Velibor Vasović

Velibor Vasović, Serbian Cyrillic Велибор Васовић, ( born October 3, 1939 in Požarevac, Kingdom of Yugoslavia, † March 4, 2002 in Belgrade ) was a Yugoslavian football player and coach. As a player, he was part of the successful teams of FK Partizan Belgrade vs Ajax Amsterdam in the 1960s to the beginning 1970s. As a coach, he worked mainly in Yugoslavia and France, and was there in 1988 Master of the Belgrade club FK Red Star.

Life

Velibor Vasović was born as the youngest of nine children. His later education took place in Belgrade where he is already 15 years the top club FK Partizan joined. From 1958 it belonged to the first team and won with this 1961-1963 three national championship titles in a row.

Debut in the national team

It debuted Wesco, as he was often called, in June 1961 in the Yugoslav national football team, but failed in the case of the soccer World Cup 1962 squad quite successful to be recorded. But the end of 1962 and beginning of 1963 he belonged to the team which struggled to qualify for the European Championship 1964. Yugoslavia but failed in the second round to Sweden after the crew had turned off, among others, with the help of a winning goal from Vasović Belgium.

Caused a stir at the end of the 1962/ 63 may be changes to the big rivals Partizan, FK Red Star for him 5,000,000 dinars to have been paid by his early rumors - which in socialist Yugoslavia that time the equivalent of two Mercedes -Benz vehicles was. Red Star wins that season, the double of the league and cup.

The following season he was back for Partizan on the ball and he won the club its fifth championship in a row. In the years 1964 and 1965 Vasović took with Yugoslavia in the qualifiers for the 1966 World Cup, in part, but failed there to France

In the season 1965/66 Partizan disappointed in the league and was only eleventh. But caused a stir notions of Partizan in European Cup of Champions. The coached by Abdullah Gegic team overcame on the way to the finals while the French champions FC Nantes and Werder Bremen from Germany. In the quarterfinals, succeeded after a 1:4 defeat in the first leg at Sparta Prague with a 5-0 home win a sensational comeback. In the semifinals, finally, the English champions Manchester United was still turned off. Partizan thus the first Eastern European team has the reached the final of this competition. There expected in Brussels Heysel Stadium record winner of the tournament, Real Madrid. Captain Vasović could order in the 55th minute with a header the opening goal for Partizan. Real turned but in the last 15 minutes and the game is still won 2-1.

1966 denied Vasović be 32nd and last international match. Overall, he scored two goals while, but an own goal.

Successes in Amsterdam

Then Vasović moved to the new Dutch champions Ajax Amsterdam where Rinus Michels coach was going around the young star Johan Cruijff a successful team with a new formative style of play, soccer Total build. Vasović, soon provided with the nickname Vasco, made ​​it with his experience the backbone of the defense. 1967 succeeded the Amsterdam 's football club not only to defend the title, but with the Cup win and the Double. In the European Cup Ajax scored a sensational success of respect, as in the second round of Liverpool FC with 5:1 / 2:2 clearly kept at a distance was. In the quarterfinals, but came against Dukla Prague on a tight result, the corner. 1968 celebrated Vasović with the renewed defense of the national champion title his third title win in the second year - the European Cup was disappointing: Ajax already retired on the first lap, although scarce, against the doyen of the competition Real Madrid. 1969 there was no trophy, but Ajax joined by reaching the European Cup final in 1969 for the first time fully into the European spotlight. There, the AC Milan waiting with its stars Karl -Heinz Quick Inger, Giovanni Trapattoni and the midfield conductor Gianni Rivera. The young Dutchman could the experience of the European Cup winner from 1963 to oppose and lost at the Estadio Santiago Bernabeu in Madrid in front of 32,000 spectators only clear with 1:4, where Vasović could shorten the penalty spot shortly to 1:2 at the beginning of the second half, not much.

In the season 1969/70 Ajax ventured into the semi-finals of the UEFA Cup 's predecessor -Cities Fairs Cup, but it lost to eventual winners Arsenal in London. But important was the re winning the double in the Netherlands, bringing the club qualified again for the European Cup of Champions. 1970/71 Ajax turned off in this competition, among other things Celtic, nor even 1967 European champions, and Atlético Madrid. Vasović it was the head of world class defensive with Ruud Krol and Wim Suurbier as wingbacks and Barry Hulshoff as Vorstopper, which was notorious for their offside trap.

In this time at Wembley Stadium in London discharged final of his time, financed by Aristotle Onassis and trained by Ferenc Puskás Panathinaikos AO waited from Greece. A crowd of around 85,000 Ajax won it 2-0 and was thus in succession SC Feyenoord Rotterdam from the second Dutch club to win this valuable trophy. As the first foreign captain of the club it was Vasović who could proudly stretching the European Cup to the sky as the first Ajaciede.

At the national level, the success was limited to the Cup win, but that was whether the victory at Wembley to evaluate the worst case as blemishes. This was the same climax and end of the playing career of Velibor Vasović. The long-suffering from asthma players decided after only eleven years as a professional game his cleats forever hanging on the nail. The German Horst Blankenburg should follow him at Ajax in the middle.

Coach years

Immediately after his retirement as a player Vasović took in his parent club Partizan on his coaching career. In the next two years, he finished fifth and fourth in the league.

After a year off, he trained in 1974 for a season the club unterklassigen Proleter Zrenjanin. He then moves on to France to Angers SCO and leads the relegated the previous season back in the top league. He then receives an engagement with the capital club Paris Saint- Germain FC. It succeeds Vasović but in his two terms of office until 1979 not to improve the situation in which bobbing in the lower half of the table club.

After another break he signed in 1984 briefly when first division side Ethnikos Piraeus then Greek to which formerly inhabited the anonymous mid-table.

In 1986 he returned to Yugoslavia, where he took over as coach at the top club Red Star. He led the club in 1988 with players such as Dragan Stojkovic class and Bora Cvetković for the first championship in four years and was instrumental in the development of the team that should win the 1991 European and World Cup.

In 1989, he was from January to November still in Switzerland at AC Bellinzona active and then ended his coaching career.

Later years

In the 1990s he worked in Belgrade as a lawyer, but was also known as a critic of the association. In October 2000, a few days after the fall of president Slobodan Milošević, he led with some assistants by a slump in the offices of the Serbian Football Association. It was not clear what was the purpose. It was suspected that he had interest in being a president of the association.

Velibor Vasović died in 2002 of heart failure. He was twice married, and had two sons from his first marriage.

Title

Players:

• European Champion Clubs' Cup: 1971
• Football champions of Yugoslavia: 1961, 1962, 1963, 1964, 1965
• Football Cup of Yugoslavia: 1964
• Football champions of the Netherlands: 1967, 1968, 1970
• Football Cup of the Netherlands: 1967, 1970, 1971

Coach:

• Football champions of Yugoslavia: 1988