TEHRAN - Miroslav Ciro Blazevic lost his battle with prostate cancer on Wednesday, two days prior to his 88th birthday. His friends and family said Blazevic died at a Zagreb hospital.The coach of all coaches, as he was understood in his home nation of Croatia, led four national groups and several domestic and foreign clubs throughout his career.He led Croatia to a third location surface at the 1998 World Cup.He organized Iran coach midway through the 2002 World Cup qualification procedure however failed to book a location in the Finals after losing to Ireland Republic 2-1 on aggregate.
The defeat that marked completion of Blazevics time in Iran as his assistant Branko Ivankovic took over.Ivankovic, his disciple, won a gold medal with Iran U23 in the 2002 Asian Games and declared a bronze with Team Melli in the 2004 AFC Asian Cup.Legendary Blazevic presented brand-new gamers to Iran football such as Rahman Rezaei, Javad Nekounam, and Ebrahim Mirzapour.May he rest in peace.