The legendary football player, later coach and selector, died last year, and a statue in his honor was unveiled today in the capital of Japan.
Source: MONDO/Samir Cacan
A legend of BiH, European and world football, Ivica Osim he left us in May of last year, and that his image and work are still alive and well, they confirmed to us from far away Japan, where a statue with his image was discovered today in front of the stadium in Tokyo.
With the presence of members of Osimo’s family, a statue was unveiled dedicated to the great man, who started his career in Željezničar, and later spent many years in France and the Netherlands.
After finishing his career, he turned to coaching. He led his Željezničar, was the last coach of SFR Yugoslavia, and later sat on the bench of Partizan, Panathinaikos, Sturm, Jeff United and the Japanese national team, where he also has the status of a legend, as confirmed by today’s ceremony.
During his stay in Japan, Osim gained enormous popularity, and in 2005 a book titled “Words of Osim”, which contained quotes from a great expert. That book sold more than 400,000 copies and became a bestseller in Japan. Four years later, Osim appeared on the cover of a video game by the Japanese company SEGA.
In addition, while he was the coach of the Japanese national team, he suffered a stroke in 2007 and was in a coma for a long time. He died on May 1, 2022.
(WORLD)