Branko Zebec
Branko Zebec [ bra ː nkɔ zɛbets ] ( born May 17, 1929 in Zagreb, Kingdom of Yugoslavia, † September 26, 1988 in Zagreb, Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia ) was a Yugoslav football player and coach. In Germany he was known primarily as a coach in the Bundesliga.
- 2.1 Dinamo Zagreb
- 2.2 Bayern Munich
- 2.3 VfB Stuttgart and Hajduk Split
- 2.4 Eintracht Braunschweig
- 2.5 Hamburger SV
- 2.6 Borussia Dortmund and Eintracht Frankfurt
- 2.7 Dinamo Zagreb
- 2.8 balance Sheet
Life
He studied mathematics and physics in addition to sports also. The University offered him because of his academic achievements an academic career at, but Zebec opted for football.
The player
As a football player he was in his youth for Gradjanski Zagreb, a predecessor club Dinamo Zagreb, Zagreb, and later for locomotive for FK Partizan Belgrade and FK Red Star Belgrade active. He played from 1961 to 1965 also in Germany for Alemannia Aachen in the Oberliga and Regionalliga West and ended his active career here. For Yugoslavia, he completed 65 caps and scored 17 goals. Twice Zebec was used in the Weltelf. At the Olympic football tournament in Helsinki in 1952 he won the silver medal with Yugoslavia. Zebec, playing on the left wing, with seven -goal top scorer of the tournament. Yugoslavia only lost in the final of this tournament, the legendary Hungarian team which remained undefeated between 1950 and 1954.
. He was also one of the leading Yugoslav players in the football World Cup in 1954, his team had the World Cup with 8-0 points and 4-0 goals achieved (four times 1:0), was a 1-0 win over France and a 1: 1 against Brazil (Gate Zebec ) pushed forward as unseeded team to the quarter finals and lost there 0-2 against the eventual champions Germany. Also in the 1958 World Cup has brought Germany in the quarter-finals for the Yugoslavs that off, this time 1-0. Zebec played in this tournament in the midfield and was captain of his team. In 1960, he took with Yugoslavia in France in the finals of the first European Football Championship in part. He stood in the team's semifinal against France. France led in this game until the 75th minute, 4-2, at the end of Yugoslavia won 5-4. In the final, Yugoslavia lost to the USSR 1:2 after extra time, Zebec did not participate in this game.
The coach
Dinamo Zagreb
His first job was as a coach Branko Zebec at Dinamo Zagreb. There he celebrated his first major success in the finals of the fair goblet, the predecessor of today's UEFA Cup, could be defeated Leeds United ( 2-0, 0-0). This success was so far a little happy when in the first round of this competition Spartak Brno to results of 2:0 and 0:2 only because of the lot could be turned off. Zebec practiced the coach of Dinamo from jointly with the later Bundesliga coach Ivica Horvat (1972 DFB Cup winner with FC Schalke 04).
Bayern Munich
Then it took the FC Bayern Munich at the beginning of the 1968/69 season in the Bundesliga. He remained until March 12, 1970. Sepp Maier attests the coach in his book, " but I'm not score " extremely hard, almost " brutal " training methods, the "great " condition benefits gave the team in the Bundesliga, in the long run, however, the fraction had with the team result. With Zebec the club was again German champions for the first time since 1932. Overall, he sat during the season only 13 players. At the same time he was also celebrating the Cup victory in the final against FC Schalke 04 after a 2-1; the first " Double" in Bundesliga history. Already in September 1969 stated Zebec but not wanting to extend his expiring contract at end of season. In March, after 26 Matchday stood Bayern, who retired early as the first round of the European goblet of Champions (2-0 and 0-3 against AS Saint-Etienne ), after a series of only one point from three games five points behind in the league only in third place in the Bundesliga. Send to a title defense was no longer to think seriously. Zebec has therefore already been replaced for the remaining games of the season by Udo Lattek, which was supposed to take over until the new season. Franz Beckenbauer told in his book "One like me," atmospheric disturbance between Zebec and Munich star ensemble.
