Ljubinko Drulović

Ljubinko Drulović

Personal information
Full name	Ljubinko Drulović
Date of birth	September 11, 1968 (1968-09-11)
Place of birth	Nova Varoš, SFR Yugoslavia
Height	1.70 m (5 ft 7 in)
Playing position	Winger
Youth career
	Zlatar Nova Varoš
	Sloga Požega
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps†	(Gls)†
1988–1989	Sloboda Užice	55	(9)
1990–1992	Rad	77	(25)
1992–1993	Gil Vicente	44	(17)
1994–2001	Porto	225	(40)
2001–2003	Benfica	50	(5)
2003–2004	Partizan	26	(5)
2004–2005	Penafiel	8	(0)
Total		485	(101)
National team
1996–2001	FR Yugoslavia	38	(3)
Teams managed
2006–2007	Tourizense
2008	Banat Zrenjanin
2008–2009	Drava Ptuj
2010–2011	1º Agosto
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. † Appearances (Goals).

Ljubinko Drulović (Serbian Cyrillic: Љубинко Друловић, born 11 September 1968 in Nova Varoš, Serbia, Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia) is a retired Serbian footballer, and a current coach.

A winger, he spent the most notable part of his playing career in Portugal, with stints at Porto and Benfica - ten seasons between the two teams combined, winning 14 major titles with the former.

Drulović represented the Serbian national team in one World Cup and one European Championship, gaining nearly 40 caps.

Club career

After playing out his contract at FK Rad in summer 1992, Drulović signed a two-year contract with Portuguese side Gil Vicente FC, but only played there until December 1993, after which he moved to top division giants F.C. Porto. Between both clubs, he finished 1993–94 with a career-best 18 goals.

Drulović is one of very few players to have contributed to each of Porto's five consecutive titles during the 90s. He was mostly remembered at the club for his pin-point assists and incredible ability to cross the ball, mainly to the head of centre forward Mário Jardel.

In 2001, already 33, Drulović moved to S.L. Benfica. After a slow 2002–03, he returned home and signed with FK Partizan, being one of the most influential players in the club as it reached the group stage in the UEFA Champions League; he moved back to Portugal a year later, finishing out his career with lowly F.C. Penafiel, alongside former Porto teammate António Folha.

Drulović began his coaching career with modest Portuguese club G.D. Tourizense, in 2006–07. At its closure, he obtained a professional coaching licence.

In early April 2008, Drulović became manager of FK Banat Zrenjanin, in the Serbian first division. As its fifth manager of the season – he replaced Žarko Soldo – he took over a club under relegation threat (8th place out of 12), with eleven matches to go. Eventually, he could not help prevent the club from dropping down a level, after a 1–4 loss to FK Vojvodina, on May 17.

In June 2008, Drulović moved to Slovenia, signing with NK Drava Ptuj. Almost two years later, in January 2010, he was appointed coach of Clube Desportivo Primeiro de Agosto of Angola.

International career

Drulović made his debut for FR Yugoslavia on 28 December 1996, in a friendly with Argentina played in Mar del Plata (3–2).

He went on to collect a further 37 caps in the following five years, appearing for the nation at the 1998 FIFA World Cup and UEFA Euro 2000 tournaments, contributing with one goal (in the 3–3 against Slovenia) and three assists in the latter tournament, as the national side reached the quarterfinals.

Honours

• Porto:
  • Portuguese League: 1994–95, 1995–96, 1996–97, 1997–98, 1998–99
  • Portuguese Cup: 1993–94, 1997–98, 1999–2000, 2000–01
  • Portuguese Supercup: 1993, 1994, 1996, 1998, 2001

External links

• Stats and profile at Zerozero
• Stats at ForaDeJogo (Portuguese)
• National team data (Serbian)
• Ljubinko Drulović at National-Football-Teams.com