Slaviša Jokanović (Serbian Cyrillic: Славиша Јокановић, pronounced [slǎʋiʃa jokȃnoʋitɕ]; born 16 August 1968) is a Serbian professional football manager and former player.

Slaviša Jokanović
Jokanović with Dynamo Moscow in 2022
Personal information
Full name Slaviša Jokanović[1]
Date of birth (1968-08-16) 16 August 1968 (age 56)[1]
Place of birth Novi Sad, SR Serbia, Yugoslavia
Height 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
Position(s) Defensive midfielder
Youth career
Novi Sad
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1986–1988 Novi Sad
1988–1990 Vojvodina 54 (10)
1990–1993 Partizan 67 (21)
1993–1995 Oviedo 62 (12)
1995–1999 Tenerife 123 (17)
1999–2000 Deportivo La Coruña 23 (2)
2000–2002 Chelsea 39 (0)
2003–2004 Ciudad Murcia 6 (0)
Total 374 (62)
International career
1991–2002 FR Yugoslavia[note 1] 64 (10)
Managerial career
2007–2009 Partizan
2012–2013 Muangthong United
2013 Levski Sofia
2014 Hércules
2014–2015 Watford
2015 Maccabi Tel Aviv
2015–2018 Fulham
2019–2021 Al-Gharafa
2021 Sheffield United
2022–2023 Dynamo Moscow
Medal record
Representing  Yugoslavia
Silver medal – second place UEFA U-21 Euro 1990
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

A physical player considered strong in the air, he impressed at Partizan, before spending seven seasons in La Liga at the service of three clubs, appearing in 208 matches and scoring 31 goals, mainly for Tenerife.[3] He also played for two years with Chelsea towards the end of his career, and represented Yugoslavia at the 1998 World Cup and Euro 2000, earning 64 caps and scoring ten goals in an eleven-year international career.

Jokanović began his managerial career in 2007, winning two consecutive doubles with Partizan, the 2012 Thai Premier League with Muangthong United, and leading Watford and Fulham to promotion to the Premier League in 2015 and 2018 respectively.

Club career

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Early career

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Born in Novi Sad, Vojvodina, SFR Yugoslavia,[1] Jokanović started playing with his hometown club Novi Sad, and made his senior debut with neighbouring Vojvodina, helping it win its second national title in the 1988–89 season, with four goals in 24 matches.

In 1990, Jokanović joined Belgrade's Partizan. In his second year he helped the team win the domestic cup and, in his third, he scored 13 league goals (a career best), being one of several players to net in double digits – the team scored 103 in 36 matches – en route to the league conquest.[4]

After his displays at Partizan, Jokanović signed for Oviedo in Spain. During his two-year spell, he partnered compatriots Janko Janković, Nikola Jerkan and Robert Prosinečki and, subsequently, he joined fellow La Liga club Tenerife, being instrumental in their domestic and European consolidation.[5]

Deportivo de La Coruña

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In the summer 1999, Jokanović signed for Deportivo La Coruña at the insistence of coach Javier Irureta, who deployed him in a partnership with Brazilians Donato and Mauro Silva. The trio combined for 85 matches and five goals, as the Galicians won their first ever league title.[6]

Chelsea

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After only one season with Deportivo, Jokanović signed with Chelsea in October 2000, for £1.7 million. Under coach Claudio Ranieri, he appeared 39 times for the Blues over two consecutive Premier League seasons, and played a total of 53 matches. He was released in July 2002, at nearly 34.[7]

He subsequently retired from professional football, after playing just three months in the Spanish second division with Ciudad Murcia.[8][9]

International career

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Jokanović played six times for SFR Yugoslavia, his debut coming on 27 February 1991 in a friendly with Turkey, when he played the last ten minutes after replacing Željko Petrović.[10] He then appeared in some UEFA Euro 1992 qualifying matches, helping the national team to top its group; he was selected for the final tournament,[11] but the team would be suspended due to the Yugoslav Wars.

