Miljan Miljanić | Origin of Street Names

Miljan Miljanić (1930 - 2012) was a legendary Serbian and Yugoslav football coach, a long-time national team coach, a lifelong, and ultimately honorary president of the Football Association of Yugoslavia.

Originally from Montenegro, he was born in Bitola and grew up in Belgrade, where he also graduated from the Faculty of Economics.

Like most boys of his time, he loved football, making it to the first team of Red Star Belgrade. Due to an injury, he ended his playing career early and quickly redirected his focus to coaching, which would entirely shape his life and make him a global legend in the world's most popular sport.

Miljan Miljanić spent a full ten years honing his skills in the Red Star Belgrade youth academy before finally becoming the coach of the first team in 1966. He remained in this position for the next eight seasons, during which Red Star Belgrade, with its quality and titles, unequivocally stood out from its biggest rival and all other clubs in Yugoslavia at the time. In addition to the championship titles, Miljanić's significance in creating a winning mentality for Red Star Belgrade as a club is particularly notable, laying the foundation for the club's greatest successes in the coming decades.

After eight years at Red Star and numerous trophies won, Miljanić became the coach of the world's greatest club - Real Madrid, with which he also won the Spanish league and cup on multiple occasions. On one occasion, he received the championship trophy directly from the notorious Spanish dictator, Franco.

Miljan Miljanić's football philosophy was based on analyzing opponents down to the smallest details, playing short passes, and ensuring excellent physical preparation of his own players. In that regard, Miljanić was a pioneer of a philosophy that is perhaps more relevant in today's football than ever before, even though it emerged over half a century ago.

Miljan Miljanić served as the coach of the Yugoslav national team on four different occasions, leading them in two World Cups, but unfortunately, without achieving the success that would satisfy the domestic public. As an undisputed coach, who was regarded by everyone as an absolute authority, he faced criticism for his often defensive tactics, despite having lethal attackers such as Džajić, Petković, Bajević, Pižon, Šurjak, Vujović, Sušić, and others in his team. The national team's results simply didn't always live up to the high expectations of the Yugoslav public, which led to Miljanić, as the alpha and omega of domestic football, even being labeled as the undertaker of the national team.

Nevertheless, Miljan's knowledge and reputation in the world of football should never be questioned, as his name is associated with numerous accolades from FIFA, UEFA, and the greatest legends that the game has produced.

After stepping down from the position of national team coach, Miljan Miljanić spent almost two decades as the president of the Football Association of Yugoslavia, including the period when its arguably best squad ever disintegrated during the war (1991-1992).

Miljan Miljanić passed away at the age of 83 and was buried in the Alley of Distinguished Citizens at the New Cemetery in Belgrade. On that occasion, the entire football world paid tribute to him, including the biggest stars of Real Madrid at the time, led by José Mourinho.

As is customary, in memory of the football legend, a street in Belgrade bears the name of Miljan Miljanić.