Stojković Returns to Japan

The last time anyone heard the name Dragan “Pixy” Stojković, it was probably in the context of the violence at Red Star Belgrade at the end of last year — you remember, a plain-clothes cop ended up in the hospital, and three club officials were arrested and held for a month while investigations were made? There were rumors in Serbia at the time that Stojković, who had just resigned as the club’s president under a cloud of suspicion, had collaborated with Red Star personnel to somehow instigate the violence, but nothing was ever proven and, as these things tend to do, the incident mostly faded away.

Just to make sure, though, Pixy is going far away, returning to what was arguably the scene of his greatest triumph: Nagoya, Japan.

Stojković spent the last seven years of his career in Japan, playing for Nagoya Grampus Eight from 1994 to 2001, helping the team win trophies (one under a coach by the name of Arsene Wenger) and earning himself massive fame and adoration in Japan. There’s a street named after him in Nagoya, a statue at the training ground, and a gate at Nagoya’s stadium which bears his name. And, when the season starts, Pixy will also be Nagoya’s manager.

The club have struggled in the J-League for the past several seasons, and the hiring of their beloved Pixy is an obvious attempt to return Nagoya to its former glory. He’s the personification of everything that was great about the club during the mid-to-late 1990s, and the fact that, at least according to Wikipedia, he’s never managed before in his life is only a minor detail. Everyone’s got to get a start sometime!

Stojković is in Japan today and, though the J-League season doesn’t start until March, Nagoya have a January practice schedule on their website, so it looks like his managerial experience starts now.

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Category: Asia, World Football