During the last official game ever that SFR Yugoslavia played on the 28th of May 1992 against Fiorentina in Florence, Jokanovic scored the only goal for his team and subsequently became the last man to score a goal for Yugoslavia. Fiorentina made a comeback and won the game 2–1. The match was played just two days before the announcement of United Nations Security Council Resolution 757 which forbade Yugoslavia to participate at UEFA Euro 1992. [1] [2]

Jokanović represented FR Yugoslavia in a further 58 matches,[12] appearing for the nation at the 1998 FIFA World Cup and Euro 2000. In the former competition, he scored his first two international goals in an 8–1 away win over the Faroe Islands in qualification before playing four complete matches as the national team reached the round-of-16; in the latter he appeared three times, being sent off against Spain in a 3–4 loss, with the team reaching the quarter-finals.[13]

Coaching career

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Jokanović with Muangthong United in 2013

Partizan

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Jokanović was living in Madrid when, in September 2007, he joined the technical staff of Tercera División club Pinto. However, three months later, he became the head coach of Partizan, replacing Miroslav Đukić, who left to take the reins of the national team. His family (wife and three children) remained in the Spanish capital.[14]

In May 2008, under Jokanović's management, Partizan won the double (league and cup). He was also selected as the year's "Best Coach in Serbia" by the Football Association of Serbia, but refused to receive this award due to Partizan's poor results in the group stage of the UEFA Cup.[15]

Jokanović led Partizan to another double in his first full season, winning the league by a margin of 19 points over former team Vojvodina. Thus, he became the first coach in the club's history to successfully defend the title; on 5 September 2009, however, he left the post by mutual consent, bidding farewell through an open letter.[16]

Thailand, Bulgaria and Spain

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On 28 February 2012, Muangthong United introduced Jokanović as their new head coach, and he signed a one-year contract, with an option for a further two years.[17] In his first and only season, he led the team to the third Thai Premier League title in their history, going undefeated in the process.[18]

In mid-July 2013, Jokanović replaced Nikolay Mitov as manager of Bulgarian team Levski Sofia.[19] He was relieved of his duties in October, due to poor results, but club supporters claimed that he should have been given time to change things around.[20]

On 5 May 2014, Hércules appointed Jokanović as coach until the end of the season, replacing Quique Hernández, who had been sacked with the team in last place in the Segunda División table.[21] He only managed one win in his five matches in charge, in an eventual relegation.[22]

Watford

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Jokanović as manager of Watford in 2015

On 7 October 2014, Jokanović was appointed on a short-term contract at the helm of English Championship club Watford, their fourth coach in five weeks.[23] Under his leadership, the Hornets were promoted to the Premier League with one match to spare, sealing it with a 2–0 win at Brighton & Hove Albion on 25 April 2015 for their 15th win in twenty matches;[24] the team was also minutes away from winning the league title in the final match, but conceded an injury-time equaliser to Sheffield Wednesday that allowed Bournemouth to overtake them.[25] On 5 June, after failing to agree to a new deal, Jokanović left and was replaced by Quique Sánchez Flores.[26]

Maccabi Tel Aviv

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On 14 June 2015, Jokanović was appointed as coach of Maccabi Tel Aviv.[27] On 25 August, he led the club to the group stage of the UEFA Champions League for the first time in eleven years, after ousting Basel on the away goals rule.[28]

Fulham

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Jokanović lasted just over six months in the role before he elected to return to the Championship, joining Fulham on 27 December 2015 as head coach.[29] After avoiding relegation by eleven points, he achieved his target of a top six position for his first full season at Craven Cottage.[30] He was the EFL Championship Manager of the Month for April 2018 after taking 16 points from 18, having won the same award for Watford three years earlier; his compatriot forward Aleksandar Mitrović took the players' equivalent.[31]

Jokanović led Fulham to promotion by beating Aston Villa 1–0 at Wembley Stadium on 26 May 2018 in the play-off final.[32] On 14 November, however, after seven consecutive winless results, and with the team ranking last, he was dismissed and replaced by Claudio Ranieri.[33]

