Frane Matošic
Encyclopedia
Frane Matošić was a Croatia
n football
player and coach. Born in Split
, he played on the position of the striker.
He was the best goalscorer of HNK Hajduk Split of all times and its biggest football player legend.
from Split
. In his very first game for Hajduk in 1935 against Slavija from Sarajevo, Matošić scored a hat-trick. He played 16 seasons for Hajduk.
While serving the obligatory military service in the season 1939, he played for the BSK from Belgrade. Next season, season 1939/40, he returned to Hajduk. After Hajduk's management suspending the work of Hajduk in 1941, he went abroad to play for Bologna F.C. 1909
, played in season of 1942/43. When the information about restoring of Hajduk's work came to Frane Matošić, he returned to Croatia and smuggled himself on the free territory. There he joined Hajduk, that restarted its work on the free, Allied controlled part of Croatia, on the island of Vis. Since then, Matošić was playing the games for Hajduk (that was playing friendly games against Allied teams on the Mediterranean).
Altogether, Matošić played 739 games for Hajduk and scored impressive 729 goals.
football team and the coach of Split's second football squad, RNK Split
.
He twice refused Josip Broz Tito
's offer of transferring of Hajduk to Belgrade and renaming it into "Partizan"
Frane Matošić died in Split
on the anniversary of Hajduk's historical victory over Crvena Zvezda from Belgrade in 1950.
He won the silver medal on the 1948 Summer Olympics
in London.
Croatia
Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
n football
Football (soccer)
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...
player and coach. Born in Split
Split (city)
Split is a Mediterranean city on the eastern shores of the Adriatic Sea, centered around the ancient Roman Palace of the Emperor Diocletian and its wide port bay. With a population of 178,192 citizens, and a metropolitan area numbering up to 467,899, Split is by far the largest Dalmatian city and...
, he played on the position of the striker.
He was the best goalscorer of HNK Hajduk Split of all times and its biggest football player legend.
Club career
Matošić started to play football with HNK HajdukHNK Hajduk Split
HNK Hajduk Split, commonly referred to as Hajduk Split or simply Hajduk, is a Croatian football club founded in 1911 and based in the city of Split. The club's home ground since 1979 is the 35,000-seater Poljud Stadium and the team's traditional home colours are white shirts with blue shorts and...
from Split
Split (city)
Split is a Mediterranean city on the eastern shores of the Adriatic Sea, centered around the ancient Roman Palace of the Emperor Diocletian and its wide port bay. With a population of 178,192 citizens, and a metropolitan area numbering up to 467,899, Split is by far the largest Dalmatian city and...
. In his very first game for Hajduk in 1935 against Slavija from Sarajevo, Matošić scored a hat-trick. He played 16 seasons for Hajduk.
While serving the obligatory military service in the season 1939, he played for the BSK from Belgrade. Next season, season 1939/40, he returned to Hajduk. After Hajduk's management suspending the work of Hajduk in 1941, he went abroad to play for Bologna F.C. 1909
Bologna F.C. 1909
Bologna Football Club 1909, known simply as Bologna, is an Italian Football League club based in Bologna, Emilia-Romagna, formed in 1993. The club are nicknamed the rossoblù because of the red and blue striped shirts they wear. Red and Blue are the official colours of the town.During its history...
, played in season of 1942/43. When the information about restoring of Hajduk's work came to Frane Matošić, he returned to Croatia and smuggled himself on the free territory. There he joined Hajduk, that restarted its work on the free, Allied controlled part of Croatia, on the island of Vis. Since then, Matošić was playing the games for Hajduk (that was playing friendly games against Allied teams on the Mediterranean).
Altogether, Matošić played 739 games for Hajduk and scored impressive 729 goals.
National team career
Matošić was a long time Yugoslav national team player. He played 16 games and scored 6 goals for Yugoslavia. His last game was in 1953, and in that game he also scored a goal.Coach career
After the ending of career as player, he turned to coaching career, with success. He was the coach of his Hajduk (few years after his brother Jozo was coaching it) in the seasons 1955/56 and 1956/57. In 1957, he was the coach of Yugoslav national football team. He was also the coach of TunisianTunisia national football team
The Tunisia national football team , nicknamed Les Aigles de Carthage , is the national team of Tunisia and is controlled by the Fédération Tunisienne de Football. They have qualified for four FIFA World Cups, the first one in 1978, but have yet to make it out of the first round...
football team and the coach of Split's second football squad, RNK Split
RNK Split
RNK Split is a Croatian football club based in the city of Split.-History:Radnički nogometni klub means "Workers' football club".The club was known as workers' club. The club had a strong fanbase in the Split's shipyard...
.
Trivia
Frane Matošić was a younger brother of Jozo Matošić, also the great Hajduk's and Croatian soccer player legend.He twice refused Josip Broz Tito
Josip Broz Tito
Marshal Josip Broz Tito – 4 May 1980) was a Yugoslav revolutionary and statesman. While his presidency has been criticized as authoritarian, Tito was a popular public figure both in Yugoslavia and abroad, viewed as a unifying symbol for the nations of the Yugoslav federation...
's offer of transferring of Hajduk to Belgrade and renaming it into "Partizan"
Frane Matošić died in Split
Split (city)
Split is a Mediterranean city on the eastern shores of the Adriatic Sea, centered around the ancient Roman Palace of the Emperor Diocletian and its wide port bay. With a population of 178,192 citizens, and a metropolitan area numbering up to 467,899, Split is by far the largest Dalmatian city and...
on the anniversary of Hajduk's historical victory over Crvena Zvezda from Belgrade in 1950.
Trophies
All his trophies were won with Hajduk.- champion of Croatia: 1941 (championship of Hrvatski nogometni savez, Croatian Football Federation)
- champion of Yugoslavia: 1950, 1952 i 1955.
He won the silver medal on the 1948 Summer Olympics
1948 Summer Olympics
The 1948 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XIV Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event which was held in London, England, United Kingdom. After a 12-year hiatus because of World War II, these were the first Summer Olympics since the 1936 Games in Berlin...
in London.