Stepi, between cigars and the tactics board, the predecessor of Terzic | OneFootball

Dragoslav Stepanovic, known as Stepi, arrived at Athletic in 1995 from Bayer Leverkusen and quickly charmed San Mamés. The bright start faded, and he was dismissed in March 1996 after form and support fell away.

As reported by as.com, his first Lezama session drew crowds as he split the pitch into six rectangles with strict touch limits. He often used a translator and was associated with cigars, which team-mates say mainly appeared at dinners. He could even be seen in a long raincoat in 30 degrees.

Athletic opened with a 4-0 against Racing, then won 0-1 at the Bernabéu to go top, sparking euphoria in Bilbao. The team then tailed off. He also promoted a running track near Lezama for athletics work.

President José María Arrate offered a January vote of confidence for coherence. From then, Athletic took five points from 21, sat 16th and only four above the drop, with San Mamés growing tense on home days.

The sacking came on Sunday 17 March after a 0-1 home defeat to Valencia, Viola scoring. Players railed at referee Brito Arceo, pointing to a wrongly disallowed Ernesto Valverde goal and two unawarded penalties on Etxeberria. Three hours later the club confirmed Stepi’s exit and José María Amorrortu took charge.

His career moved on to Egypt, Greece, China and his homeland. Former team-mates recall eccentric calls, including telling Tabuenka he would use him on the wing against Barcelona before backtracking. Óscar Vales remembers disorder and improvisation, calling it a lost year despite playing constantly.

Source: as.com