Al-Gharafa

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On 16 June 2019, Jokanović was appointed at Qatari club Al-Gharafa, on a two-year deal.[34] He was nominated for Manager of the Season in his first year in the Stars League.[35]

Sheffield United

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On 27 May 2021, Jokanović was appointed by newly relegated Sheffield United on a three-year deal, becoming the club's first manager from overseas.[36] He was sacked on 25 November, having won six of 19 Championship games. Paul Heckingbottom replaced him.[37]

Dynamo Moscow

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On 17 June 2022, Jokanović signed a contract with Russian Premier League club Dynamo Moscow for the upcoming season, with the option of two further years depending on performance.[38] He was dismissed by Dynamo on 14 May 2023, following a 0–3 home loss to Akhmat Grozny, with Dynamo in seventh place.[39]

Career statistics

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International

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Appearances and goals by national team and year
National team Year Apps Goals
SFR Yugoslavia[40] 1991 6 0
1992 0 0
FR Yugoslavia 1993 0 0
1994 2 0
1995 2 0
1996 7 2
1997 11 3
1998 13 3
1999 6 0
2000 9 1
2001 5 1
2002 3 0
Total 64 10
Scores and results list FR Yugoslavia's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Jokanović goal.[40]
List of international goals scored by Slaviša Jokanović
No. Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1 6 October 1996 Svangaskarð, Toftir, Faroe Islands   Faroe Islands 2–0 8–1 1998 World Cup qualification
2 6–1
3 12 June 1997 Olympic Stadium, Seoul, South Korea   Ghana 1–1 3–1 1997 Korea Cup
4 16 June 1997 Olympic Stadium, Seoul, South Korea   South Korea 1–1 1–1 1997 Korea Cup
5 20 August 1997 Petrovsky, Saint Petersburg, Russia   Russia 1–0 1–0 Friendly
6 28 January 1998 El Menzah, Tunis, Tunisia   Tunisia 2–0 3–0 Friendly
7 3–0
8 22 April 1998 Red Star Stadium, Belgrade, FR Yugoslavia   South Korea 3–1 3–1 Friendly
9 3 September 2000 Josy Barthel, Luxembourg City, Luxembourg   Luxembourg 2–0 2–0 2002 World Cup qualification
10 6 October 2001 Partizan Stadium, Belgrade, FR Yugoslavia   Luxembourg 1–0 6–2 2002 World Cup qualification

Managerial statistics

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As of match played 14 May 2023
Managerial record by team and tenure
Team From To Record Ref
P W D L Win %
Partizan 26 December 2007 5 September 2009 76 54 12 10 071.05 [41]
Muangthong United 27 February 2012 4 June 2013 54 34 12 8 062.96 [41]
Levski Sofia 15 July 2013 8 October 2013 12 6 4 2 050.00 [41]
Hércules 5 May 2014 11 June 2014 5 1 1 3 020.00 [21][41]
Watford 7 October 2014 5 June 2015 36 21 5 10 058.33 [42][26]
Maccabi Tel Aviv 1 July 2015 26 December 2015 29 13 4 12 044.83 [43][27][42]
Fulham 27 December 2015 14 November 2018 145 64 36 45 044.14 [42][29]
Al-Gharafa 1 July 2019 27 May 2021 54 25 10 19 046.30 [44]
Sheffield United 27 May 2021 25 November 2021 22 8 6 8 036.36 [42]
Dynamo Moscow 1 July 2022 14 May 2023 38 15 11 12 039.47
Total 471 241 101 129 051.17

Honours

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Player

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Vojvodina

Partizan

Deportivo

Manager

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Partizan

Muangthong United

Fulham

Individual

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Notes

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  1. ^ Including 6 caps for SFR Yugoslavia.[2]

