Career As Coach
Brank Zebec got his first coaching assignment soon after he finished playing. In 1965 he became joint coach of the Yugoslav first division side Dinamo in his hometown Zagreb. He held the office together with Ivica Horvat, who later too would enjoy success in Germany. The team was to qualify for the Inter Cities Fairs Cup, the precursor of the UEFA Cup. Initially, things were not looking promising in this campaign. The aggregate result in the first round encounters with Czech side Spartak Brno was 2-2, and only the toss of a coin saw Dinamo advancing. After Dunfermline and Dinamo Piteşti were eliminated, Juventus were their opponents in the quarterfinals, but were overcome 2-2 and 3-0. In the semifinals Dinamo managed one of the great comebacks in the history of European competitions. After a 0-3 defeat in Frankfurt against Eintracht Dinamo outclassed the Germans in Zagreb 4-0.
In the finals the club had to face Leeds United then with Peter Lorimer and Billy Bremner in the team. The home leg was won 2-0, thus a nil all draw in England was sufficient. Zebec and his team won the first ever official international trophy for a team from Eastern Europe.
Read more about this topic: Branko Zebec
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