Ranko Popović facts for kids
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Popović with St. Pölten in 2019
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Ranko Popović | ||
| Date of birth | 26 June 1967 | ||
| Place of birth | Peć, SR Serbia, SFR Yugoslavia | ||
| Height | 1.83 m | ||
| Playing position | 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 | 25+ | (4+) |
| Total | 237+ | (32+) | |
| Teams managed | |||
| 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 | ||
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Ranko Popović (Ранко Поповић) is a football manager and former player from Serbia. He was born on June 26, 1967. Most recently, he was the manager of the J1 League team Kashima Antlers.
Contents
Playing Career
Ranko Popović was born in Peć, a town in Serbia. He started playing football at a local club called Budućnost. In 1985, he moved to Belgrade for his military service. While there, he played for a team called Kneževac. Later, in the 1988–89 season, he played for another Belgrade team, Beograd.
In 1989, Popović joined Yugoslav First League team Partizan. He was then loaned to Leotar for the 1989–90 season. After returning to Partizan, he played in two matches during the 1990–91 season.
In 1992, Popović moved to Spartak Subotica. He played there for two and a half years. In the summer of 1994, he went to Greece to play for Ethnikos Piraeus. Six months later, he returned to Spartak Subotica.
After playing for two years at the Spanish club Almería, Popović joined the Austrian team Sturm Graz in 1997. He was 30 years old at the time. He stayed with Sturm Graz for four seasons. During this time, his team won the Austrian championship two years in a row, in 1998 and 1999. He also played in 11 matches in the UEFA Champions League, a big European competition.
Managerial Career
Austria and Japan
From 2002 to 2006, Popović was a player-manager for two smaller Austrian teams: TuS FC Arnfels and SV Pachern. A player-manager is someone who plays on the team and also coaches it. In 2006, he moved to Japan. He worked as an assistant coach for Sanfrecce Hiroshima for over a year.
Serbia
In early 2008, Popović went back to Serbia. He became the coach of Serbian League Vojvodina club Zlatibor Voda. He helped them get promoted to a higher league, the Serbian First League. Later, this team joined with Spartak Subotica. In May 2009, he was replaced by another coach.
Return to Japan
In July 2009, Popović became the coach for the J League team Oita Trinita. This team had lost 14 games in a row. In his first six games, the team only won once. But in the last 10 games of the season, they did not lose at all. They won five games and tied five games. Because of this good result, he was offered to coach the team for the next season. However, the team faced financial problems, and his contract was canceled.
In December 2010, Popović was named the manager of Machida Zelvia. After that, he coached some very well-known clubs in Japan. These included FC Tokyo and Cerezo Osaka.
Spain
On November 24, 2014, Popović became the coach of the Spanish team Zaragoza. They played in the Segunda División, which is the second division of Spanish football. He took over after the previous coach was let go. He led the team to the play-offs in 2015. However, they lost to Las Palmas because of the away goals rule. While at Zaragoza, Popović was named the best manager in the Segunda División for October 2015. He was dismissed on December 20, 2015, after a loss to Gimnàstic.
Thailand and India
In August 2016, the Thai team Buriram United hired Popović as their manager. He left the team in June 2017. This happened after he received a three-month suspension from the Thai Football Association. The suspension was for an incident with his team's physio after a game.
In September 2017, the Indian team Pune City appointed Popović as their new manager. He left the club in May 2018.
Vojvodina
On August 11, 2023, Popović took over the Serbian team Vojvodina. He signed a contract until the end of the 2023–24 season. Before this, he had spent three seasons coaching Machida Zelvia again.
Kashima Antlers
On December 21, 2023, Popović joined the J1 League club Kashima Antlers in Japan. He had a short time at Vojvodina before this move. At the start of the season, his team had mixed results. But then, they had an amazing 11-game unbeaten streak. This helped Kashima move into the top three teams in the league. However, their results started to get worse. Even after a big 4–0 win against Albirex Niigata, Popović was dismissed. This happened with only six games left in the season. His team was in 4th place at the time.
Personal Life
Ranko Popović also has Austrian citizenship.
Honours
Player
Sturm Graz
- Austrian Bundesliga: 1997–98, 1998–99 (Won the top league in Austria)
- Austrian Cup: 1998–99 (Won the main cup competition in Austria)
- Austrian Supercup: 1998, 1999 (Won a special match between league and cup winners)
Manager
Zlatibor Voda
- Serbian League Vojvodina: 2007–08 (Won a regional league in Serbia)
Buriram United
- Thai League Cup: 2016 (Won a cup competition in Thailand)
- Mekong Club Championship: 2016 (Won a championship for clubs in the Mekong region)
Images for kids
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Popović with St. Pölten in 2019
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Popović with FC Tokyo in 2012
See also
In Spanish: Ranko Popović para niños
