Zdenek Šcasný
Encyclopedia
Zdeněk Ščasný is a Czech
football
manager and former player.
Ščasný has won the Czech league
championship six timesfour times as a player and twice as a coachand the Czech Cup
three timestwice as a player and once as a coach.
He is best known for his years with Sparta Pragueboth as a player and a manager; he has also coached Greek
giants Panathinaikos.
debut. Ščasný spent four years with Dukla Prague, and won the Czechoslovak First League in 1976-77.
in 1979-1980, a Czechoslovak League and Cup double in 1983-84, and the league again in 1984-85.
to play for Anagennisi Dherynia
before ending his playing career.
player.
Ščasný returned to his homeland in 1993, and, after working with some smaller clubs, he became an assistant coach at Sparta Prague in 1996.
championship. The following season Ščasný and Sparta repeated as league champions.
in 2000-01the club's first title since 1993-94.
to be the head coach of OFI Crete
. Ščasný led OFI to an 8th-place finish in his first season with the club.
Scasny had very poor relations with many of the players at OFI and by the time he left the club the situation between him and many of the players was terrible.
His work at OFI led Greek giants Panathinaikos to hire him early in the 2004-05 season to replace Itzhak Shum
. Ščasný took over in the middle of Panathinaikos' UEFA Champions League
campaign, and with two impressive draws against Arsenal
, another draw in Norway
against Rosenborg and a resounding win over PSV Eindhoven in Athens
, Ščasný guided the Greek side to finish 3rd in the difficult group, thus moving them to the UEFA Cup
. Before Panathinaikos began UEFA Cup competition later that season though, Ščasný was replaced in favor of Alberto Malesani
.
was in its first-ever season in the Czech top flight, and was in danger of being relegated right back to the second division. Most turned to Ščasný during the winter break, Ščasný helped Most stay in the top flight that season, boosting the team to a surprising 10th-place finish. In 2006-07 Ščasný's Most finished 12th and remained the first division. After Ščasný helped Most stay in the top flight for the second consecutive season, Most surprisingly let Ščasný go, which turned out to be a bad move, as the club was relegated back to the second division in its first season without Ščasný.
early in the 2007-08 season. Boleslav was competing in the UEFA Cup that season, and in the first round of the competition Ščasný helped Boleslav pull off a stunning elimination of Italian
club Palermo
by winning 1-0 in the second leg of the tie in Italy. In the group stage of the competition, Boleslav finished 4th, behind Villarreal
, Fiorentina
and AEK Athens. Boleslav parted ways with Ščasný before the end of the season.
and daughter Pavlína
are both professional footballers.
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....
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...
manager and former player.
Ščasný has won the Czech league
Gambrinus Liga
The Gambrinus liga is a Czech professional league for football clubs. At the top of the Czech football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. It is contested by 16 clubs, operating a system of promotion and relegation with the Czech 2. Liga. Seasons run from August to May,...
championship six timesfour times as a player and twice as a coachand the Czech Cup
Czech Republic Football Cup
The Czech Republic Football Cup is the major football cup competition in the Czech Republic. It is organised by the Czech Football Association....
three timestwice as a player and once as a coach.
He is best known for his years with Sparta Pragueboth as a player and a manager; he has also coached Greek
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
giants Panathinaikos.
Early career, Dukla Prague and first title
Zdenek Ščasný in his youth played for Spartak Roudnice nad Labem. At 17 years old he moved to Dukla Prague, where he made his Czechoslovak First LeagueCzechoslovak First League
The Czechoslovak First League was the premier football league in the Czechoslovakia from 1925 to 1993, with the exception of World War II. Czechoslovakia was occupied by German forces who formed Gauliga Sudetenland and Gauliga Böhmen und Mähren leagues on occupied territories...
debut. Ščasný spent four years with Dukla Prague, and won the Czechoslovak First League in 1976-77.
Sparta Prague and more titles
In 1979 Ščasný moved to Sparta Prague, where he remained until 1985. With Sparta, Ščasný won the league title in 1978-79, the Czechoslovak CupCzechoslovak Cup
The Czechoslovak Cup was a football cup competition held in Czechoslovakia. It was officially created in 1960 and folded in 1993 with the split between Czech Republic and Slovakia.The cup was played between the winners of Czech Cup and Slovak Cup...
in 1979-1980, a Czechoslovak League and Cup double in 1983-84, and the league again in 1984-85.