References

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  1. ^ a b c "Slavisa Jokanovic". Barry Hugman's Footballers. Retrieved 26 May 2018.
  2. ^ Slaviša Jokanović at Reprezentacija.rs (in Serbian)
  3. ^ "Slavisa Jokanovic". BBC Sport. Retrieved 6 August 2010.
  4. ^ a b "Yugoslavia 1992/93". RSSSF. Retrieved 7 October 2015.
  5. ^ "¿Qué fue del CD Tenerife semifinalista de la UEFA?" [What happened to UEFA semi-finalists CD Tenerife?] (in Spanish). Sphera Sports. 18 January 2017. Archived from the original on 21 September 2017. Retrieved 21 September 2017.
  6. ^ a b "Jokanovic, el motor serbio que triunfó en España" [Jokanovic, the serbian motor that made it big in Spain] (in Spanish). Kaiser Magazine. 1 January 2015. Retrieved 7 October 2015.
  7. ^ Jokanovic leaves Chelsea; BBC Sport, 10 July 2002
  8. ^ Díez, Ignacio (19 August 2003). "Jokanovic: "Echaba de menos el fútbol"" [Jokanovic: "I missed football"]. Diario AS (in Spanish). Madrid. Retrieved 7 October 2015.
  9. ^ "Jokanovic rescindió su contrato con el Ciudad de Murcia" [Jokanovic terminated his contract with Ciudad de Murcia] (in Spanish). Fichajes. 21 December 2003. Retrieved 7 October 2015.
  10. ^ "Slaviša Jokanović, international football player". EU-football.info. Retrieved 14 September 2024.
  11. ^ Stankovic, Vladimir (25 May 1992). "Pancev también renuncia a la Eurocopa" [Pancev also passes on Eurocup]. Mundo Deportivo (in Spanish). Retrieved 5 June 2019.
  12. ^ "Yugoslavia (Serbia (and Montenegro)) - Record International Players". RSSSF. Retrieved 14 September 2024.
  13. ^ Yugoslavia hit by fine; BBC Sport, 23 June 2000
  14. ^ Stanić, M. (19 October 2008). "Nisam navijao za Zvezdu u Bariju" (in Serbian). Press Online. Archived from the original on 15 February 2012. Retrieved 27 December 2023.
  15. ^ a b c Bošković, Aleksandar (27 April 2009). "Partizan steamroll Serbia into submission". UEFA. Retrieved 7 October 2015.
  16. ^ Jokanović nije više trener Partizana! (Jokanovic is no longer coach of Partizan!); FK Partizan, 5 September 2009 (in Serbian)
  17. ^ Muangthong introduced Slavisa Jokanovic as new coach; Muangthong United, 28 February 2012
  18. ^ a b Jokanović osvojio titulu na Tajlandu (Jokanović wins title in Thailand) Archived 20 October 2012 at the Wayback Machine; Srpskifudbal, 15 October 2012 (in Serbian)
  19. ^ Йоканович е новият треньор на "Левски" (Jokanović announced as the new manager of "Levski" Sofia); Topsport, 16 July 2013 (in Bulgarian)
  20. ^ Bulgaria's Levski set to fire coach Jokanovic; Novinite, 8 October 2013
  21. ^ a b "Jokanovic, nuevo entrenador del Hércules" [Jokanović, new coach of Hércules]. Marca (in Spanish). Madrid. 5 May 2014. Retrieved 8 April 2015.
  22. ^ "Hércules desciende a Segunda B por tercera vez en su historia" [Hércules relegated to Segunda B for the third time in its history]. Mundo Deportivo (in Spanish). Barcelona. 31 May 2014. Retrieved 20 May 2015.
  23. ^ "Watford: Slavisa Jokanovic replaces Billy McKinlay as boss". BBC Sport. 7 October 2014. Retrieved 16 October 2014.
  24. ^ Malin, Ian (25 April 2015). "Watford seal Premier League return as Brighton are put to the sword". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 1 May 2015.
