Zoran Mirkovic appointed new Partizan head coach

Former Partizan player  and club`s Vice-President Zoran Mirkovic (46) took over FK Partizan coaching post today. He was previously working as assistant coach at Montenegro national team. Gordan Petric, another former Partizan player and club`s former general secretary, will join Mirkovic as his first coaching assistant. Zoran Mirkovic signed a two-year deal with the club.

As a player, Mirkovic signed to Partizan from FK Rad in 1993 and played for Partizan until 1996. He also played for Partizan in a period between 2004 and 2006. In total, Mirkovic made 253 apps for Partizan, scoring 6 goals. Besides Rad and Partizan, he played for Atalanta, Juventus and Fenerbahce.

Mirkovic made 59 national team apps and took part in France 1998 WC.

Zoran Mirkovic upon signing:

– This call came out of the blue really. This is my forth spell at Partizan, including my role in the club`s board, and I know what kind of demands I need to meet. I also know what fan`s expectations are and this is not the best moment for our club but it can get fixed. It`s a kind of apathy around the team and we need to move forward swiftly, only that time is not on our side. Team needs to pick up and that`s our first job – to work with them on psychological matters. There`s no time for some big squad changes but we have time to work on details.

So far early in the season, I saw no player who would take matters into his hands, team is not a unit and our pace is slow. We need to change all that starting with team psychology. I`m sure there`s quality in this team and we have to offer that quality to our fans – they know what a nice, good football game is about.

 Sports Director Ivica Iliev on Mirkovic:

– I watched Mirkovic as a kid 27 years ago and it`s my pleasure now to work with him. We started  talks with Mirkovic few days ago and struck a deal in no time. I had info about his work for the past few years and we spoke and met before on many occasions. I knew what he could offer to us and as soon as we had a chat I knew we could move forward.

We want new Partizan, we have a desire to create and grow, to make this a long-term project. Mirkovic has a good reputation, charisma and skills to make this all work.