Former football player and coach Sinisa Mihajlovic dies of leucemia at 53

ROME (Reuters) – Sinisa Mihajlovic, who played for and coached numerous Italian Serie A teams, died on Friday after a long battle with cancer.

Mihajlovic was sacked as manager of Serie A club Bologna in September after they failed to record a win in their first five league matches.

The Serbian had become Bologna manager for the second time in 2019 and had been in charge while battling a severe form of leukaemia. 

His playing career included lengthy spells at Sampdoria and Lazio and he also managed Serbia. 

“A great man, a great fighter, we will remember him as one of the best Serbian players ever to play in Italy,” said Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani in a tweet as tributes began to flood in from inside and outside the football world.

(Reporting by Gavin Jones and Keith Weir, editing by Toby Davis)

Discover more from The Dispatch

Subscribe now to keep reading and get access to the full archive.

Continue reading

Verified by MonsterInsights