  25. ^ Mehta, Kalika (2 May 2015). "Watford 1–1 Sheffield Wednesday". BBC Sport. Retrieved 6 May 2015.
  26. ^ a b "Watford: Quique Sanchez Flores replaces Slavisa Jokanovic". BBC Sport. 5 June 2015. Retrieved 22 January 2016.
  27. ^ a b "Jokanovic appointed Maccabi Tel Aviv coach". FourFourTwo. 14 June 2015. Retrieved 11 October 2017.
  28. ^ "Zahavi strike ensures Maccabi edge out Basel". UEFA. 25 August 2015. Retrieved 31 August 2015.
  29. ^ a b "Slavisa Jokanovic: Fulham appoint Serb as new head coach". BBC Sport. 27 December 2015. Retrieved 26 May 2018.
  30. ^ Raeburn, Andrew (7 May 2016). "Fulham boss targets top six next season". West London Sport. Archived from the original on 4 June 2016. Retrieved 10 May 2016.
  31. ^ a b "Fulham pair Slavisa Jokanovic and Aleksandar Mitrovic win Sky Bet Championship April awards". Sky Sports. 4 May 2018. Retrieved 26 October 2021.
  32. ^ a b Cartwright, Phil (26 May 2018). "Aston Villa 0–1 Fulham". BBC Sport. Retrieved 26 May 2018.
  33. ^ Christenson, Marcus (14 November 2018). "Fulham appoint Claudio Ranieri as manager after sacking Slavisa Jokanovic". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 15 November 2018.
  34. ^ "Slavisa Jokanovic: Former Fulham manager appointed at Qatar Super League side Al-Gharafa". BBC Sport. 16 June 2019. Retrieved 29 May 2021.
  35. ^ Rubio, Alberto (3 September 2020). "Jokanovic: "¿Venir a Qatar? Hoy en día no es una sorpresa, la Liga está creciendo mucho"" [Jokanović: "Coming to Qatar? Nowadays it's not a surprise, the League is growing a lot]. Marca (in Spanish). Retrieved 27 May 2021.
  36. ^ "Championship specialist Jokanovic takes charge at Sheffield United". The Guardian. 27 May 2021. Retrieved 25 November 2021.
  37. ^ "Sheffield United replace Slavisa Jokanovic with Paul Heckingbottom". BBC Sport. 25 November 2021. Retrieved 25 November 2021.
  38. ^ "Славиша Йоканович – главный тренер "Динамо"!" [Slaviša Jokanović – Dynamo head coach!] (in Russian). FC Dynamo Moscow. 17 June 2022. Retrieved 17 June 2022.
  39. ^ "Заявление ФК "Динамо" Москва" [FC Dynamo Moscow statement] (in Russian). FC Dynamo Moscow. 14 May 2023.
  40. ^ a b "Slaviša Jokanović". European Football. Retrieved 6 May 2015.
  41. ^ a b c d "S. Jokanović". Soccerway. Retrieved 10 September 2017.
  42. ^ a b c d "Managers: Slavisa Jokanovic". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 26 May 2018.
  43. ^ "Maccabi Tel Aviv FC: Matches". Soccerway. Perform Group. Retrieved 26 May 2018.
  44. ^ "Al Gharafa SC: Matches". Soccerway. Perform Group. Retrieved 8 October 2020.
  45. ^ Kramarsić, Igor. "Yugoslavia – List of Final Tables". RSSSF. Retrieved 2 June 2016.
  46. ^ Abbink, Dinant. "Cup of Yugoslavia 1991/92". RSSSF. Retrieved 2 June 2016.
  47. ^ Tejedor Carnicero, José Vicente; Torre, Raúl; Lozano Ferrer, Carles. "Spain – List of Super Cup Finals". RSSSF. Retrieved 10 July 2018.
  48. ^ Callaghan, Shane (30 April 2015). "Watford's Slavisa Jokanovic named Championship Manager of the Month". Sports Mole. Retrieved 26 October 2021.
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