Savo Milošević

Savo Milošević (Serbian Cyrillic: Саво Милошевић, Serbian pronunciation: [sǎʋo milǒːʃeʋit͡ɕ]; born 2 September 1973) is a retired Serbian footballer who played as a striker.

After making a name for himself at Partizan, he signed for Aston Villa, and went on to spend the vast majority of the following decade playing in Spain, where he represented four clubs, amassing La Liga totals of 241 games and 91 goals and netting nearly 300 official goals over a 16-year professional career.

At the international level, Milošević played for the national team of FR Yugoslavia (later renamed Serbia and Montenegro), and Serbia, surpassing the century of caps for both teams combined and appearing in two World Cups and one European Championship, at which he earned the Golden Boot at Euro 2000.

Partizan

Born in Bijeljina, SR Bosnia and Herzegovina, Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, Milošević started playing football at the age of 6 and spent his youth in the Drina Valley, until he was 14 and was spotted by FK Partizan scouts, being transferred for 5,000 Deutsche Mark.

Milošević his senior debuts in 1992, and scored an astonishing 60 league goals in his last two seasons combined – a competition-best in both years – as the Belgrade club won back-to-back national championships, including the double in 1993–94.

Aston Villa

In the summer of 1995, Milošević moved to Aston Villa, being brought to Birmingham by manager Brian Little for £3.5 million, a club record at the time. His spell in England lasted three seasons, during which he earned the tabloid nickname "Miss-a-lot-ević" owing to his frequent goalscoring dry spells.

However, Milošević did score 34 goals all competitions comprised in 117 games for the Villans (28 in the Premier League), including one in the 1995–96 Football League Cup final, a 3–0 win against Leeds United.

Zaragoza

Milošević signed for Real Zaragoza in La Liga in 1998, again scoring at an impressive rate in two seasons, notably netting 21 in 1999–2000. He finished the first round of matches with 19 league goals, only finding the net twice subsequently, with the Aragonese eventually finishing in fourth position.

Parma

After rediscovering his scoring touch in Spain, Milošević joined Parma A.C. in the summer of 2000 for €25 million. He was used sparingly during his spell with the Emilia-Romagna side, only scoring once in the first half of his second season in Serie A.

Milošević was loaned back to Spain in January 2002, re-joining Zaragoza to replace Blackburn Rovers-bound Yordi. He scored six times during his second spell, still managing to finish as the club's top scorer– alongside Yordi and Roberto Acuña – but his team was eventually relegated.

In the 2002–03 campaign, Milošević played for RCD Espanyol, again finishing as his team's top scorer but narrowly escaping relegation, a fate that would befall him in the following year with Celta de Vigo (still owned by Parma), helping the Galicians reach the round-of-16 in their first ever appearance in the UEFA Champions League, with one goal in seven appearances, in a 3–2 group stage home win against AFC Ajax.

Later years

In mid-July 2004, aged 30, Milošević signed a three-year contract with another Spanish top flight club, CA Osasuna. In his second season with the Navarrese, he scored 11 goals in 32 games to help the team qualify for the Champions League, going scoreless in ten contests in the subsequent semifinal run in the UEFA Cup – he did provide two assists in a 3–0 away win against Bayer 04 Leverkusen in the quarterfinals' first leg (4–0 on aggregate).

In the summer of 2007, Milošević left Osasuna following his contract's expiry. He took a six-month break from competitive football, during which he had a trial with Major League Soccer's Toronto FC in November with a view of signing with them for the 2008 season. The deal fell through and, on 8 March 2008, he agreed terms with FC Rubin Kazan prior to the start of the Russian Premier League campaign.

Milošević in action for Rubin Kazan (2008)

On 2 November 2008, Milošević scored the decisive goal for Rubin in a game against FC Saturn Ramenskoye, which meant his team won its first ever national championship. He retired shortly afterwards, aged 35.

Milošević earned 102 caps for Serbia, scoring 37 goals. He made his debut for the nation (then named Federal Republic of Yugoslavia) on 23 December 1994, in a 0–2 friendly loss in Brazil.

After appearing in two games at the 1998 FIFA World Cup, Milošević scored five goals at UEFA Euro 2000. He was the tournament's joint-top scorer alongside Patrick Kluivert, despite playing one match fewer than the Dutchman.

On 16 June 2006, in the World Cup in Germany, Milošević appeared in his 100th international, in a 0–6 group stage loss against Argentina, becoming the all-time leader in caps. As a formal farewell from international football, he was called up for a friendly with Bulgaria on 19 November 2008, scoring twice and missing two penalties in a 6–1 win before being replaced by Dragan Mrđa.

Boris Tadić and Milošević at a convention in Sremski Karlovci, on 1 May 2012.

Milošević was born into an ethnic Serb family in the village of Johovac in the Semberija region. His siblings include younger brother Andrija (1975–2013) and younger sister Cvijeta "Mira". His mother died in 2000 from cancer. Milošević has distant paternal ancestry from Lijeva Rijeka of the large Milošević brotherhood of the Vasojevići tribe in northeastern Montenegro, and was a relative of Slobodan Milošević.

Milošević is a political supporter of the Democratic Party led by Boris Tadić, having supported it since 1993 after meeting with Zoran Đinđić and officially becoming a member in 2003. He took part in the 1996–97 protests and the 5 October Overthrow.

Milošević married to Vesna, with whom he had two sons and a daughter. On 11 June 2011, his father Stevan "Stevo" (1953–2011) was shot in the chest and killed in the family house in Glavičice by his grandfather Savo (1928–2012), after a family row. The latter was later detained.

International

Club

• First League of Serbia and Montenegro: 1992–93, 1993–94
• Yugoslav Cup: 1993–94

• Football League Cup: 1995–96

• Russian Football Premier League: 2008

Individual

• First League of FR Yugoslavia: Top scorer 1993–94, 1994–95
• UEFA Euro 2000: Golden Boot, Team of the Tournament