Zaragoza" (in Spanish). marca.com. 24 November 2014. Retrieved 30 November 2014.
  8. ^ "Otra reconstrucción" (in Spanish). marca.com. 23 June 2015. Retrieved 30 March 2019.
  9. ^ "Popovic, el mejor de octubre" (in Spanish). marca.com. 6 November 2015. Retrieved 30 March 2019.
  10. ^ "El Zaragoza destituye a Popovic como técnico" (in Spanish). marca.com. 20 December 2015. Retrieved 30 March 2019.
  11. ^ "Newin's league dream over". bangkokpost.com. 26 August 2016. Retrieved 30 March 2019.
  12. ^ "Fans call for Kiatisak after Buriram's Popovic resigns". bangkokpost.com. 14 June 2017. Retrieved 30 March 2019.
  13. ^ "Serbian Popovic takes Habas' place in Pune City". thehindu.com. 25 September 2017. Retrieved 30 March 2019.
  14. ^ "FC Pune City and coach Popovic part ways". thehindu.com. 30 May 2018. Retrieved 30 March 2019.
  15. ^ "Нови тренер Воше Ранко Поповић: Срећан сам и узбуђен због доласка!". FK Vojvodina official website (in Serbian). 11 August 2023.
  16. ^ "Ranko Popović imenovan za novog trenera Kašime (in Serbian)". Tanjug. Retrieved 21 February 2024.
  17. ^ "ランコ ポポヴィッチ監督 解任のお知らせ | 鹿島アントラーズ オフィシャルサイト". 鹿島アントラーズ オフィシャルサイト | KASHIMA ANTLERS (in Japanese). Retrieved 11 October 2024.
  18. ^ a b c Ranko Popović manager profile at J.League (archive) (in Japanese) Edit this at Wikidata
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