| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | (1938-04-19)19 April 1938 | ||
| Place of birth | Split,Yugoslavia | ||
| Date of death | 24 December 2018(2018-12-24) (aged 80) | ||
| Place of death | Split, Croatia | ||
| Height | 1.87 m (6 ft 2 in) | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1956–1976 | RNK Split | ||
| Managerial career | |||
| 1969 | RNK Split | ||
| 1971–1972 | RNK Split | ||
| 1981 | GOŠK-Jug | ||
| 1981–1983 | Solin | ||
| 1984–1986 | Hajduk Split | ||
| 1987–1989 | Budućnost Titograd | ||
| 1989–1990 | Borac Banja Luka | ||
| 1990–1991 | APOEL | ||
| 1991–1993 | Hajduk Split | ||
| 1992–1993 | Croatia | ||
| 1994 | HNK Dubrovnik | ||
| 1994–1995 | Iran | ||
| 1995–1997 | Persepolis | ||
| 1997–1998 | Publikum Celje | ||
| 1998–1999 | Osijek | ||
| 1999–2000 | Ferencváros | ||
| 2001–2002 | Sepahan | ||
| 2002–2003 | Osijek | ||
| 2005 | Sepahan | ||
| 2009 | Damash Gilan | ||
| 2010 | Hajduk Split | ||
| 2015 | Hajduk Split | ||
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Stanko "Špaco" Poklepović (19 April 1938 – 24 December 2018) was a Croatian professionalfootballplayer andmanager.
Poklepović managed a number of teams over 46 years, includingHajduk Split on four occasions.[1] He was also the first manager to win theCroatian First Football League with Hajduk Split, in its inaugural season, in1992.
Throughout his whole career, Poklepović played forRNK Split, between 1956 and 1976, and won theYugoslav Second League twice, first in the1956–57 (Zone I) season, and then after in the1959–60 (West) season.
He made his impact in the1984–85 Yugoslav First League as a manager ofHajduk Split when he took over the Yugoslav powerhouse at the time when many important players left the club and many young players likeAsanović,Andrijašević andŠpanjić joined the club with no experience.Poklepović almost won the league but finished 2nd because of match-fixing that was popular with other clubs in the league. Hajduk broke the record and scored 2 or more goals in every match that season.
In the1985–86 UEFA Cup, Poklepović lead Hajduk to the quarter-finals. Poklepović won the first leg match againstWaregem 1–0 onPoljud but he was then sacked from Hajduk for under-performing in the league so he didn't manage the second leg game against Waregem which Hajduk lost on penalties after a 0–1 defeat.
In 1991, he returned to Hajduk, winning the1992 Prva HNL which was Poklepović's first league trophy in his career. In 1992, he took over theCroatia national football team, but after 4 games and only 1 win, he left the team.
In 1994, he went to manage theIran national football team andPersepolis. He won the1995–96 Azadegan League and the1996–97 Azadegan League with Persepolis.
In 1998, he took overOsijek and won the1998–99 Croatian Cup which is Osijek's first and only trophy till today. He also finished 4th in thePrva HNL the same season and secured a place in European competitions for Osijek. He returned again to Iran in 2005 and 2009, but unsuccessfully.
In February 2010, he returned to Hajduk Split for the third time.[2] He won the2009–10 Croatian Cup and finished 2nd in thePrva HNL the same season. He qualified with Hajduk for the2010–11 UEFA Europa League after defeatingDinamo București andUnirea Urziceni in the qualifying rounds. In the2010–11 Prva HNL, he controlled the 1st position for a while and became a favorite of the fans and the media. In the Europa League, he defeatedAnderlecht 1–0 onPoljud, which was Hajduk's biggest European victory since the mid 1990s.[3] After losing a cup game againstIstra 1961 in the round of 16 and losing the 1st position in the league, he was sacked by Hajduk chairmanJoško Svaguša on 27 October 2010.[4]
In February 2015, five years later, Poklepović returned again to Hajduk Split for the fourth time in his career,[1] but later in April, he was sacked because of underperforming in the league.
Poklepović died on 24 December 2018, atSplit Hospital, after a long battle with health issues, aged 80.[5]
| Team | From | To | Record | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| P | W | D | L | Win % | |||
| Hajduk Split | 1984 | 1986 | 68 | 33 | 19 | 16 | 048.5 |
| Budućnost Titograd | 1987 | 1989 | 57 | 24 | 17 | 16 | 042.1 |
| Borac Banja Luka | 1989 | 1990 | 19 | 12 | 3 | 4 | 063.2 |
| APOEL | 1990 | 1991 | 34 | 15 | 10 | 9 | 044.1 |
| Hajduk Split | 1991 | 1993 | 69 | 42 | 18 | 9 | 060.9 |
| Croatia | 1992 | 1993 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 025.0 |
| Dubrovnik | 1994 | 1994 | 13 | 3 | 3 | 7 | 023.1 |
| Iran | 1994 | 1996 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 025.0 |
| Istra | 1995 | 1995 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 014.3 |
| Persepolis F.C. | 1995 | 1997 | 54 | 31 | 8 | 15 | 057.4 |
| Poblikum Celjea | 1997 | 1998 | 39 | 16 | 7 | 16 | 041.0 |
| Mladost 127 | 1998 | 1999 | 11 | 4 | 1 | 6 | 036.4 |
| Osijek | 1998 | 1999 | 12 | 6 | 4 | 2 | 050.0 |
| Ferencvárosi TC | 1999 | 2000 | 33 | 14 | 8 | 11 | 042.4 |
| NK Osijek | 2002 | 2003 | 17 | 5 | 6 | 6 | 029.4 |
| Hajduk Split | 2010 | 2010 | 39 | 23 | 10 | 6 | 059.0 |
| Hajduk Split | 2015 | 2015 | 9 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 022.2 |
| Total | 489 | 233 | 120 | 136 | 047.6 | ||
Split
Hajduk Split
Persepolis
Osijek
| Awards and achievements | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Iran Pro League Winning Manager 1995–96, 1996–97 | Succeeded by |