VfB Stuttgart and Hajduk Split
From the beginning of the 1970/71 season until March 12, 1972, he coached VfB Stuttgart. The first season ended the team slightly disappointing 12th place from ( 30:38 points, 49:49 goals). At the end of the second season, VfB was after all in 8th place ( 35:33 points, 52:56 goals). 1972 Zebec closed again at the traditional club Hajduk Split, in which Tomislav Ivić was head coach. With Hajduk Split he won 1972/73 the national cup and penetrated in the European Cup Winners' Cup semi-finals before.
Eintracht Braunschweig
Zebec came in 1974 to the then Bundesliga team Eintracht Braunschweig and spent four full seasons until 1978. Already in the first few weeks made it launched as the underdog team for attention. They became the favorite fright, defeated a top team after another (including 3-1 against Bayern Munich, who had arrived as champion, european champion and core of the World Cup team to Braunschweig ), were running in 2nd place, were at the end but with rank 9 ( 36:32 points; highly satisfied 52:52 goals). In the following two years Braunschweig played for the German championship with, was repeated standings and finished the competition in 1976 as the fifth ( 39:29 points, 52:48 goals) and 1977 in third ( 43:25 points, 56:38 goals). 1977 lacked even a single point on master Mönchengladbach. Zebec had brought in the remaining two compatriots to Braunschweig: the winger Danilo Popivoda should as perhaps the greatest player of his former team and the midfielder Aleksandar Ristic, who later succeed him as assistant coach for Hamburger SV and there be his successor as head coach. 1977/78 did not have the commitment of Paul Breitner the expected boost. Instead, the club temporarily had to fight against relegation: 13th, 32:36 points, 43:53 gates.
Hamburger SV
In 1978, Zebec for Hamburger SV. The club was indeed been 1977/78 table Tenth, in the previous years but number two to six. Manager Günter Netzer wanted to get the team back on a UEFA Cup place. Unlike ten years earlier at Bayern came Zebec with the HSV- Stars cope relatively well, but these other personalities than the Bayern stars to 1970. Kevin Keegan, Horst Hrubesch or Manfred Kaltz had been relatively quiet, simple types, the first well coped with Zebecs tactical requirements. 1979 brought the HSV first league title since 1960, but during the following season, the first problems announced, despite 2nd place The players rebelled because Zebec had allegedly trained too hard end of the season. Thus, the critics were, (0-1 in the final against Nottingham ) lost within four days of championship (1:2 at promoted Leverkusen) and the European Cup. In addition Zebecs alcoholism became apparent. He lost his license. Against Borussia Dortmund, he should have sat with 3.25 per thousand in the dugout. The HSV went with Zebec in the third season and was for half of the season at the top, but dismissed December 16, 1980 his coach for alcohol problems. Master was then Bavaria.
Borussia Dortmund and Eintracht Frankfurt
Borussia Dortmund was the next stop in the 1981/82 season. The club reached number 6 with 41:27 points, 59:40 gates, which indeed was the best Dortmunder result for twelve years and just enough for the UEFA Cup, but the progressive personal problems of the trainer could not cover (among other things, he fell in a game drunk backwards from the dugout ). Eintracht Frankfurt was his last training station in the Bundesliga. The association, known at that time for most premature coach layoffs, brought him on September 19, 1982 after the dismissal of only a few weeks previously liable former Austrian national coach Helmut Senekowitsch managed to finish the season ranked 10th and went with Zebec in the next season to then to dismiss him after a few weeks on October 17, 1983.
Dinamo Zagreb
Following this, he took over in 1984 again a short term commitment to the club where he started his coaching career, Dinamo Zagreb.
Balance
Overall, he acted 413 times as Bundesliga coach (6th of the Eternal coach rankings) and experienced this 193 wins, 96 draws and 124 defeats in a goalscoring total of 733:536.
His record as a coach and as a person has been mixed. He was considered an intelligent, taciturn, self-willed, sensitive person and one of the best football coach of his time with an instinctive feel for the tactically optimal use of its players. In his best days he operated football according to scientific principles, in which also the main cause of his success can be seen. His difficulties were in the interpersonal sphere. He schottete his personality and by the mid -1970s, his alcoholism from the outside and seemed cool and aloof. Branko Zebec was laid to rest on the Mirogoj Cemetery in Zagreb.