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Dragan Okuka
Dragomir "Dragan" Okuka (Serbian Cyrillic: Драгомир Драган Окука; born 2 April 1954) is a Serbian professional football manager and former player.
As a player, he was predominantly associated with his time with Velež Mostar where he won the 1981 Yugoslav Cup before joining Swedish club Örebro SK, the place his son, professional footballer Dražen, was born before ending his career soon after.
Starting his management career with FK Bečej, Okuka would win his first coaching honours with FK Obilić when he won the 1997–98 Yugoslav league title with them. Since then he has achieved success with Polish club Legia Warsaw and managed the Serbia and Montenegro under-21 team to a fourth-place finish at the 2006 European Under-21 Championship. He has also managed several other clubs.
Okuka, born in Porija (a village in the Herzegovinian town of Kalinovik), started his football career playing for Velež Nevesinje. However, he reached his affirmation at Yugoslav First League club Velež Mostar and in his debut season was part of the squad that narrowly missed out on winning the 1973–74 league title on goal difference to HNK Hajduk Split. After several seasons within Velež Mostar's midfield Okuka would go on to win the 1981 Yugoslav Cup and Balkans Cup with the club, while also gaining a BA in Law from the University of Mostar. Having spent the majority of his career in Velež Mostar (11 years, except one season he spent on loan at Leotar Trebinje), Okuka would join Swedish football Division 2 side Örebro SK for a short period before ending his career with Swedish lower league side Motala AIF.
He represented Yugoslavia at the 1979 Mediterranean Games (winning gold) and played four matches (scoring one goal) for the Yugoslavia national under-21 team. Okuka was the captain of the under-21 side at the 1980 UEFA European Under-21 Championship where Yugoslavia (led by a coaching duo of Ivan Toplak and Stevan Vilotić) reached the semi-final where they lost to the Soviet Union.
After he retired, he would move back to Yugoslavia and return to his first club Velež Mostar, where he took the position of general manager within the team by 1990. His time at the club was short-lived, and he would soon have to face challenges outside football when his life would be disrupted by the Bosnian War in 1992, however in early 1995 Okuka would make his first foray into management when he was hired by struggling Yugoslavian team FK Bečej and lead them to fourth within the 1994–95 league season. This would be enough for Okuka to lead the team to the 1995 UEFA Intertoto Cup, where the club were knocked out in the group stages; however, despite this, Okuka would soon attract the interests of FK Čukarički, who he stayed with for one season.
Still regarded as one of the country's most promising coaches, he would join highly ambitious football club FK Obilić despite the questionable ownership of career criminal Željko Ražnatović. While at the club he would employ a 3-5-2 formation as the club won the 1997–98 league title for the first time. Okuka would only stay with the club for one season, as Željko Ražnatović's ownership of the club came into question, and, despite having the chance to manage in the 1998–99 UEFA Champions League, Okuka decided to join FK Budućnost Podgorica the following season.
After a short stint with FK Vojvodina in 2000, Okuka would move away from the Yugoslavian league and join top tier Polish side Legia Warsaw, where he would soon get them to play in a 3-4-1-2 formation and eventually aid them to the 2001–02 Ekstraklasa league title at the end of the season. The following season wasn't so happy for Okuka, as Legia Warsaw were knocked out early within the 2002–03 UEFA Champions League while also having an underwhelming league season, which saw him replaced by Dariusz Kubicki at the end of the season.
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Dragan Okuka
Dragomir "Dragan" Okuka (Serbian Cyrillic: Драгомир Драган Окука; born 2 April 1954) is a Serbian professional football manager and former player.
As a player, he was predominantly associated with his time with Velež Mostar where he won the 1981 Yugoslav Cup before joining Swedish club Örebro SK, the place his son, professional footballer Dražen, was born before ending his career soon after.
Starting his management career with FK Bečej, Okuka would win his first coaching honours with FK Obilić when he won the 1997–98 Yugoslav league title with them. Since then he has achieved success with Polish club Legia Warsaw and managed the Serbia and Montenegro under-21 team to a fourth-place finish at the 2006 European Under-21 Championship. He has also managed several other clubs.
Okuka, born in Porija (a village in the Herzegovinian town of Kalinovik), started his football career playing for Velež Nevesinje. However, he reached his affirmation at Yugoslav First League club Velež Mostar and in his debut season was part of the squad that narrowly missed out on winning the 1973–74 league title on goal difference to HNK Hajduk Split. After several seasons within Velež Mostar's midfield Okuka would go on to win the 1981 Yugoslav Cup and Balkans Cup with the club, while also gaining a BA in Law from the University of Mostar. Having spent the majority of his career in Velež Mostar (11 years, except one season he spent on loan at Leotar Trebinje), Okuka would join Swedish football Division 2 side Örebro SK for a short period before ending his career with Swedish lower league side Motala AIF.
He represented Yugoslavia at the 1979 Mediterranean Games (winning gold) and played four matches (scoring one goal) for the Yugoslavia national under-21 team. Okuka was the captain of the under-21 side at the 1980 UEFA European Under-21 Championship where Yugoslavia (led by a coaching duo of Ivan Toplak and Stevan Vilotić) reached the semi-final where they lost to the Soviet Union.
After he retired, he would move back to Yugoslavia and return to his first club Velež Mostar, where he took the position of general manager within the team by 1990. His time at the club was short-lived, and he would soon have to face challenges outside football when his life would be disrupted by the Bosnian War in 1992, however in early 1995 Okuka would make his first foray into management when he was hired by struggling Yugoslavian team FK Bečej and lead them to fourth within the 1994–95 league season. This would be enough for Okuka to lead the team to the 1995 UEFA Intertoto Cup, where the club were knocked out in the group stages; however, despite this, Okuka would soon attract the interests of FK Čukarički, who he stayed with for one season.
Still regarded as one of the country's most promising coaches, he would join highly ambitious football club FK Obilić despite the questionable ownership of career criminal Željko Ražnatović. While at the club he would employ a 3-5-2 formation as the club won the 1997–98 league title for the first time. Okuka would only stay with the club for one season, as Željko Ražnatović's ownership of the club came into question, and, despite having the chance to manage in the 1998–99 UEFA Champions League, Okuka decided to join FK Budućnost Podgorica the following season.
After a short stint with FK Vojvodina in 2000, Okuka would move away from the Yugoslavian league and join top tier Polish side Legia Warsaw, where he would soon get them to play in a 3-4-1-2 formation and eventually aid them to the 2001–02 Ekstraklasa league title at the end of the season. The following season wasn't so happy for Okuka, as Legia Warsaw were knocked out early within the 2002–03 UEFA Champions League while also having an underwhelming league season, which saw him replaced by Dariusz Kubicki at the end of the season.