Yugoslavia team early nineties

stooge · 10-05-2022 3:58pm #1

What a team they could have had if it had not been for the war 😥..... Look at the midfield and strikers in particular 😲

DEF: Igor Stimac, Slavan Bilic, Robert Jarni, Refik Šabanadžović, Siniša Mihajlović

MID: Zvonimir Boban, Robert Prosenecki, Dejan Savićević, Vladimir Jugović, Dragan Stojković

FWD: Davor Šuker, Predrag Mijatovic, Darko Pančev, Alen Bokšić

Surely would have been contenders for 1994 world cup or 1992,96 euros. Remember, Croatia (with only half of the players above) finished 3rd in 1998 world cup.

Best team never to have won anything? (apart from 1987 youth cup obv)

Cookiemunster · 10-05-2022 4:19pm

This is very simplistic way of putting it, but the war basically occurred as a result of the breakup of Yugoslavia. So even if there had been no war, the country was breaking up and Yugoslav national team wouldn't have existed after 1992.

Would have been some team though.

NIMAN · 10-05-2022 4:28pm

Saw them play at Windsor Park, they were definitely a great side to watch.

stooge · 10-05-2022 4:59pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119041866#Comment_119041866

1992 qualfying? Remember watching that match on the TV. they walked that group, only lost the last match which meant nothing anyway. Denmark ended up winning euro92 also.

NIMAN · 10-05-2022 5:58pm

Just checking and it appears to have been 12 Sept 1990, must have been 1st game in qualifying for 1992.

Yeah they had a great team. It was a golden era for them.

Brussels Sprout · 10-05-2022 6:24pm

UEFA currently has 55 member countries. It's mad to think that 7 of them used be a single country (Yugoslavia) and of those 7 constituent countries 5 of them have qualified* for major tournaments. At the same time, another 11 members (+4 AFC countries) used make up another single country (the Soviet Union). Only 3 out of those 11 have qualified for major tournaments since though.

*This includes North Macedonia getting into the Euros via winning Nations League D

AllGunsBlazing · 10-05-2022 7:00pm

Wonderful footballers but Germany/ West Germany always had their number. They would have been wonderful to watch but I don't think they would have won Euro 92. Bear in mind France were hot favorites themselves with an excellent side, but completely fell apart when it mattered. Tournament football demands a particular mindset as much as talent.

adaminho · 10-05-2022 8:08pm

Although a talented team you'd have to wonder that even if the war never happened how would they have performed at a major tournament? The different factions in the team had major problems with each other with Boban kicking a police officer in the Dinamo - Red Star riot. We've all seen how disharmony in a squad can affect performance in major tournaments like the German, Dutch, Spanish and French teams. I actually had the 92 Yugoslavia jersey as a kid which is worth about €300 now.

billyhead · 10-05-2022 8:25pm

France were meant to win the last euros with such a talented squad and look how that turned out.

fatbhoy · 11-05-2022 6:22pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119042804#Comment_119042804

Yugoslavia were known as "the Brasil of Europe" colloquially during that time and before. Mad as a box of frogs always though for in-fighting.

rpirl · 13-09-2024 11:59pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119042004#Comment_119042004

Denmark beat them 2-1 away midway through the group and also won 3-0 in Austria. Two early signs that the Danish team had a bit about them.

NIMAN · 14-09-2024 12:00am

Saw that team play in Windsor Park.

josip · 16-09-2024 12:30pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119042529#Comment_119042529

A lot of that team had already proven themselves in 1987 in Chile.

https://www.theguardian.com/football/2007/jul/24/newsstory.sport9

And a good few of that Yugoslav team were on the Red Star team that won the European Cup. So they might have been ok at Euro 1992. But yeah, with Yugoslavia there was always a risk of implosion.

jacool · 16-09-2024 3:43pm

Strange story from back then was the historian (and gambler!) who backed Denmark, in 1991, before they were even offered a place, and got 1000/1. He was, correctly, convinced that Yugoslavia wouldn't be allowed play. When the Danes were officially included they were priced at 50/1 but after drawing against England and losing to Sweden they were 150/1 outsiders.

ArmaniJeanss · 17-09-2024 4:59pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122621959#Comment_122621959

I can confirm the 150/1. I was on, though a sadly pathetic £1 e/w in the old money.
It was one of the first times I'd been able to work out in my fledgling maths nerd career that all the bookies had made a rick. Even with the draw and defeat in their first 2 games it was all still in their hands. Beat France and they were into the semi-finals (it was only an 8 team competition) so just a further two games from winning it.
So even if you made them 4/1 to beat France in 90 mins and 30%/70% dogs to win the knockout ties incl extra time/penalties, it still only came to ~50/1.

(Obviously yer man being on at 1000/1 before they were confirmed participants is far more impressive)

Yugoslavia team early nineties

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