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Mitar Mrkela

Personal information
Full name	Mitar Mrkela
Date of birth	(1965-07-10) 10 July 1965 (age 59)
Place of birth	Belgrade, SFR Yugoslavia
Height	1.76 m
Playing position	Winger
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps†	(Gls)†
1981–1983	OFK Beograd	45	(4)
1983–1990	Red Star Belgrade	154	(30)
1990–1992	Twente	61	(10)
1992–1993	Beşiktaş	23	(4)
1993–1994	Cambuur	18	(2)
Total		301	(50)
National team
1982–1986	Yugoslavia	5	(1)
Honours Men's Football Representing  Yugoslavia Olympic Games Bronze 1984 Los Angeles Team
Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. † Appearances (Goals).

Mitar Mrkela (born 10 July 1965) is a former professional Serbian football player. He was a winger, a player who plays on the sides of the field. Mrkela was part of the Yugoslavian team that won a bronze medal at the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles.

Mitar Mrkela: A Football Legend

Mitar Mrkela began his professional football journey at a very young age. He started playing for OFK Beograd in 1981. At that time, he was only 16 years and 16 days old. This made him the youngest player ever in the Yugoslav First League.

Early Career and Rise to Fame

After playing for OFK Beograd, Mrkela moved to Red Star Belgrade in 1983. He played there for seven years, until 1990. During his time at Red Star, he became a well-known player.

Later, he moved to the Netherlands to play for FC Twente. He stayed with them for two seasons. In 1992, he played for Beşiktaş in Turkey, scoring four goals. He then returned to the Netherlands to play for SC Cambuur.

Playing for His Country

Mitar Mrkela holds a special record for the Yugoslav national squad. He was the youngest player ever to play for his country. He made his debut on 17 November 1982, when he was just 17 years and 130 days old. This was during a qualifying match for the Euro 1984 tournament against Bulgaria.

Even though he started very young, Mrkela played only five matches for the national team. He scored one goal for his country.

Life After Playing Football

After retiring from playing, Mitar Mrkela continued to be involved in football. In the early 2000s, he was the president of the City of Belgrade Football Association. He then became a youth coach for OFK Beograd.

In 2005, he became the director of the youth academy at Red Star Belgrade. This role meant he was in charge of developing young football talent. He left this job in 2008 and became the sporting director at OFK Beograd.

Family Life

Mitar Mrkela was married to actress Lidija Vukićević in the early 1990s. They later divorced in 2000. They have two sons together. Their son Andrej, born in 1992, also became a professional football player. Their second son, David, was born in 1997. Mitar Mrkela also has another son, Dušan, with his second wife.

For a period, Mrkela was also involved in politics.