Serhiy Stanislavovych Rebrov (Ukrainian:Сергій Станіславович Ребров;[4] born 3 June 1974) is a Ukrainian professionalfootball manager and formerplayer who played as astriker. He is currently the manager ofUkraine.
He debuted forUkraine in 1992, playing 75 times for the national team, scoring 15 goals. He played in the nation's first-everWorld Cup, in2006.
He finished his career as a professional football player in 2009, after which he worked as a coach. In 2014, he held the position of acting head coach at Dynamo Kyiv, and for the next three years he washead coach.[5] He was the first to win theUkrainian Cup as a player and coach.[6] He also spent three seasons as manager of Hungarian sideFerencváros from 2018 to 2021. In 2023, he took charge of the Ukraine national team and led them to qualification forUEFA Euro 2024.
He scored several key goals in European competitions, notably in the 1997–98 and 1998–99 seasons of theUEFA Champions League, including a famous goal againstBarcelona from a tight angle. Dynamo reached the Champions League semi-final in 1999, but lost toBayern Munich on aggregate. In the1999–2000 season, Rebrov became a joint top scorer in theUEFA Champions League with ten goals (including two goals in qualification games) as Dynamo progressed to the last sixteen before going out on head-to-head record againstReal Madrid.
On 17 May 2000, he was sold toTottenham Hotspur for £11 million,[7] where he managed a modest return of nine goals in 29 games over his first Premier League season, appearing to struggle to adjust to the different style of play in England. Things grew worse for Rebrov after the sacking ofGeorge Graham in March 2001, as he was frozen out by new managerGlenn Hoddle, with extremely few first-team starts or substitute appearances.
In search of first-team football, Rebrov spent two consecutive loan spells atFenerbahçe.[8] In his second season there, alongside new signingPierre van Hooijdonk, he helped lead Fenerbahçe to its 15th title.[9]
Subsequently, Rebrov signed a one-year contract withWest Ham United in theChampionship after his contract with Tottenham expired.[10] He scored just once in the league for West Ham, the winner in a 3–2 win over Watford on 27 November 2004.[11] He also scored once in the League Cup against Notts County.[12]
On 1 June 2005, Rebrov became a free agent, after declining to re-sign; two days, later he signed a new two-year contract withDynamo Kyiv, with the option of a one-year extension. In the2005–06 season, Rebrov became Dynamo's top scorer with13 goals, two behind league joint top scorersBrandão andOkoduwa, despite playing in midfield. Rebrov also topped the league in points, with goals and assists – and was named player of the season, according to a poll of team managers and captains.
In July 2007, Rebrov became Dynamo's captain. In the2007–08 season, he was mostly benched, starting only seven out of eighteen matches before the winter break. His contribution in some games was heavily criticised by the press. It was reported that Rebrov could move toArsenal Kyiv during the transfer window. However, under new managerYuri Semin, Rebrov started all games and was named best player at the close seasonChannel One Cup. In February 2008, Dynamo president Ihor Surkis stated that the club was planning talks with Rebrov, with a view to extending his contract.[13] Shortly thereafter, Rebrov received an offer of a two-year contract fromRussian Premier League clubRubin Kazan.
On 3 March 2008, Dynamo announced that Rebrov had signed a two-year contract withRubin Kazan, and would join the new club at the end of the season, in the summer of 2008.[14] With the Russian season starting in spring, Rubin eventually agreed to a $1 million compensation with Dynamo for Rebrov's early release from his contract.[15] He was part of the team that won the2008 Russian Premier League for the first time in Rubin's history, playing in midfield in 24 out of his team's 30 league matches, and scoring five goals.
Rebrov's retirement was announced on 20 July 2009. At the same time, he became an assistant manager atthe Dynamo Kyiv reserves.[16] During his career, he played in various European leagues, with 423 games recorded and 145 goals netted. His career achievements resulted in him being inducted into the Viktor Leonenko Hall of Fame in March 2012.
On 17 April 2014, Rebrov was named caretaker manager ofDynamo Kyiv. On 19 May, after the victory in the Ukrainian cup, he was named manager. During Rebrov's reign as manager, Dynamo Kyiv went on to win twoUkrainian Premier League titles, twoUkrainian Cup titles and oneUkrainian Super Cup. In the 2015–16 season, the team also progressed past the group stages of theUEFA Champions League for the first time in over 15 years, into the knockout rounds. The season before, Rebrov lead Dynamo Kyiv in a successful2014–15 UEFA Europa League campaign, which included a memorable 5–2 win overEverton in the round of 16-second leg. Rebrov confirmed his resignation as manager on 31 May 2017, following the expiration fo his contract, after the club's final game of the season, againstChornomorets Odesa.[22]
Rebrov soon returned to management and in June 2017, Rebrov was named manager of Saudi Arabia sideAl Ahli. He managed there for one season, until he was eventually sacked for failing to win the league.[23]
On 22 August 2018, Rebrov was named manager of Hungarian sideFerencváros, after the club failed to qualify for theUEFA Europa League.[24]
On 29 September 2020, Rebrov guided Ferencváros into theChampions League group stage for the first time in a quarter of a century after beatingMolde. The Green Eagles beatDjurgården,Celtic andDinamo Zagreb in the previous three rounds of qualification to set up a meeting with the Norwegian champions. After a 3–3 draw in Norway in the first leg, Ferencváros held out for a 0–0 draw in Budapest in the second leg, which meant a victory on away goals, and thus qualification to the promised land of the group stage was secured for the first time in 25 years.
On 4 June 2021, Ferencváros announced his resignation as coach of the club, thanking him for his contribution to winning three consecutive league titles, and for guiding the club both to the UEFA Europa League group stage, in 2019, and to the Champions League group stage, in the following year.[25]
Rebrov scored Ukraine's first-ever World Cup goal in their opening1998 FIFA World Cup qualification group 9 match in 1996, againstNorthern Ireland. The match inBelfast finished 1–0 thanks to Rebrov's contribution. Ukraine finished 2nd in the group behindGermany, with Rebrov again scoring the winner in another 1–0 victory away toAlbania in March 1997, and at home to the same team in August. His three goals helped his team into the playoffs, where they lost 3–1 on aggregate toCroatia.
Rebrov's club exploits earned him a recall to the national team and a ticket to the2006 FIFA World Cup inGermany, where he scored a long-range shot againstSaudi Arabia as Ukraine progressed to the quarterfinals before going down to Italy.
Rebrov is a licensedamateur radio operator and an activecontester and has been active with the following callsigns: UT5UDX (Ukraine), M0SDX (England), TA2ZF (Turkey) and UT0U(Ukrainian contest-callsign). Most recent call is 5B4AMM (Cyprus) and P3X (Cypriot contest-callsign).[28]
Rebrov has been married twice and has three sons: the eldest one from his first wife Liudmyla, with whom he lived for 16 years before the couple divorced, and three younger children from his second wife Anna, whom he married in 2016 after three years of dating.[29][30][31]
UAE Pro League Manager of the Month: August 2021,[38] September 2021,[39] October 2021,[40] November 2021,[41] December 2021-January 2022,[42] February 2022,[43] March 2022[44]