Late career
In 1985 Ščasný joined Bohemians, playing there four and a half seasons. After Bohemians Ščasný played with Agro Slušovice for a short time and then moved to CyprusCyprus
Cyprus , officially the Republic of Cyprus , is a Eurasian island country, member of the European Union, in the Eastern Mediterranean, east of Greece, south of Turkey, west of Syria and north of Egypt. It is the third largest island in the Mediterranean Sea.The earliest known human activity on the...
to play for Anagennisi Dherynia
Anagennisi Dherynia
Anagennisi Deryneia is Cypriot football team based in Deryneia, Famagusta. The club was founded in 1920 and they joined the Cyprus Football Association in 1972. The team will play in the Cypriot First division in 2011. It has participated in the first and second divisions and Cypriot Third...
before ending his playing career.
International career
During his career Ščasný earned 4 caps as a Czechoslovakia national teamCzechoslovakia national football team
The Czechoslovakia national football team was the national association football team of Czechoslovakia from 1922 to 1993. At the dissolution of Czechoslovakia at the end of 1992, the team was participating in UEFA qualifying Group 4 for the 1994 World Cup; it completed this campaign under the name...
player.
Early career
Ščasný began his coaching career by acting as a player-coach at Anagennisi Dherynia, and he later supervised the youth there.Ščasný returned to his homeland in 1993, and, after working with some smaller clubs, he became an assistant coach at Sparta Prague in 1996.
Sparta Prague
In the middle of the 1997-98 season Ščasný took over as Sparta's head coach and led the team to the 1. LigaGambrinus Liga
The Gambrinus liga is a Czech professional league for football clubs. At the top of the Czech football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. It is contested by 16 clubs, operating a system of promotion and relegation with the Czech 2. Liga. Seasons run from August to May,...
championship. The following season Ščasný and Sparta repeated as league champions.
FK Viktoria Žižkov
After his second league championship with Sparta, Ščasný took over Viktoria Žižkov in 1999-00. Ščasný spent three seasons with Žižkov, guiding them to great improvement year after year, as the team finished 9th-place in 1999-00, 5th-place in 2000-01, and 3rd-placethe club's highest-ever finishin 2001-02. In 2000-01 Ščasný led Žižkov to win the Czech CupCzech Republic Football Cup
The Czech Republic Football Cup is the major football cup competition in the Czech Republic. It is organised by the Czech Football Association....
in 2000-01the club's first title since 1993-94.
Greece: OFI Crete and Panathinaikos
After leaving Žižkov, Ščasný moved to GreeceGreece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
to be the head coach of OFI Crete
OFI Crete
OFI , the Sportfriends Association Heraklion, is a Greek association football club based in Heraklion, on the island of Crete. Outside Greece, the club is generally known as OFI Crete F.C., however, the name Crete is not actually part of the club's official title.OFI is the club with most...
. Ščasný led OFI to an 8th-place finish in his first season with the club.
Scasny had very poor relations with many of the players at OFI and by the time he left the club the situation between him and many of the players was terrible.
His work at OFI led Greek giants Panathinaikos to hire him early in the 2004-05 season to replace Itzhak Shum
Itzhak Shum
Itzhak Shum is a retired Israeli football player and was lastly the manager of Cypriot First Division side Alki.-Playing career:He played 78 times and scored 10 goals for Israel national football team and was a participant at the 1970 FIFA World Cup and the 1968 and 1976 Olympic Games.-Manager...
. Ščasný took over in the middle of Panathinaikos' UEFA Champions League
UEFA Champions League
The UEFA Champions League, known simply the Champions League and originally known as the European Champion Clubs' Cup or European Cup, is an annual international club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations since 1955 for the top football clubs in Europe. It...
campaign, and with two impressive draws against Arsenal
Arsenal F.C.
Arsenal Football Club is a professional English Premier League football club based in North London. One of the most successful clubs in English football, it has won 13 First Division and Premier League titles and 10 FA Cups...
, another draw in Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
against Rosenborg and a resounding win over PSV Eindhoven in Athens
Athens
Athens , is the capital and largest city of Greece. Athens dominates the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, as its recorded history spans around 3,400 years. Classical Athens was a powerful city-state...
, Ščasný guided the Greek side to finish 3rd in the difficult group, thus moving them to the UEFA Cup
UEFA Cup
The UEFA Europa League is an annual association football cup competition organised by UEFA since 1971 for eligible European football clubs. It is the second most prestigious European club football contest after the UEFA Champions League...
