Mitar Mrkela (

Serbian Cyrillic The Serbian Cyrillic alphabet (, ), also known as the Serbian script, (, ), is a standardized variation of the Cyrillic script used to write the Serbian language. It originated in medieval Serbia and was significantly reformed in the 19th cen ...

: Митар Мркела; born 10 July 1965) is a

Serbia , image_flag = Flag of Serbia.svg , national_motto = , image_coat = Coat of arms of Serbia.svg , national_anthem = () , image_map = , map_caption = Location of Serbia (gree ...

n retired footballer, who was a member of the Yugoslavian team that won the bronze medal at the

1984 Summer Olympics The 1984 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXIII Olympiad and commonly known as Los Angeles 1984) were an international multi-sport event held from July 28 to August 12, 1984, in Los Angeles, California, United States. It marked the ...

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

Playing career

He started his senior pro career with

OFK Beograd OFK Beograd ( sr-Cyrl, ОФК Београд – Омладински фудбалски клуб Београд, English language, English: ''Belgrade Youth Football Club''), also known in English as OFK Belgrade and currently referred to as OFK ...

in 1981 at only 16 years and 16 days of age (at that time the youngest ever in the Yugoslav First League), before moving on to

Red Star Belgrade Fudbalski klub Crvena zvezda ( sr-cyrl, Фудбалски клуб Црвена звезда, lit=Red Star Football Club), commonly referred to as Crvena zvezda () and colloquially referred to as Red Star Belgrade in anglophone media, is a ...

in 1983 where he stayed until 1990. After appearing in one league game for Red Star in 1990/91 season, he transferred to Dutch club

FC Twente Football Club Twente (), sometimes known internationally as FC Twente Enschede, is a Dutch professional Association football, football club from the city of Enschede. The club was formed in 1965 by the merger of 1926 Dutch champions Sportclub E ...

and stayed there for two seasons. He played several matches for

Beşiktaş Beşiktaş () is a district and municipality of Istanbul Province, Turkey. Its area is 18 km2 and its population is 175,190 (2022). It is located on the European shore of the Bosphorus strait. It is bordered on the north by Sarıyer and ...

in the 1992-1993 season and scored 4 goals, before returning to the

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

with

SC Cambuur SC Cambuur, also known as Cambuur Leeuwarden, or simply Cambuur, () is a Dutch professional Association football, football club from the city of Leeuwarden formed on 19 June 1964. They currently play in the Eerste Divisie, the second tier of Dutc ...

. Mrkela holds distinction as the youngest player ever to play for

SFR Yugoslavia The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (commonly abbreviated as SFRY or SFR Yugoslavia), known from 1945 to 1963 as the Federal People's Republic of Yugoslavia, commonly referred to as Socialist Yugoslavia or simply Yugoslavia, was a country ...

national squad. He was only 17 years and 130 days old when he made his national team debut on 17 November 1982 during a Euro 1984 qualifier versus

Bulgaria Bulgaria, officially the Republic of Bulgaria, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern portion of the Balkans directly south of the Danube river and west of the Black Sea. Bulgaria is bordered by Greece and Turkey t ...

Sofia Sofia is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Bulgaria, largest city of Bulgaria. It is situated in the Sofia Valley at the foot of the Vitosha mountain, in the western part of the country. The city is built west of the Is ...

. Head coach

Todor Veselinović Todor "Toza" Veselinović (, ; 22 October 1930 – 17 May 2017) was a Serbian footballer and coach. He was one of the most renowned goalscorers in Yugoslavian history. He was the last surviving member of Yugoslavia's 1954 World Cup squad. Car ...

brought him on in the 17th minute in place of injured

Zvonko Živković Zvonko Živković ( Serbian Cyrillic: Звонко Живковић; born 31 October 1959) is a Serbian football manager and former player. Playing career Živković spent eight seasons at Partizan, before moving to Benfica in 1986. He also p ...

. However, despite a lot of early promise, Mrkela would go on to make only 5 national team appearances, scoring 1 goal.

Post-playing career

For a time in early 2000s, Mrkela was the president of City of Belgrade Football Association. He then became the youth coach in the OFK Beograd system. In July 2005, soon after Dragan Stojković took over as club president from

Dragan Džajić Dragan Džajić ( sr-Cyrl, Драган Џајић; born 30 May 1946) is a Serbian football administrator and former player who is the current president of the Football Association of Serbia from 14 March 2023. Džajić is widely considered to b ...

, Mrkela became the director of Red Star Belgrade youth academy - a job up to that moment performed by

Goran Đorović Goran Đorović ( sr-Cyrl, Горан Ђopoвић; born 11 November 1971) is a Serbian former professional footballer who played mainly a central defender but also as a left-back. In his country, he played for Priština and Red Star. He spent ...

. After leaving his post at Red Star in December 2008, he became the sporting director at OFK Beograd.

Personal life

In 1991, Mrkela married actress

Lidija Vukićević Lidija Vukićević ( sr-Cyrl, Лидија Вукићевић; born 20 July 1962) is a Serbian film and TV actress and politician. Best known for playing the role of Violeta a.k.a. Viki, daughter of the central Popadić family on the hugely popul ...

. They have two sons:

Andrej Andrej is the form of the given name Andrew used in Slovak, Croatian and Slovene. Notable individuals with the given name Andrej *Andrej Babiš (born 1954), Czech politician *Andrej Bajuk (1943–2011), Slovene politician and economist *Andrej ...

, born in 1992 and who also was a professional footballer, and David, born in 1997. The couple divorced in 2000. With his second wife Olgica, 21 years his junior, Mrkela has a son, Dušan (born in 2013). For a while, Mrkela was politically active in the

Serbian Renewal Movement The Serbian Renewal Movement (, abbr. SPO) is a liberal and monarchist political party in Serbia. It was founded in 1990 by writer Vuk Drašković, who served as the party's president until 2024. Aleksandar Cvetković is the incumbent leader. ...

(SPO).
at MTS Mondo

References

External links

Profile on Serbia national football team website
* *
TFF
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mrkela, Mitar 1965 births Living people Footballers from Belgrade Serbian people of Croatian descent Men's association football wingers Yugoslav men's footballers Yugoslavia men's international footballers Footballers at the 1984 Summer Olympics Olympic footballers for Yugoslavia Olympic bronze medalists for Yugoslavia Medalists at the 1984 Summer Olympics Olympic medalists in football Serbia and Montenegro men's footballers OFK Beograd players Red Star Belgrade footballers FC Twente players Beşiktaş J.K. footballers SC Cambuur players Yugoslav First League players Eredivisie players Süper Lig players Yugoslav expatriate men's footballers Expatriate men's footballers in the Netherlands Yugoslav expatriate sportspeople in the Netherlands Serbia and Montenegro expatriate men's footballers Expatriate men's footballers in Turkey Serbia and Montenegro expatriate sportspeople in Turkey Serbia and Montenegro expatriate sportspeople in the Netherlands Red Star Belgrade non-playing staff