Slobodan Krčmarević
Sunday 1 June 2008
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Serbia coach Slobodan Krčmarević (©www.fss.org.yu)
Date of birth: 12 June 1965
Playing career: OFK Beograd, FK Partizan, AIK Solna, Apollon Limassol FC, Anorthosis Famagusta FC, PAOK FC, Panionios GSS
Coaching career: Serbia and Montenegro Under-19s (2002-03 coaching staff), FK Partizan (2003-05 Under-19 coach), OFK Beograd (2005-07), Serbian Under-21s (2007-present).
Like many Serbs of his generation Slobodan Krčmarević was a technically gifted player, but he readily admits that too often artistry rode roughshod over industry. As a coach, it is a mistake he is determined his charges will not repeat.
Krčmarević came through the ranks at OFK Beograd, going against the grain of Serbian football by joining one of Belgrade's less fashionable clubs. A left winger, he hardly left the touchline and gained a reputation for his flamboyant style. In 1990, he joined FK Partizan, but soon found his playing time curtailed as coach Ivica Osim demanded hard work complement flashes of brilliant individual skill. Krčmarević may not have heeded the advice at the time, but he now repeats the mantra religiously to his players: "Hard work above all else".
Krčmarević would go on to play in Sweden, Cyprus and Greece before getting his first coaching job at the end of his playing career with the Serbia and Montenegro Under-19s in 2002. The following year he returned to Partizan to work in their youth academy and quickly established a reputation as having a fine eye for young talent. It was on his insistence that Partizan signed Stevan Jovetić from Montenegrin club FK Sutjeska and after helping the youngster establish himself in the first team, Jovetić was quickly snapped up by ACF Fiorentina.
A brief but impressive stint in charge of OFK followed and once again his work with young players caught the eye, leading to his appointment as coach of the Under-21s following Serbia's run to the final of the 2007 UEFA European Under-21 Championship. He achieved his first objective by qualifying for Sweden despite losing a number of players to the senior side, and the great harmony he has created is a hallmark of his new-look squad.
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