. Before Panathinaikos began UEFA Cup competition later that season though, Ščasný was replaced in favor of Alberto Malesani
Alberto Malesani
Alberto Malesani is an Italian association football manager, currently in charge of Genoa.-Early career and breakthrough at Chievo:...
.
FK SIAD Most
In the middle of the 2005-06 season modest Czech side FK SIAD MostFK SIAD Most
FK Baník Most is a Czech football club based in the city of Most, approximately 75 kilometers north-west of Prague.The club's home stadium is Fotbalový stadion Josefa Masopusta....
was in its first-ever season in the Czech top flight, and was in danger of being relegated right back to the second division. Most turned to Ščasný during the winter break, Ščasný helped Most stay in the top flight that season, boosting the team to a surprising 10th-place finish. In 2006-07 Ščasný's Most finished 12th and remained the first division. After Ščasný helped Most stay in the top flight for the second consecutive season, Most surprisingly let Ščasný go, which turned out to be a bad move, as the club was relegated back to the second division in its first season without Ščasný.
Mladá Boleslav
After leaving Most, Ščasný took over at Mladá BoleslavMladá Boleslav
Mladá Boleslav is a city in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic, on the left bank of the Jizera river about 50 km northeast of Prague.Founded in the second half of the 10th century by King Boleslav II as a royal castle...
early in the 2007-08 season. Boleslav was competing in the UEFA Cup that season, and in the first round of the competition Ščasný helped Boleslav pull off a stunning elimination of Italian
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
club Palermo
U.S. Città di Palermo
Unione Sportiva Città di Palermo is an Italian football club from Palermo, Sicily which currently plays in Serie A, the top level of Italian football. Formed in 1900 as Anglo Panormitan Athletic and Football Club, the club had various names before assuming its final form in 1987 and is currently...
by winning 1-0 in the second leg of the tie in Italy. In the group stage of the competition, Boleslav finished 4th, behind Villarreal
Villarreal CF
Villarreal Club de Fútbol, S.A.D. , usually abbreviated to Villarreal CF or just Villarreal, is a Spanish Primera División football club based in Vila-real, a city in the province of Castellón within the Valencian Community...
, Fiorentina
ACF Fiorentina
ACF Fiorentina, commonly referred to as simply Fiorentina, is a professional Italian football club from Florence, Tuscany. Founded by a merger in 1926, Fiorentina have played at the top level of Italian football for the majority of their existence; only four clubs have played in more Serie A...
and AEK Athens. Boleslav parted ways with Ščasný before the end of the season.
Return to FK Viktoria Žižkov
In the middle of the 2008-09 season Žižkov was at the bottom of the table and likely to be relegation. Žižkov turned to Ščasný for help for the final 16 matches of the season, but it was too late - Ščasný could not save the club and they were relegated to the second division.Debreceni VSC
On 30 December 2010 Ščasný signed a 2-year contract to Hungarian champion, Debreceni VSC. On the 16th of April, 2011 he has left the Hungarian club, after he has failed to deliver the wins.Other
Zdenek's son MichalMichal Ščasný
Michal Ščasný is a Czech footballer currently under contract for Slovak side 1. FC Tatran Prešov.He is the son of Zdeněk Ščasný and the brother of Pavlína Ščasná.-External links:*...
and daughter Pavlína
Pavlína Ščasná
Pavlína Ščasná is a Czech football striker who plays for Swedish champion LdB Malmö.She played four years in Sparta Prague before earning Bayern Munich attention. In her first season at Bayern she was the team's top scorer with 14 goals. She then moved to WUSA's Philadelphia Charge, but WUSA folded...
are both professional footballers.
Sparta Prague
- Czechoslovak First LeagueCzechoslovak First LeagueThe Czechoslovak First League was the premier football league in the Czechoslovakia from 1925 to 1993, with the exception of World War II. Czechoslovakia was occupied by German forces who formed Gauliga Sudetenland and Gauliga Böhmen und Mähren leagues on occupied territories...
: 1978-79, 1983–84, 1984–85 - Czechoslovak CupCzechoslovak CupThe Czechoslovak Cup was a football cup competition held in Czechoslovakia. It was officially created in 1960 and folded in 1993 with the split between Czech Republic and Slovakia.The cup was played between the winners of Czech Cup and Slovak Cup...
: 1979-80, 1983–84